About Hillary
Where I am now: Career
Approaching our 50s can feel like standing on the edge of something both exciting and uncertain (especially for women!). After 25+ years in the massage therapy world, a thought began forming - I love hearing people’s stories! I began to search online for a different way to help people through their stories. I wanted to add to my toolkit, but it was kinda scary to consider bringing something brand new into my wellness practice.
I met my husband later in life at 44, and we married in 2019. Then, just as the world began to settle after the pandemic, he was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer in 2021. Suddenly, I was navigating yet another shift in identity—this time as a partner and caregiver.
I continued searching for something that would inspire me. That search led me to life coaching - and a new sense of purpose. Transitions are rarely simple. Sometimes the next chapter doesn’t reveal itself right away. Sometimes we need support to find clarity, or to get out of our own way. Life coaching can be that support!
In addition to my husband's illness we were both confronting aging parents. In a few short years, my mom, her partner, and then my mother-in-law passed away. In the midst of cleaning out another loved one's house, it occurred to me that there should be a better and more fulfilling process.
So I've added professional organizing to my collection of wellness services! Along with life coaching, professional organizing can help prepare for next chapters - including downsizing later in life to avoid burdening family with unwanted clutter, making sure they're left with cherished memories.
I share my story because, in many ways, I am my own ideal client. I’m walking this path - navigating the same questions of identity, purpose, and reinvention. As your wellness practitioner, our time together is entirely about you, but I want you to know that I’m right here beside you, doing my own work, facing my own crossroads.
I know how it feels to look at coaches online (many of whom are really content creators) who seem to have it all figured out—perfectly polished and always confident. That can be inspiring, but it’s not always relatable. My approach is different. I'm in the real, messy, beautiful middle of it too. I'm close enough to understand what you're feeling, but outside of your experience, so I can offer perspective and reflect back what you might not yet see in yourself.
My three skills combine simply:
MORE: clarity with life coaching.
LESS: clutter with professional organizing.
REAL: self care with massage therapy.
You don’t have to do this alone. I’m here to walk with you— authentically and compassionately.
Where I began
I’m originally from Pennsylvania - born in Easton and later moved to Pittsburgh for college. After earning my degree in writing, I decided to take a break from academics and unexpectedly found myself working at the Pittsburgh School of Massage Therapy. That experience opened a whole new world for me. I was surrounded by the art and science of healing touch, and it quickly became a deep fascination. While working full-time at the school, I was fortunate to enroll in its exceptional programs - fully immersed in the learning and the community. And I absolutely loved it.
Where It took me
After completing both the basic and advanced training programs at the Pittsburgh School of Massage Therapy in 2001 - and spending eleven years living in Pittsburgh—I knew it was time for a change.
My sister had relocated to San Antonio, Texas for work, and I decided to join her there. I worked in a day spa and enjoyed exploring a new city, but San Antonio never quite felt like home. Thankfully, just up the road was Austin - and that did feel like home from the start.
Once I settled in Austin, I took a leap of faith and opened my own massage practice. Early on I worked in a few different spaces: a hair salon, a chiropractic office, and eventually, in 2007, I moved into my very own corner office. That space became my second home for 18 years.
But in early 2025, my lease wasn't renewed. It was a bittersweet ending - but also a new beginning. With the support of my husband (and our pets!), we transformed a space in our little house to continue my work. Now, I’m truly home - in every sense of the word.