My Journey

Meet Dori Kelner - Mindfulness teacher and facilitator

Throughout my life, I have worked to meet the expectations of others, no matter how they aligned with my own needs. I was afraid to be myself. I feared that I wasn’t good enough, or smart enough. That I would be punished or shunned. Imagine not feeling comfortable or confident enough to speak your truth.

I never learned about setting boundaries, cultivating perspective, or aligning my life with my values. Growing up, all I saw was impatience and anger. A child models what she sees.

After a series of failed relationships and job burnout, I realized that something was seriously wrong. Depression and panic sabotaged every waking day. I was living on autopilot and knew that I needed to find a better way.

I set out to do what I called “rewiring my brain.” Little did I know in the 1990s that I was practicing a form of mindfulness. I eventually learned to stop seeing life as something that happened to me, but rather as something of my own making. I learned to take a breath and find healthier ways to respond. I learned to speak up for myself and trust my emotions instead of stuffing it all down. Big breakthroughs!

My mindfulness training and practice allows me to recognize when I don’t have control over the situations around me. But I can make the effort to control my response. It all starts with how I am in relationship with myself and others. I founded Insightful Culture to provide evidence-based wellness practices to those who want a proven method for calming that inner critic and moving through life with greater ease.

You are a delightful work in progress. You are enough - it’s time.