Sam Taylor is a wellness specialist and public speaker who works with women to help them live lives free from stress and anxiety.
After founding health and wellness studio Mind Body Beyond, Samantha truly understands how mind and body need to work together to overcome anxiety and believes with a passion that we all deserve to feel strong, whole and in charge of our lives.
Samantha founded wellness organisation thenurtureproject.com in 2018, which helps women to beat stress and anxiety by developing the life skills of exercise, nutrition, meditation, self care and sleep.
Sam Taylor is a wellness specialist and public speaker who works with women to help them live lives free from stress and anxiety.
After founding health and wellness studio Mind Body Beyond, Samantha truly understands how mind and body need to work together to overcome anxiety and believes with a passion that we all deserve to feel strong, whole and in charge of our lives.
Samantha founded wellness organisation thenurtureproject.com in 2018, which helps women to beat stress and anxiety by developing the life skills of exercise, nutrition, meditation, self care and sleep.
Find inspiration as we talk to Sam Taylor in our #StrongHealthyWomen interview.
Hi Sam! Thank you for being part of the Health and Fitness Travel, Strong, Healthy Women Interview Series, where we are shining a light on the importance of self-care, not as an indulgence but a necessity to reduce stress and general health issues.
Is there such a thing as a typical day for you and what does that look like?
Running my own company, the work I do each day is different. One day I could be doing sales meetings or delivering workshops, or filming videos or recording podcasts, or simply at my desk getting through emails and writing. However, each day begins the same way: I wake at 5:30 am and meditate for an hour. I then exercise for an hour and shower before getting the children up and ready for school. Starting this way really sets me up for the day. It means I’ve done “me” first and so I’m relaxed and happy for everyone else.
Can you share a time when you felt your well-being was challenged in the past and what did you do to overcome it?
In my 20s I was diagnosed with anxiety and later, depression. The doctors explained that I had a chemical imbalance in my brain and that if I took medication, it would correct the imbalance and I would feel better. And so over the next few years I took many different types of anti-depressant and anti-anxiety medication. Despite this I was still in a lot of mental anguish and I struggled with the side effects. After a particularly dark time with depression, I realised that the way I had been managing my mental health wasn’t working. So I began to do some research on the causes of anxiety and depression and other ways of managing it.
What I discovered was that, although medication has its place, the psychosocial approach can be more effective for many people. So I implemented exercise, healthy eating and meditation into my life and I got better. I came off the medication. I ended up quitting my job and retrained as a nutritionist, personal trainer and meditation teacher. My original work in this space was via my wellness studio but when it reached capacity and I started having to turn women away, I looked to launch an online version of the studio – The Nurture Project – so I could reach more women. Our results have seen an 80% remission rate from anxiety and stress (using the Kessler K10 scale of psychological distress). Helping others every day actually reinforces this in my mind and helps me to stay healthy.
What does ‘being healthy’ mean to you and how do you keep this at the forefront when life gets unavoidably busy?
Being healthy for me is very much mind as well as body – the two are inextricably linked of course – so any part of being healthy has to include mindset as well as exercising, eating well and getting enough sleep. Meditation is key to a healthy mindset and something I simply can’t do without. Having a routine means that I don’t have to think about where to fit my exercise or meditation in, it just happens each morning.
Have you ever taken a holiday specifically for your well-being? Can you share what the experience was like?
I’ve been on a few yoga/meditation retreats which I have loved. I’d like to do one each year as it’s such a great reset. I naturally prefer being on my own so I go alone and use these times as an escape and a chance to just “be”. I read, exercise, meditate and totally switch off. I love the ones that have no phone reception or internet. I find I sleep so well when I’m on a retreat too! As a business owner, mother and wife, life does get busy, you’re forever looking after someone or something so I enjoy the time to do what I want, when I want. Taking this time out gives me mental clarity and plenty of energy to bring back to my work and my family.
Every woman’s idea of self-care is different, please tell us what does self-care mean to you?
Self care is more than just eating well, exercising or getting your nails done. To me, self care is not a luxury but a necessity. It’s also about being kind to yourself and loving yourself: being aware of the (often negative) thoughts going through your head and stopping them in their tracks. Learning to say no to all the demands on you and finding time to do the things that give you joy.
Want to tell your story? Reach out to us via info@healthandfitnesstravel.com.au and be featured as our next strong, healthy woman.
