klik hier voor weergave in het Nederlands
Sharon (1975) is a Dutch multi passionate creative and a professional coach, trainer and teacher (MA). She has over 15 years of professional consulting, coaching and training experience, over 20 years of professional teaching experience and a lifelong experience of working with her powerful intuitive abilities and the qualities that are intrinsic to her twice-exceptionality.
Sharon is a skilled and experienced gifted human being as well as a late-diagnosed hypersensitive ‘Aspergirl’. Once a high school drop-out, she now holds 2 master’s degrees, has hosted Coach the Coach and Train the Trainer programs, worked with corporate teams large and small, hosted seminars and trainings in the Netherlands as well as in Italy and she has worked with thousands of people in private consultation sessions.
Sharon started looking into psychology, philosophy, mythology, esotericism, mysticism and metaphysics at a very young age, in an attempt to make sense of the behavior of the people around her and better understand the world and the ways her own system works. The search for answers and meaning that started in her teens has led her, over the past 30+ years, to study vast amounts of information and gather extensive knowledge pertaining to the realms of psychology, interpersonal dynamics, shadow work, archetype work, personality typologies (Big Five, MBTI, Enneagram) and disorders, neuroscience & neurolinguistics, shamanic traditions, energy work, the workings of perception and ESP and the fabric and building blocks of reality itself.
Since opening her practice in 2008 Sharon has worked with thousands of clients in individual sessions, both offline and online, serving a global audience. She speaks Dutch (native language), Italian (near native level) and English and consultation sessions can be held in any of these three languages.
Her fields of expertise include inner child work, in-depth shadow work, individuation & self-empowerment, hypersensitivity and overwhelm, unmasking & self-care, neurodiversity in a neurotypical world, giftedness, twice-exceptionality, toxic dynamics & recovery after narcissistic abuse, self work from a holistic, psychological and esoteric perspective, and management and responsible application of intuitive and psychic abilities.
Being a gifted neurodivergent high-functioning ‘Aspergirl’, Sharon is an valuable sparring partner for high- functioning ‘Aspergirls’, high-functioning neurodivergent/gifted individuals and twice-exceptional people, as well as for anyone who longs to gain a better understanding and be more supportive and inclusive of people who are (high-functioning) neurodivergent and/or gifted. Educating people on the topics of twice-exceptionality, giftedness, neurodiversity and high-functioning autism is a cause very close to her heart.
Although Sharon has an extensive background in working with personality typologies, she no longer focusses on typologies when working with individuals since they tend to have a limiting effect on what and how people perceive themselves to be. Human beings are complex creatures, each with their own peculiarities, challenges and qualities that no personality typology will ever be able to fully ‘capture’ or describe. “The map is not the terrain” and Sharons prefers to focus on the ’terrain’: the unique individual, the person she tries to empower and support on their journey of coming home to themselves.
As far as spirituality is concerned, in Sharon’s opinion firm and resilient ‘roots’ are a requirement for the potential growth of a genuine set of ‘wings’ and spiritual aspirations should always be grounded in a healthy and balanced presence in the earthly here and now. To truly get to “Know thyself” one should first and foremost work with what is present in the present moment and within, according to Sharon. Looking ‘up and out’ without putting in the psychological groundwork that is required to become a balanced, present and truly individuated human being is an approach that has led many people astray. Sharon has coached many through their processes of releasing themselves from the shackles of the New (c)Age pseudo spirituality that leads to practices of disembodiment, spiritual bypassing and people getting caught up in webs of illusions.
Prior to dedicating herself to her current activities Sharon was the founder and owner of a text & translation agency. She holds a master’s degree in Italian Language, Linguistics and Literature, specialized in International and Intercultural (Business) Communication as well as in Translation, is a sworn translator and holds a master’s degree in Teaching.
She was the editor of an extensive number of Dutch books pertaining to the self work/self help category, was a ghost writer for several Dutch authors in said field, was interim chief editor of a specialists’ magazine on modern languages (Levende Talen Magazine), has translated Robert Dilts’ book From Coach to Awakener from English into Dutch and translated a book on the Enneagram from Dutch into Italian.
She was involved in the development of a multimedia course of Italian for teenagers (Parlando Italiano Junior), developed and taught curricula of Italian Language and Culture for the Stedelijk Gymnasium Nijmegen, created the internship component of the curriculum of ITV Hogeschool voor Tolken en Vertalen (an Academy for Interpreters & Translators), was interim teacher Terminology at ITV Hogeschool voor Tolken en Vertalen and has taught Italian, for years, to adolescents and adults.
Nowadays, she prefers to apply her teaching skills, didactic abilities and knowledge of learning styles and modalities in the fields of her current activities. As far as her translation skills are concerned: they serve her well in the ways she ’translates’ information, dynamics, knowledge and energy in her current ways of working.
Sharon’s personal journey through life has not been an easy one. She grew up in a challenging environment where neither her giftedness nor her neurodivergency and hypersensitivity were recognized or acknowledged and learned to fend for herself without a proper support system (and without properly knowing herself) at a very young age, in a neurotypical world that often misunderstands, mislabels, misjudges and mishandles neurodivergent people—as she has experienced in many instances, for decades. She has been bullied, suffered complex psychological trauma and narcissistic abuse (including smear campaigns and character assassination) and has experienced severe harassment on multiple occasions. Unable to cope with the multitude of stressors and challenges present in her younger years, she became a high school drop-out in spite of her giftedness. Determined to not let the stressors of her past dictate her future, she found an alternative route into university at age 21 and got two Master’s degrees, both with excellent grades. However, working as an employee in a “normal” corporate work environment, post university, turned out to be too overwhelming for her, leading to a very severe burnout including lots of physical issues. It was not her first severe burnout and wouldn’t be her last. Her physical health would never be completely restored. CPTSD, sensory overload, burnouts and chronic physical health issues (among which CFS and multiple chronic inflammation issues) are among the things she had to learn to live with long before finding out that she is gifted, hypersensitive and neurodivergent.
Thanks to her resilience, strong willpower, resourcefulness and ‘survival skills’ Sharon has been able, after a lot of stumbling, falling and rising back up again, to create a life for herself that honours who she is, what she needs and what works for her. This allows her to work with her abilities, skills and expertise in a constructive manner and give to the world without depleting herself.
In alignment with the myth of Chiron, the Wounded Healer, she has found ways of transmuting aspects of her own journey into “medicine” for others and has dedicated part of her life to supporting those who are facing challenges similar to the ones she has been dealing with and educating people on the topics that are close to her heart. The challenges of the past now fuel her ways of creating a positive impact on the lives of many.
Sharon currently lives a simple, minimalistic life in a tiny house amidst nature, in a low stimulus environment where she is surrounded and nurtured by lots of trees, a group of peers who have her back and respect and support her, and a number of furry friends who help keep her oxytocin levels balanced. She has come home to herself, loves to read, write, paint and study in quiet solitude, surrounded by her plants, books, artwork and favorite music, and is determined to make the second half of her life the best half of her life.
Sharon is avalaible for personal consultation sessions on any of the topics pertaining to her fields of expertise. She can be booked as a speaker on the topics of neurodiversity, giftedness, twice-exceptionality and inclusion of neurodivergent, gifted and/or twice-exceptional individuals. If you are part of an organization, institution or business that wants to be more inclusive and supportive of neurodivergent, gifted and/or twice-exceptional people and would like to hire Sharon as a consultant, feel free to send her an email.