about nurit
i’m nurit nardi
As you might expect, as a mind body therapist, I have all the credentials needed to provide a unique combination of approaches best suited to you.
I also have all the experiences needed to make me a compassionate, effective therapist and coach.
my credentials
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master of arts in transpersonal psychology
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certified focusing-oriented therapist and trainer
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registered biodynamic craniosacral therapist
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certified dream work and imagery therapist for transformation through the school of images in nyc
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licensed massage therapist
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trauma-centered coach
A professional actress, teacher and mentor, I’m a highly sensitive person. I’ve known anxiety, trauma, loss and pain. I’ve suppressed uncomfortable emotions and have been immobilized by indecision.
That’s why I decided early in my life to learn all that I could about the mind-body-energy connection and to train in as many modalities as I could to assist people like me using the holistic, multi-pronged approach that I would have wanted.
I hope that at least parts of my journey will resonate with you.
the origins
My journey as a holistic mind-body therapist started in Haifa, a Mediterranean coastal city in Israel.
Despite the city’s beauty, life was hard. As a child, I had already experienced war. And together with my brother and friends, I lived with the fear of terrorism every single day.
I cannot share enough how my worldview, sensitivities, and questions about life were shaped by these early experiences – to which I add having family members who died in or survived the Holocaust.
I was highly sensitive for as long as I can remember, but of course, knew nothing about it. Socially, I was shy. I was fortunate, however, to be exposed to literature, art, music, and performing. Like many sensitive people, their beauty captivated me.
After my army service (mandatory for men and women in Israel) I was accepted into a highly prestigious, three-year training program at an academy for the theater arts. That is where my creative journey took hold and my talents shone. Being on stage felt natural; I enjoyed the process of molding a character just like making a sculpture and breathing life into it using my body, mind, inner life, and movement.
Life in the theatre was yummy and challenging. I craved the attention and the acknowledgement of finding a place where I belonged. Or so I thought.
sailing into a far away land
In my late 20s, the dissatisfied adventurer side of me woke up. I felt physically trapped. The culture was homogenous; individuality was discouraged. I never felt that I belonged.
I longed to see the world, to expand. Desire and curiosity about living life abroad brought me to New York City. I found it amazing, exhilarating, and difficult.
As a new student in the US, I had no way to support myself. I was here alone, with no connections, and making a living in the theater was difficult. I auditioned and got some good work, but facing rejection again and again was really hard.
That’s when I started thinking about pursuing a new line of work.
finding my way back
I was pulled into healing despite having no prior exposure or experience. It just felt natural. That was about 35 years ago, and that is when I also started working on my own healing.
It shook me to delve deeply into myself and work through the layers of wounding and trauma. It wasn’t easy. I peeled back one layer after another, each one a shield, each time reaching a new depth and tenderness within.
Through these experiences, I not only worked through problems and issues, but it surprised me to discover that the places within me that held the most fear were eventually where I found the most gems and the most significant growth.
I am still engaged and devoted to my own healing today.
being a mind body therapist
The first step in my new profession was to get a massage therapy license, which initiated my desire to offer an integrative approach to heal the mind and the body. That was in the ’80s and there was very little talk about this kind of approach.
My curiosity moved me in many new directions: I studied Chinese medicine practices, psychodrama, and other modalities where the physical and the emotional are intertwined.
I studied with the best teachers I could find. I have gotten a Master of Arts degree in Transpersonal Psychology. I have done work with the dream body and visualization for transformation. I perfected my skills in the trauma field by continuing to study with Dr. Janina Fisher, Ph.D.; Irene Lyon, and other teachers trained by Peter Levin. I became certified as a Focusing-Oriented Therapist and trainer, a potent mind-body talk modality. I was already a registered Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapist and instructor.
By now, I’ve worked with hundreds of clients, many of them highly sensitive women who need help with trauma, their inner critic, and anxiety.
Whether I see people with heartaches or backaches, the work always involved body and mind.
warm words to you
I truly believe that I cannot help people unless I’ve done and continue to do my own personal work on a daily basis.
I don’t position myself as an outside expert. Indeed, new findings in neurobiology say that changes happen not by the maneuvering of techniques but in how therapists bring their full, embodied emotional selves into the relationship. I aspire to do just that.
Having experienced both the pain of isolation and the joy of connection, I can say that the process of softening your heart and becoming more vulnerable can be frightening, but it’s definitely worth the journey.
My intention is to never stop learning, to reach for greater levels of finesse and craftsmanship, sensitivity and creativity with my clients and myself.
fun things about me
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my mother’s family is from northern italy. i love italy and everything italian!
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chocolate with hazelnuts is my favorite food.
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i speak several languages and have an ear for many more.
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i speak english with an accent.
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i love good coffee.
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i dream of living by the mediterranean, where I can inhale the salty air and swim into the horizon bathed in sunlight.
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i love dogs. my husband converted me to german shepherds. we own one.
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i love cats. they are the most highly sensitive of mammals. i see myself in them.
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i appreciate the blues and rhythmic music.
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i’m a passionate dancer.
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i’m a late bloomer.
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i have an awesome son.
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my hebrew name, nurit, means small light. perfect.