I grew up between worlds. Born in Ukraine, raised in Germany, shaped by cultures that didn’t always make space for nuance. As a third-culture kid, I often felt like I didn’t fully belong anywhere, so I found safety in achievement. By my early twenties, I had three degrees and had lived across multiple countries. I kept moving, kept building, always doing. On the outside, I seemed capable and together. But on the inside, I felt very much burned out.
Movement and creativity had always been anchors for me. I trained in yoga and Qi Gong early, grew up in the theatre, and danced for years. But even those practices eventually started to feel like more boxes to tick without a community or deep sense of self I could connect to. I didn’t know where to bring the parts of me that felt uncertain, sensitive, or not okay.
Then I sat in my first women’s circle at a women’s retreat in Thailand. It was quiet, honest, and unlike anything I’d experienced. No one was trying to fix me. No one was performing wisdom or pretending to have it all figured out.
It was a true feeling of belonging to a community I had just met. It was very profound. Not because I fit in, but because I didn’t have to fit in! That experience changed how I now hold space. I’m not interested in spiritual performance or curated perfection. I care about spaces where women can breathe again, where they can feel something real, and be seen without having to explain themselves.