My Journey

Hi! I’m Hannah, or you can call me Hansie!
I am a Dutchie, but based in the UK where I live with my amazing English partner.

I’ve been on a self-discovery journey for some time now and I would like to tell my story.

A few years ago, I thought that I had to go with all the things “I should” do or how it’s supposed to be. With thinking I should achieve a lot, focusing on success, mostly linked to money and working hard for it, and always living by the expectations of others.
I felt a lot of pressure to belong to certain groups or society, social pressure and obligations.
I was influenced a lot by what happened around me and lots of time I let people cross my boundaries.

I found it hard to say no or to set my boundaries in general, I found it hard to tell people if things didn’t feel right to me or if I didn’t like something. I was always busy with other people, I did lots of people pleasing. I always felt guilty if I would make a choice that felt good for myself but would disappoint someone else. Everything felt like my responsibility. I was living in my head, even though I’ve always felt a lot. But I just didn’t know how to listen to my body. I thought that I had to listen to everything and everyone else.

There were some periods in my life that I felt really miserable, depressed almost. Lots of crying day after day, lots of stress, migraines, a burn-out… I was very very self-critical (I call my inner critic Harry). From the outside you would say that I had a perfect life and that I looked so happy. Everything sorted, everything under control. But I was putting an enormous amount of pressure on myself to make it all work. I was constantly pushing myself and then I would tell myself all the time that I was doing everything wrong. I was always worrying about the future. Lots of doubts, lots of difficulties to make decisions. What do I really want? How do I know what I want? I had no idea.
Always a busy mind and I didn’t know how to get out.

I didn’t always take good care of myself. I did a lot of partying. Of course it’s fun and it’s all about the balance. But I’d go all out, to release the stress. With lots of “Hansie’s Hangovers”. So then I would feel even more exhausted and miserable. But I mostly just didn’t know in general when enough was enough. I always had the idea that I had to work harder, that I had to do more. I didn’t love myself, at all. I didn’t know how to do that. Loving yourself, eeks, what’s that?!

I always tried to be everywhere all the time as the best (“perfect”) version of myself and I tried to control everything, but of course it only gave me stress and stress and more stress.

My burn-out was the start of: “this needs to change”. It was the start of my self-development journey. A journey back to myself. With therapy, with some amazing solo travel trips ánd with doing lots and lots of research about everything that has to do with the law of attraction, human design, mindset, self-love, spiritually…

But even though I spent all my time exploring who I really was with all those self help books, I still didn’t feel fully happy and I felt that something was missing. I was still looking outside myself for answers or I thought that something was wrong with me and that I needed to be “fixed”.

In 2022 my spiritual journey got a real boost with a ten-day silent retreat. This has been the most beautiful experience of my life.
I was so suprised, that without any distraction and no one around me to influence me… I felt like a glowing lightbulb. Finally time to give space for my inner world only, what a release. Something has really shifted. Since then I feel definitely better than ever and since then I’ve been deep diving into yoga, meditation and mindfulness. I am now a certified yoga and meditation teacher. Besides that I spent some time as karma yogi (volunteer) in a retreat center, where I also had the opportunity to give classes during retreats and organize my own retreats.

With all of this, I’ve learned to live more in the now and to not fall into the trap of my busy, critical head that easily anymore. Thanks to meditation and other spiritual practices I become more conscious about what happens in my mind and body and I can look at it instead of getting lost in it. I learn how to create patience and compassion with and for myself and life around me.
Therefore, I can also make more conscious decisions, choices that are right for me.
Of course, I still have to cry every now and then and I still feel very stressed sometimes. But I can be with it, be curious about it and approach it with love, instead of pushing myself more or to have resistance towards whatever is happening in my inner world or around me.

I am now enjoying the journey of life without being too busy with the final destination.
I’m a free spirit, I like to face my fears and like to figure out how to live as my true self instead of doing things that “I should do” when they don’t feel right.
I want to be my most true authentic self and to embrace the whole spectrum of being a human being – all the ups and the downs, the good and the bad times.
I want to spread a little bit of love, a little bit of light, a little bit of happiness.

Jumping and diving into the unknown and following “a different path” out of your comfort zone is scary. But this is what makes you feel alive and what makes you grow. Despite all the challenges, it’s been the most beautiful journey.

I’ve been inspired by so many beautiful people and practices, I hope I can be an inspiration for you too. When you dare to jump, beautiful things can happen.
Trust in yourself and that everything will work out exactly how it’s supposed to be.
You are perfectly imperfect, just as you are.

Thanks for reading and enjoy your journey of life, like I’m enjoying mine! <3