On September 11, 2001 I was sitting alone in my house on Pearl St. because my children and my husband were over at the other house. You see, my husband and I were divorced.
A friend called and told me to turn on the television. I did. And I witnessed the second attack on the World Trade Center in New York City. It was horrifying for me, as it was for everyone. I had relatives and friends who worked near there and I grew up near there in New Jersey. I felt personally attacked.
After I watched this terrifying scene I was stunned, as so many of us were. Later that afternoon I had to go to work, as many of us did. I took a rural dirt back road to town so that I could cry as I drove to work.
There was a moment in that drive where I realized I was not willing to have my family separated any longer. My husband and I had been divorced officially for over a year at that point, and separated for about two years. I didn’t know how we would be a family again or how that would look. It seemed absolutely impossible and yet, I knew in my heart that we would be together again. I had to stop the car as I cried even harder.
Years went by and “life” happened. My husband and I went to marriage counseling to learn how to be divorced parents. We discovered that we still loved each other and eventually remarried. Life continued on it’s determined journey.
November 8, 2003 my mother passed away. Mom had been living with us and died peacefully in our home. Two years later, on November 8, 2005, my husband, my daughter and I traveled to New Jersey to attend a funeral for my father who had died on November 2, 2005. On November 9, 2005 my daughter wanted to go into “the city” to take in the excitement of New York. Without planning or thought I suddenly found myself standing at Ground Zero in New York City… with my husband and my daughter. We were living together again. We were stronger than ever as a family.
I knew, in that moment, that there is nothing that is impossible. Nothing. Absolutely nothing.
Clear intention, self love and self forgiveness are the pavers on the pathway I now call Gentle Medicine™. Four years prior I had a dream as I traveled a dirt road in the rural Southwest. I awoke from that dream in New York City to find it had come true.
“The true spirit of my work invites women and men of all ages
to The Circle of Life and into the power of Gentle Medicine™.
Here they will experience the love, gratitude and relaxed personal power
that comes from gently accepting their humanity, realizing that all is as it is
simply because we choose to be alive. Allowing the calmness that ensues to penetrate resistance and fear they will open to the healing inherent in the mystery of life. Love will prevail”. Martha Pasternack, IAC-CC
My passion for witnessing the beauty and mystery of life, healthy healing and the promotion of Peace on Earth are integral to my daily life. I have been married for 28 years and I am the mother of two beautiful (adult) children.
I am a Certified Fearless Living Coach, Level IV, a Certified Dream Coach and Dream Coach Group Leader. I currently serve as the Director of the International Coaching Program and as a mentor coach for the Fearless Living Institute.
I am privileged to coach clients from around the world and living in all areas of the United States. I facilitate groups exploring the principles of Circle of Life Coaching at nationwide professional conferences, in person and via the internet.
I have been involved in the health care profession for over 30 years as a Family Nurse Practitioner , Cranial Sacral Therapist, educator, speaker and mentor. Throughout my career, I have been a leader in the evolution of integrative nursing and medicine and I am experienced in conventional, complementary and alternative health care modalities.
I am certified by the International Association of Coaches (IAC) and the International Coach Federation (ICF) . I am also a founding member of the American Holistic Nurses Association, and a sanctioned speaker for The New RoadMap Foundation.
