Try Another Way
Grief coaching &
Support through life's changes
Big life changes can be challenging. Trying to navigate them on your own can make them feel even harder.
Whether you are living with grief, facing a big life transition, or simply trying to find your way through something that has changed everything, you don't have to figure it all out alone.
Try Another Way offers one-to-one online, and face-to-face support for people navigating change, grief and the uncertainty that can come with them.
I don't have answers, and I will not tell you what you should do. Instead, I offer a safe, compassionate space to talk, think, explore and make sense of what is happening to you.
My support is shaped by lived experience. I know that sometimes what is needed most isn't advice or someone trying to make things better. Sometimes we need someone to sit alongside us, listen without judgement, and help us find our own way forward.
You don't have to have a plan.
You don't have to know what comes next.
You can simply start where you are.
- Try Another Way -
Because you don't have to cope with change on your own.
My Story
I grew up in the Netherlands and moved to the UK in 2004; the reason for this big move was to change my life. At that time I was working as a Human Resources consultant for the NS (Dutch Railways), one of the largest employers in the Netherlands. I was a workaholic and my husband at the time didn't like the person I had become, he suggested to move to the UK to start a new life and live happily ever after.
We didn't make it as a couple, however, I did build a new life for myself. I started working in care, got further educated, married, became a mother, encountered domestic violence, divorced again, became a carer for my son who was diagnosed with leukemia when he was 11, became a bereaved parent a year later when my son died.
My life took a deep dive, and I had to reinvent myself; all of me.
I would not be where I am now without support, family, friends, colleagues and health professionals helped me to get back and rebuild. This was tough, and still is, yet I am doing it. Change is not easy and it definitely is not something to do on your own, and that is where I can support you on your journey.
Ways we can work together
Listening partner
I offer customized plans:
Sometimes you don't need someone to fix anything. You just need someone who will listen, without judgement, and give you space to work out what you think & feel.
I can meet you in the Shrewsbury area, taking a gentle walk or having a coffee/tea out. Or we can meet online, where you can take the conversation wherever you feel it needs to go.
Wellness Workshops
Interactive sessions exploring simple ways to support your wellbeing, including movement, breathwork, sleep hygiene, connection, nature immersion, to name a few.
Creative expression
Words aren't always enough to express yourself. Creativity can offer another way to explore what is happening inside of you, and you don't need to be 'good' at art or writing. It is simply about finding another way to express & explore what is going on for you.
Together we can explore:
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Journaling
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Art Journaling
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Collage
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Creative writing
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Writing your own story
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Other forms of creative expression
Mindfulness Tools
I can provide practical mindfulness tools that you can access online and use in your own time - simple resources to help you pause, breathe, notice & reconnect.
Why choose for me
I offer a range of different ways to support you on your journey. The different options show that you can choose what feels right for you, rather than being put into a fixed programme.
You don't have to journey on your own, and you don't have to know exactly what you need before you begin; We can find another way together.
Tailored Solutions
Gentle Guidance
Personal Support
Opening up to creativity
I started doodling during the time my son was in hospital. At first, it was simply a distraction, something small I could focus on when everything else felt to difficult. Creativity become more than a way to simply 'keep busy'. Creativity became a way to express experiences and feelings that were too difficult, overwhelming, or complicated to express in words.
For me, creativity has become a safe form of escape, expression and exploration. It gives shape to things that can feel impossible to put into words, and sometimes, simply creating something is enough to help me understand what is going on inside.
Over time, I discovered that creativity could offer me something more than distraction. It became a way of stepping away from unhelpful and upsetting thoughts and giving my mind somewhere else to go.
I started writing a journal, what over time developed into an art journal wherein I combined the writing with pictures, photographs and colours. It became a way of making sense of thoughts and feelings I couldn't find words for, or I felt that were difficult to explain, or I was afraid no one would understand. Through creativity, I could express some of those feelings without having to explain them.
