About Linda Dessau
GENUINE: sincerely and honestly felt or experienced, authentic, candid, natural, real, open-hearted, direct, transparent, on the level.
My journey to self-care:
Quitting smoking was one of the hardest things I've ever done. My main tools were planning and support — the structures I put in my place for my quit are very similar to what I've created in The Everyday Self-Care Workbook. Also, I noticed that once I'd gotten rid of that bad habit, I was becoming less and less tolerant of the other parts of my life that weren't quite what I wanted them to be.
The next phase was to introduce exercise into my life. I started with a pretty traditional routine of joining a gym and creating a routine of cardiovascular and strength workouts. Then I was bitten by the “running” bug.
I ran for two seasons — two winters, actually — and I absolutely loved it. I loved being outdoors, I loved using my body to its fullest potential, I loved training with my Dad, who has been running for years. What stopped me the first time from running was a back injury (March 2001). I got back to running after that, and then in the late winter of 2002 the onset of fibromyalgia stopped me once again.
The back injury was quite a wake-up call. I'd been feeling so good about what I was doing for my body that I'd neglected to notice the build-up of stress in me — a job I didn't like, a boring social life and a lot of negative thinking. Realizing the importance of my whole life picture, and not just my physical health, was hugely instrumental in creating the Genuine Self-Care Model, as explained in the The Everyday Self-Care Workbook.
Fibromyalgia has brought its own lessons (and continues to). When you have fibromyalgia, self-care is not an option, it's pretty much a necessity. If I decide to pretend I'm "normal" and ignore my self-care routine, I'm quickly reminded that I'm NOT normal. And you know what, thank God!
I once compared myself to a "hot house orchid," after reading an article in another coach's newsletter. Was I pampering myself too much? Or worse, was I encouraging other people to pamper themselves too much? By making sure my conditions were always "just right," sometimes to the exclusion of fun, other people's wishes, or even some of my other life goals, what was I giving up?
I've decided that, for me, creating my environments as best I can, and planning ahead so that my needs are met (as much as I can) is the only way I can be strong and resilient enough to handle things outside of my control. And I founded Genuine Coaching Services to help others discover the power of choice so that they can make healthy lifestyle choices every day.
My creative journey:
I've been a musician all my life. I sang in school choirs and begged for piano lessons (and got them) from the age of 6. I attended a high school with a specialized arts program and learned there about the profession of music therapy. I decided to pursue my Bachelor of Fine Arts in Music, first, which I did at York University in Toronto. There I took courses in jazz singing, jazz choir, songwriting, contemporary piano improvisation, African drumming and dance, South Indian drumming and music history.
My fondest memories of York were of my time in Wibijazz'n' (now known as Wibi), a student-run singing group that specialized in re-creating popular songs in the a-capella format. I also did some performing as a solo jazz vocalist, with small combos.
I've studied singing, piano, guitar, hand percussion and drum kit.
I am an MTA (a music therapist who has been accredited by the Canadian Association for Music Therapy), and I worked in private practice from 1997-2010. Clients, family members, staff and volunteers have commented on my warm, supportive approach to people with special needs, and how I created a safe and accepting environment in which my clients can bloom to their highest potential.
I loved my work as a music therapist — the magical moments I shared with my clients, coupled with the fact that it was our music-making creating the magic, was transcendental on a good day, and innately rewarding on even a mediocre day.
Writing has also been a life-long passion for me. As a child I wrote comic strips and as a teen I wrote fiction. As part of Genuine Coaching Services, I've self-published several e-books, including The Everyday Self-Care Workbook, and The Creativity Interviews.
In July 2005 I founded You Talk, I'll Write (which became LD Editorial) to help other companies with their writing projects.
My journey to self-care:
Quitting smoking was one of the hardest things I've ever done. My main tools were planning and support — the structures I put in my place for my quit are very similar to what I've created in The Everyday Self-Care Workbook. Also, I noticed that once I'd gotten rid of that bad habit, I was becoming less and less tolerant of the other parts of my life that weren't quite what I wanted them to be.
The next phase was to introduce exercise into my life. I started with a pretty traditional routine of joining a gym and creating a routine of cardiovascular and strength workouts. Then I was bitten by the “running” bug.
I ran for two seasons — two winters, actually — and I absolutely loved it. I loved being outdoors, I loved using my body to its fullest potential, I loved training with my Dad, who has been running for years. What stopped me the first time from running was a back injury (March 2001). I got back to running after that, and then in the late winter of 2002 the onset of fibromyalgia stopped me once again.
The back injury was quite a wake-up call. I'd been feeling so good about what I was doing for my body that I'd neglected to notice the build-up of stress in me — a job I didn't like, a boring social life and a lot of negative thinking. Realizing the importance of my whole life picture, and not just my physical health, was hugely instrumental in creating the Genuine Self-Care Model, as explained in the The Everyday Self-Care Workbook.
Fibromyalgia has brought its own lessons (and continues to). When you have fibromyalgia, self-care is not an option, it's pretty much a necessity. If I decide to pretend I'm "normal" and ignore my self-care routine, I'm quickly reminded that I'm NOT normal. And you know what, thank God!
I once compared myself to a "hot house orchid," after reading an article in another coach's newsletter. Was I pampering myself too much? Or worse, was I encouraging other people to pamper themselves too much? By making sure my conditions were always "just right," sometimes to the exclusion of fun, other people's wishes, or even some of my other life goals, what was I giving up?
I've decided that, for me, creating my environments as best I can, and planning ahead so that my needs are met (as much as I can) is the only way I can be strong and resilient enough to handle things outside of my control. And I founded Genuine Coaching Services to help others discover the power of choice so that they can make healthy lifestyle choices every day.
My creative journey:
I've been a musician all my life. I sang in school choirs and begged for piano lessons (and got them) from the age of 6. I attended a high school with a specialized arts program and learned there about the profession of music therapy. I decided to pursue my Bachelor of Fine Arts in Music, first, which I did at York University in Toronto. There I took courses in jazz singing, jazz choir, songwriting, contemporary piano improvisation, African drumming and dance, South Indian drumming and music history.
My fondest memories of York were of my time in Wibijazz'n' (now known as Wibi), a student-run singing group that specialized in re-creating popular songs in the a-capella format. I also did some performing as a solo jazz vocalist, with small combos.
I've studied singing, piano, guitar, hand percussion and drum kit.
I am an MTA (a music therapist who has been accredited by the Canadian Association for Music Therapy), and I worked in private practice from 1997-2010. Clients, family members, staff and volunteers have commented on my warm, supportive approach to people with special needs, and how I created a safe and accepting environment in which my clients can bloom to their highest potential.
I loved my work as a music therapist — the magical moments I shared with my clients, coupled with the fact that it was our music-making creating the magic, was transcendental on a good day, and innately rewarding on even a mediocre day.
Writing has also been a life-long passion for me. As a child I wrote comic strips and as a teen I wrote fiction. As part of Genuine Coaching Services, I've self-published several e-books, including The Everyday Self-Care Workbook, and The Creativity Interviews.
In July 2005 I founded You Talk, I'll Write (which became LD Editorial) to help other companies with their writing projects.