I am of German-Swedish origin, but have lived and worked most of my life abroad in Europe and overseas. I recently moved to London where, by setting up IN-Tuition Ltd., I realised my ambition of working with what I truly enjoy in life: helping people get to know their inner self and fulfil their true potential.

I started my professional life working with international relations in the Swedish Foreign Service. Soon my experience of the European Union and my knowledge of China gave me the opportunity to work for the European Commission Delegation in Beijing, where I was responsible for dealing with human rights issues. Following the end of my contract, I returned to Europe where I opened a satellite office in Brussels for a Chinese–American human rights NGO, lobbying the EU institutions. These were interesting but demanding years of my life. Stress took its toll, as did the devastating stories and encounters with mistreated Chinese human rights defenders. My work totally consumed me; I neglected my health to a point where my body and mind both abruptly said stop.

The road to recovery was long and difficult, but along the way I discovered the importance of listening to and being aware of the body´s signals, to keep an inner balance through yoga and meditation and to live in the present, not to dwell on the past or worry about the future. I was already practicing yoga during the time that I was leading my stressful lifestyle, in the hope of restoring some balance to my system. But yoga causes energetic amplification. This means that it tends to enhance whatever state you bring to your mat. That is why it was not until I was forced to slow down and return to the beginning that I started to feel the benefits of yoga. Before that my ambitious and stubborn approach was preventing me from enjoying the full benefits of the practice. Once I entered yoga with an open mind my entire organism started relaxing and I embarked on a journey to get to know my inner self and discover my true potential – an exciting yet challenging journey that is still ongoing.

In parallel with my regular job, I had always been interested in health and wellbeing. I worked as a fitness instructor in my spare time and enjoyed helping people feel better about themselves and to reach their physical goals. The instant feedback of satisfied people after a class, and conversations with clients who wished to further improve, motivated me and gave me the energy to carry out my regular job. However, as time went by I realised that I could no longer be happy in my regular job. The change came naturally when my system broke down and I had to change my priorities and become more responsive. The transition to working with people´s wellbeing on a full–time basis came naturally. My journey into yoga and discovery of its benefits made me want to share this with others; teaching yoga was just another natural step.

Coaching became the next natural step after yoga. Coaching and yoga complement each other very well, just as they share many common features. Both yoga and coaching help to reduce stress in various ways: in yoga through breathing, meditation and posture practice; in coaching through various action–oriented techniques. With my background and experience – how leading a very stressful life can bring you to the very edge – and with lessons learned on the road back to recovery, stress management (physical and mental) has become one of my specialities. Working with yoga and coaching I´ve also encountered mental training, a method developed for Swedish athletes by Professor Lars Erik Uneståhl thirty years ago. The methodology can be applied to all areas of life. Having practiced the method myself, I feel a noticeable change in mood and behaviour, as well as a reduced general stress level in the body.

Coaching, yoga and stress management all complement each other; the awareness acquired in yoga is a useful tool for the coaching process and like yoga, life coaching and mental training also help you get to know yourself better. All three practices enhance creativeness, reveal hidden resources and help change lives for the better. They help practitioners take steps to realise goals and fulfil their ambitions, just as they helped me to take the step to create IN–Tuition and to work with what I really enjoy.