CURRENT MISSION

spreading peace and compassion through all the land

ABOUT ME

Hi! I'm a 25 year old graduate student studying clinical psychology in Atlanta, GA. I'm a passionate, enthusiastic kind of person, and I love to meet people and learn their stories.

My biggest passion is my research -- right now I am doing a study on the effects of yoga on anxiety disorders, and generally I study mindfulness, acceptance, self-compassion, etc and their effects on anxiety. I am part of a community that, in essence, is trying to understand some aspects of mysticism from a behavioral and scientific perspective. Wish us luck.

When not holed up reading mounds of articles, I like to have fun -- travel, go out dancing, go on nature hikes, try a new craft beer (ales! porters!) etc. I love nature and exploring, and I'm not afraid to explore new environments all by my lonesome.

PHILOSOPHY

I live my life to watch the sun come out. I hope one day we will all care about our world/environment, care about human suffering, and work together more easily without letting our neuroses get in the way. I think this is possible, and I hope to be a part of that shift in our world. Until then, I'll work on being the change.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I joined a while back looking for surfers in St. Petersburg, FL but no one took me up on my offer, sadly. I'll be more proactive in the future. I moved to Atlanta almost a year ago and just got back on the site because I am needing a place to stay in DC in late July. Once I am done traveling this summer, I hope to be able to host some folks at my house in Atlanta!

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I have never couchsurfed before, but I have stayed on a few stranger's couches when interviewing at graduate schools. One grad student I stayed with was so very kind, she even let me use her bed when SHE stayed on the couch! Wow. I would never ever expect that, but it is just so nice to meet people this way and see how kind and wonderful strangers can be.

Interests

psychology, yoga, Eastern mysticism, mindfulness, cooking, baking, poetry

• poetry
• perfumes
• dancing
• environment
• cooking
• beer
• baking
• yoga
• instructor
• reading
• traveling
• socializing
• hiking
• psychology

Music, Movies, and Books

Movies: American Beauty, Amelie, Eternal Sunshine, Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away, the Book of Kells, Neverwas, Pan's Labyrinth, etc.

Music: I love anything that is done well but tend to choose music according to how it affects me emotionally. Some of my favorites are "freak folk" artists like Joanna Newsom, CocoRosie, Antony Hegarty, etc.

Books: I love everything I've ever read by Tom Robbins and Alan Watts. Most of what I read for fun is really well-done scifi, fantasy, or magical realism -- Robert Heinlein, J.R.R. Tolkien, George R.R. Martin, Haruki Murakami, etc.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Right now, all I can think of is Amicalola Falls. It is the most beautiful waterfall I have seen in all my life. It is a waterfall which covers the entire side of a mountain on the Appalachian trail. I saw it in late January, when it was covered in ice. I could have stayed and just watched it for hours.

Teach, Learn, Share

I would love to share my knowledge on my area of psychology with anyone and everyone -- I could talk your ear off if you want to hear it. I know a lot about abnormal psychology, psychotherapy, anxiety disorders, intelligence testing, mindfulness, and acceptance-based approaches to coping with psychological suffering.

Also, come July, I will be a certified yoga instructor, and would also be happy to do some yoga with a new friend and teach you some of the postures and/or the underlying philosophy if you like.

Countries I’ve Visited

Cayman Islands, Haiti, Mexico

Countries I’ve Lived In

United States