You know the Talking Heads song, “Once in a Lifetime”? It’s always been one of my favorite songs. David Byrne’s eccentric energy runs though it making it fun to sing along with and dance to. While it is, by all accounts, a fun song, the cautionary messages of living an unconscious life were never lost on me. In fact, I’ve had multiple bouts of minor depression throughout my life contemplating such matters. Yet in 2018 I still managed to find myself two beers and a handful of cigarettes into a Wednesday night, in the park across the street from my beautiful house, saying out loud, “How did I get here?”

It was at that moment that I recognized how truly disconnected I had become – from my true Self, from any kind of spirituality, from my heart, and perhaps most importantly (for my journey at least) from my body. The disconnect was so subtle and gradual that I totally missed all of the red flags, warning signs, and whispers from my conscious Self that said, “Hey, you’re not taking care of yourself, sis.”

In the years leading up to this moment I couldn’t keep a consistent fitness routine, I drank double shot lattes nearly every morning, I staved off hunger until lunchtime or later at which point I ate whatever was convenient – usually at my desk with hangry desperation. I drank a lot of (free) beers (thanks to a job in the music/media industry), I smoked nearly a pack of cigarettes a day, I was generally tense, and on a good night, I slept about six hours. I was bloated and achy. I crashed every afternoon between 2-3 p.m. like clockwork. I experienced brain fog, dizzy spells, fatigue, constipation, diarrhea, anxiety, and depression. At one point I went to the emergency room because I had a tightness in my chest for three days and was told I was having a continuous low-grade panic attack. 

I quit my job in March of 2019.  I didn’t have another one lined up but I had to make a change. My husband and I had both worked our way out of survival mode (in a financial sense) and we were in a position where I could take a break. It was the first time in my life I didn’t have a job since I was 15 years old. I did not waste this precious time. 

Over the next six months I cultivated a daily ritual of journaling, stretching/yoga, meditation, and getting real curious about my habits (read: addictions) that continues to this day. Through these practices I began to feel grounded. I began to feel like I was in my body again for the first time since childhood. Eventually I quit smoking and was able to stick to a consistent exercise routine. I completely changed my relationship with alcohol and I even quit drinking coffee and eliminated my addiction to caffeine. I did a 6-week anti-inflammatory elimination diet which led me to completely rethink the way I eat. I learned that the rebel in me had used all of these things in an effort to throw up a middle finger to society, to growing up. But in reality, I was enslaved to these habits, unable to get free and feeling stuck as fuck.

Through these rituals and by eliminating so many bad habits, I lost the bloat that had been on my body for years. I had energy and a clear head. I felt balanced and stable. Most importantly, I started taking care of myself and trusting myself.

It was during this time I realized I had a passion for nutrition so I began looking into it as a career change and found the Nutritional Therapy Association (NTA). I earned a Nutritional Therapy Practitioner (NTP) certificate from the NTA in 2022.

To me, nutrition is sort of like a gateway drug to holistic healing. It is merely one component that makes up our spiritual, energetic, and physical being, but it is an important one! I believe that you cannot communicate effectively with your higher Self until your body is in a resilient and balanced state.

It is this knowledge and experience that inspired me to create Your Traveling NTP. Your Traveling NTP came to me in a very clear vision after backpacking the Chisos Mountains in Big Bend National Park. It dropped in as we were leaving the wild West Texas landscape heading home to Austin. I could see it so perfectly that I wrote it down so that I wouldn’t forget and I immediately got the handle on Instagram.

Why “traveling”?

The word takes on multiple meanings. Anyone who chooses to work with me is on some sort of wellness journey or they wouldn’t have found themselves here. Through this work, I’ll be guiding clients as they take a trip back to their body. Together we’ll adventure through internal connections and explore the universe within. I want to meet you where you’re at and join alongside you in the adventure to once again feel connected to your Self. So, lots of traveling metaphors here.

It is also 100% literal. I have plans to get a van and travel across the country backpacking and getting lost in nature – because the more I learn about my Self and what my body wants I discovered I love being outside with a backpack full of gear connecting to nature. Eventually, I plan to take Your Traveling NTP on the road and meet with clients along the routes of the cross-country trips I’ll take. While the convenience and access of connecting online is amazing, I personally feel that connecting and sharing physical space is unparalleled. I’d like to prepare a meal with clients as they start or end their journey with me.

My ultimate goal is to inspire freedom and adventure, not only through this work but also by the way I live my life. I aim to inspire freedom from habits, addictions, diets, dogma, your brain, stuck-ness, society’s norms, modern life, and feeling like shit. Despite our society’s rhetoric, you’re not supposed to feel bad.

If you’ve made it this far, thanks for reading. If any of this aligns with where you’d like to be, where you are, or where you’ve been – don’t hesitate to reach out. I’d love to hear from you and I’d love to work with you! 

thanks,
j jett