Lauren Hogeboom
Owner, Operator; Flyja Micro Spa, RMT, RHN(C)
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Lauren is the owner and founder of Flyja Micro Spa (Pronounced Flee-yah), located in Downtown Dartmouth. She has been a registered massage therapist for over 9 years, and has completed 3 years of an intensive Osteopathic Manual Therapy Program through the College D’Etudes Osteopathiques. She also holds a diploma in Natural Nutrition, and is currently pursuing her MBSR Educator certificate (Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction).
In her own words:
I’ve always wanted to help people. Ever since I was a child. Originally, I wanted to be a nurse, but when I graduated from high school I decided I wanted to go more of a preventative rather than reactive route to healthcare. This was partially due to my on-going struggles with depression and anxiety, which had been a demon I was fighting since puberty.
I graduated from massage therapy when I was 22, and spent my early 20s working in a variety of spas and clinics around HRM. My long-term goal all along was to eventually open my own spa or clinic.
At 25, I relocated out of province with my partner at the time, which began a cascade of struggle, growth and recovery I never could have imagined. Leaving Halifax to a new city with no friends or family other than my partner became a lot more of a challenge than I anticipated. I’d always been independent, but the level of isolation and desperation became very overwhelming very quickly. It was difficult to find a job, I had no community at all, and felt completely helpless. My relationship fell apart, and I ended up in a series of increasingly more and more abusive relationships with men.
Almost 2 years to the day, I moved back to Halifax a complete shell of a person. I was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, had difficulty going to work, leaving the house and my studies in osteopathy was suffering.
Like so many Nova Scotians, I found myself in the cogs of the mental health system, which I am not afraid to say, completely failed me.
After about a year of desperately knocking on doors and begging for help, I realized I needed to start taking my own advice, and be accountable for my own healing by looking internally. This shift was huge for me.
I committed myself to studying mindfulness in depth, and realized my passion had shifted from manual therapy to coaching and advocacy. The more I healed myself, the more I wanted to share this, so other women would not have to go through the struggles I endured.
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What are you most proud of professionally? And who or why?
Developing a team of dedicated professionals that believe in the same goals and philosophies as myself. I am truly blessed to have a team I can call family. We look out for each other, and work collaboratively.
This is what I was striving for when I first put together the concept of Flyja. I didn’t want it to feel like work, I wanted it to be a space where my therapists can come in and practice in a space that is healing, supportive and encouraging. I could never have done everything we have accomplished without the support of my staff!
What’s your vision for Atlantic Canada in 10 years? What’s our biggest opportunity now?
I am so happy to notice a trend of younger people staying in Nova Scotia post grad, and committing to the growth of the maritimes. I think we have a really unique opportunity right now to grow through entrepreneurship and small business, which we have seen a massive influx of over the past few years. Downtown Dartmouth is a perfect example- the majority of new businesses are younger business owners looking to inject a trendy and youthful vibe to our community.
Combining that with the increase in condo development and tourism, there is a huge opportunity to create a niche market within our economy, particularly in the arts, wellness and the craft spirits/beer/cider market. I think this will continue to grow over the next ten years, and hopefully snowball into more and more small to medium size businesses owned and operated by Maritimers.
What was your greatest stage of growth? What made it a shift for you?
2018-2019 when I realized “You have to figure out who you are”. My life had continually been defined by relationships I had, and I really had no concept of who I was. I had never been single for more than a few months.
I committed to being single, and really started developing my own identity and who I wanted to be as a person, and how I wanted to live my life. It’s still developing, but I can honestly say, I like who I am as a person now, I’m not sure I could have said that a year ago.
What’s your favourite or most read book or podcast? Now or at each of your greatest stages of growth?
Most of my reading consists of mindfulness and meditation books. My favourite by far, is Wherever You go, There You Are, By Jon Kabat Zinn. This book was deeply transformative for me, and gave my first introduction of mindfulness based living.
No matter how stressed I get, I find myself always finding peace in picking up that book to any page. It’s one of those books you can read over and over and constantly pick up something more.
What’s your deepest learning from this past year? How did/will you apply it?
The healing power of forgiveness and how important it is to realize, we have two choices: grow from the struggle, or become bitter. I can honestly say I have no regrets in my life, I have had beautiful experiences that did not last, and a lot of pain. But every experience of joy I have beautiful memories, and every experience of pain has lead me to a deeper development of compassion and understanding of human beings.
What are the principles you live by?
Openness, accountability, communication, mindful compassion, integrity & dedication to supporting all paths to self-care and the rediscovery of living a beautiful life.
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entrepreneur, advocate for women's rights & mental health awareness, Dedicated to shining light on domestic violence and the impact of trauma (emotional, spiritual, physical), Empath, Mentor, Vintage design fan, travel & wellness enthusiast, Dog mama x2.