We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Melissa Nadeau a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Melissa thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?
On September 20, 2023, I was significantly suffering from burnout without realizing it. Exhausted from the moment I woke up; I collapsed into a pile of tears, going back to bed after getting my kids off to school. I knew something was wrong, I knew that I did not feel like myself. I felt like I was coming apart at the seams; unraveling. Unable to take care of myself for an entire week, I was diagnosed with dissociating, and severe depression. I was convinced that leaving this world permanently was the only solution. My family deserved better than I could provide. My time on earth was finished.
The list of stressors I was experiencing at the time was long to include my parents passing away five weeks apart from one another, raising a complicated & medically fragile child, and the beginning of a divorce. Being a career 911 dispatcher, I could never ever escape trauma, chaos and stress. There was always as much cortisol coursing through my veins as blood. Despite my “free time” passion of yoga and recently becoming a yoga teacher, I had no idea how to relax and rest.
The doctor prescribed Xanax, therapy, and a leave of absence from my job. The thought of having to talk to people at my department about the truth was paralyzing; mental health and feeling suicidal are not topics openly discussed amongst police department employees, I was too scared to tell the truth. Terrified of being labeled unstable and unreliable, I lied and told everyone I had the flu. I was too scared and too fragile to be honest. First responders don’t have safety nets to catch them when they have heard and witnessed the worst traumas and just need a break.
As I came out of the debilitating brain fog, I found notes everywhere that I had written during the week I was in my reptilian, survival brain. Knowing that Xanax and talk therapy are only the tip of the iceberg, I leaned into my educational and experiential background of psychology and yoga and decided to try healing on my terms, in my own way. Determined to change my life for the better, I took the biggest leap of faith and resigned from emergency services; the only career field I had known in over twenty years. Leaving an old-fashioned pension and excellent health insurance on the table, I walked away from financial security to heal my mental and emotional health. There is a bigger reason why I found a glimmer of hope in my darkest hour. I was given a “silver lining” and leaned on that to lift me up through and out of the fog.
I know there are A LOT of people out there just like myself; believing a few minutes of quiet each day will reset the nervous system and combat stress. This could be true if that few minutes of rest is practiced daily, reinforcing safety and calm over and over. What if through yogic practices, I could teach someone how to lower their own heart rate, take themselves out of flight or fight, and find a new level of peace and tranquility? What if through ancient yogic science and modern therapeutic techniques I can provide a service that compliments any person’s healing journey or invites them to start one?
Silver Lined is a healing business. I offer experiences, not just yoga classes. I offer a side of yoga and healing that has nothing to do with mastering postures and creative headstands. I believe yoga is the vehicle in which we connect to our minds to our inner and best selves.
Each session attended with me is like a massage for your soul. Yoga offers a plethora of benefits that students cannot always access in a sixty-minute class once a week. For those who desire more, I offer personalized yoga sessions. Additionally, I will be offering a monthly healing membership where each month a new topic of healing is explored. The subscription comes with downloadable meditations, a 60-minute pre-recorded yoga class, journal prompts and specific healing exercises (such as sound or dirt therapy). I believe healing can be simple and accessible, inclusive to all.
In my year of healing and developing Silver Lined Healing, I have eradicated insomnia, an out of control eating disorder, high blood pressure and cortisol levels. Yogic philosophy, breathing exercises, mindfulness practices, gentle movement and rest have changed my life; have given me a second chance. Passing that along to others is why I am on this earth.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
From the age I was eligible to work, I always worked with people. Customer service, food and beverage industry, healthcare and emergency services; it has always been my passion to be with and work with people. Communicating with people during stressful, chaotic times was my superpower for over twenty years. You learn the most about human behavior when you have the opportunities to observe it.
My commitment to helping others and introducing them to their best selves has become my dharma (life’s purpose/work). I have converted my empathetic superpower into healing energies to address and soothe the wounds our past experiences have left behind in our bodies and psyche.
My mission is to teach people they are worthy of taking up space, that the stories they have been told about themselves are not true, that each of us has within ourselves an ability to heal. Using my extensive experience with human behavior, my psychology degree, trauma physiology knowledge and crisis management experience, I help people before they burnout; before they become the emergency.
What I offer is a different approach to yoga. I offer personalized healing sessions to meet a person where they are currently in their respective therapeutic journey. Through slow, nurturing, loving movement and meditation, we can heal.
Putting training and knowledge aside, what else do you think really matters in terms of succeeding in your field?
I have training, education and experience in human behavior. However, my observation skills empathy, and ability to listen is what tunes me into someone’s energy. Each of us have unique stories and backgrounds that have formed who we are in this current moment. Embracing the human being you are NOW and not promoting “change who you are” is why I chose to start a business in the healing world.
We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?
I had to unlearn that stress and productivity are what makes us successful! I spent every day rushing around, getting from here to there, shuttling my kids and my mental health all over the place. I was constantly double booked, high on caffeine and thrived in difficult/chaotic situations. I had to teach myself that the way of life I was living was not sustainable. I had to teach myself that I am worthy of rest and recovery just for being myself. I had to learn that I do not have to always be offering something in order for someone to accept and love me. This translates to my business because this is the message that I deliver to people through yoga.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.silverlinedhealing.com
- Instagram: @silverlinedhealing
- Facebook: Melissa Nadeau
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@silverlinedhealing
