Lorraine Faehndrich

My first experience with the connection between emotions and health was over 30 years ago. I was a CPA at a “big 6” accounting firm. I was “successful” but miserable, and I was suffering from depression, anxiety, and chronic migraines. I was in and out of doctors’ offices, and nothing helped. Eventually, I made the decision to quit my job and began following my heart. I explored things that felt exciting and fun to me, like painting, drawing, counseling, and psychology. To my amazement, my health issues disappeared! My curiosity after this experience led me to study yoga and meditation, as well as natural, holistic healing. I became a massage therapist, learned more about nutrition, and began to understand the impact the mind has on the body. I explored the Silva Method and other healing programs that used the mind to heal the body, and I enrolled in Naturopathic College, where I learned much more about the body and its innate ability to heal. During that time I became a mom and put my studies on hold (or so I thought) to devote myself to being a mom. I threw myself into being the “best mom” I could be the same way I had thrown myself into learning about natural healing.

And then (about 14 years ago) I began experiencing recurring yeast infections - one after another. I treated them holistically with acupuncture, herbs, and diet – and after a (very long) year, I managed to get them “under control.” But then, burning pain during intercourse began. I felt ashamed and somehow defective. When I did eventually go to my doctor, she told me there was “nothing wrong with me,” that there was “no reason” for my pain. My gynecologist suggested A YEAR of heavy-duty antibiotics even though my tests for yeast and bacteria were negative. Having just gotten over a year of chronic yeast infections, all I could think was, “There is NO WAY I am doing that.”

I felt frustrated, scared and alone. I was afraid that I would never get better and that my relationship would end. I was struggling with my body and could feel how that was perpetuating the problem. And that is when I decided to stop searching for answers outside myself, drop the struggle and listen to my body. I saw how I had been ignoring myself and putting everyone else’s needs first, and how much pressure I was putting on myself. Listening to my body guided me to places in my life that still needed healing. As I listened, my symptoms began to improve and after about 4 months the pain was gone.

In 2011, I was certified as a Life Coach and found myself regularly attracting women who needed help healing their body. In 2012, I learned about Dr. John Sarno and Tension Myositis Syndromes, and was endorsed as a mind-body coach by Abigail Steidley. Dr. Sarno’s work, and the work of Howard Schubiner, Alan Gordon, and others confirmed my own experiences and I was excited to use that information to help others relieve pelvic pain the way I had. Over the past 12+ years I have been teaching my mind body pain relief program, Healing Female Pain, and coaching women (and some men) to help them relieve all kinds of pelvic and sexual pain syndromes. My favorite part about this work is helping people reclaim their connection with their body, emotions, and intuition, and as a result not only relieve pain but find so much more freedom and joy in their life!