Today we’d like to introduce you to Nora Faber Overvoorde.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Who would have thought that feeling loved in a non conditional way could be so incredibly healing!? Not only did I find this type of love in Jesus Christ, I found it in my partner-in-life Pete Overvoorde. This profound love has sent me into a healing journey of breaking the limited mindset I had of being stuck in the past. This love combined with a tough experience launched me into the present and gently guided me towards my future of a new business called SomaFlow.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Now, at 50 yrs. of age, I have just come out of a nervous system crash that I now refer to as my second stage of autonomy again. Three years ago I made a decision to help someone. This offering of a ‘relationship’ was big and more than I should have offered….At one point I realized I was not being treated well, but I leaned into the projected hurt from this person with full codependency, people pleasing (also sometimes referred to as West MI nice repression), and fear of conflict. In my 1st stage of autonomy (ages 15-17) I had had a person treat me the exact same way. My nervous system defaulted back to what I knew….which was how to get through trauma of this sort the least un-scathed (I thought). I just admitted this person was right and I was wrong to appease and not cause more anger. I had learned not to provoke.
After three months in this relationship, I thought I was having severe allergic reactions to foods, however my husband helped me to recognize that I was having panic attacks…four more months went by of not sleeping well and my nervous system being in flight and freeze mode, and after 7 months, I fell. I ended up by the fire doing breath-work multiple times a day curled up in a ball crying, forgiving myself for my complacency in this relationship and in the ones years ago. Luckily, as in my 1st stage of ‘becoming’ when I painted for the first time, I had enough strength to paint and process again. As soon as I got out of complete freeze, I painted my inner child holding my adult self. And, I danced. I danced to love songs and sang them to myself, then painted, danced, painted then danced. This back and forth helped me create my first SomaFlow offering of painting, dancing, painting, then dancing with others!
To sum up the deepest and hardest part of this crash, it was a spiritual battle of sorts happening in my soul. This person had strikingly similar hurt to people from my past which had included spiritual attacks. This person was treating me the exact same way. It was all so confusing for my nervous system. Although this was something I knew and had built neural pathways for….how convenient; I thought I knew exactly what to do. Except that the neurons were lighting me on fire.
I had to painstakingly carve new pathways of regulation and safety. I had to learn to love and forgive myself for the enabling that I so generously gave to the people of my past. I felt un-conditional love holding me up during this time and feel blessed beyond measure by God’s presence, my husband’s love, and the help of a psycho-therapist and a somatic coach.
I HAD to become a Somatic coach to learn how to be in my own body. I had to learn how to re-set the patterns I learned in my 1st and 2nd stages of autonomy. I had to create a business with water in the logo to put out this lifetime of fire. I had to find my own SomaFlow.
I believe God led me to this stage of life to get me to where I am now. I had to cut out all codependent relationships and work so hard to meet my own needs instead of trying to meet the needs of others. I have formed new neural pathways! Anxiety, stress and depression patterns have calmed (still working on this). I am melting into my true self.
My training as a Somatic Coach through The Somatic School has also given me a vision to be present, and look to the future for the 1st time in my life. The hot-head limited mindset I had has been washed away by forgiving waters. The over-firing neuron blaze of my system has calmed. My art work is grounded now. There are leaves on the rooted trees. There are prayers infused and un-conditional love pouring out.
Additionally, I have been able to start a business because of support from a program in Grand Rapids, MI called SpringGR. The education and coaching I am receiving has been invaluable. My business coach helped me make the decision to go back to what I know which is teaching Art while I start my business. I had been the cheese monger at Martha’s Vinyard for 2 years while I got my nervous system back on track. Let’s just say that teaching and managing children was NOT a good way to calm my nerves, so cutting and wrapping cheese turned out to be a huge help in my regulation. However, I did have sore hands and had stopped painting. So, back to teaching at Grandville Calvin Christian High School for now, and I am painting again! It’s been healing to go back into process paintings about my 2 second stages of autonomy. Painting is one of my calming tools-a time when I can worship, dance, pray and be present.
We’ve been impressed with SomaFlow, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
SomaFlow provides wellness experiences that help people connect what’s going on in their bodies with what’s going on in their minds. These somatic experiences offer a dynamic flow between Activation and Calm. People experience a balanced nervous system through personalized or group experiences that up-regulate energy and focus and/or re-set, repair and restore nervous system patterns of stress, anxiety and depression.
SomaFlow offers Somatic coaching or body-oriented neural recalibration-experiences of breath-work, and embodied presence helping to connect what is going on in the mind with what’s going on in the body. Somatic Mindfulness touch therapy is deeply relaxing hands-on bodywork to help restore blood-flow and allow the body/nervous system to melt into a deeply restorative state of healing. Embodied presence and attuned touch foster a return to the body’s natural intelligence to heal itself. There is no need to yell at the body! With a tender focus on the joints, muscles and pressure points the body is guided toward a state of ventral vagal calm.
SomaFlow also offers mindful sensory experiences though the arts and play! All of these somatic practices help reduce reactivity, expand resilience, improve sleep quality, and help with self-awareness and overall wellness. The up-regulation (nervous system activation) experiences are designed to expand ones thinking-enhancing mental clarity and focus by improving blood flow to the brain and optimizing neural pathways. And the communal artsy play, laughter and movement, bring joy and connection.
*Experience mindfulness from the inside out with Somatic coaching or Somatic Mindfulness Touch Therapy-Calm the currents and awaken the flow!
*Experience where movement meets art- and community comes alive in shared somatic play!
What’s next?
I plan to offer SomaFlow events to large groups of people. These will be themed events such as Vagal Tone strengthening, The Somatic Dance, SomaSilly, ActivateSoma and AlignSoma- all events using Somatics and/or the Arts for Integration. I am the most excited about the Somatic Dance which will be a communal dance of creativity and embodiment inviting joy, connection, and authentic expression!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.trysomaflow.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/Fabernora
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/nora.faber.3
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nora-faber-overvoorde-7bb700101/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@trysomaflow
- Other: https://mailchi.mp/2b4ca0a0fc5e/trysomaflow
Image Credits
Images by Nora Faber Gallery
