My Journey – The Moment Mindfulness Changed My Life

Hi, I’m Jodi Nolin, although many people know me as Mrs. Nolin or Ms. Mindful.

My mindfulness journey began in my early twenties, when I found myself feeling anxious in ways I had never experienced before. I remember sitting in my university classes wanting to participate, but the moment I raised my hand, my stomach would fill with butterflies. Presentations were even worse. My mouth would go dry, my hands would shake, and I felt anything but confident.

I knew something had to change.

While completing my Honours Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, I enrolled in a course called Transpersonal Psychology. It introduced me to mindfulness, breathwork, meditation, and physics through practices and teachings drawn from global wisdom traditions, alongside the emerging neuroscience being shared by researchers in California at the time.

Within just a few weeks of practicing what I was learning, something remarkable happened.

The butterflies disappeared.

I could stand in front of the class and present with confidence. My body felt calmer. My mind felt clearer. I wasn’t trying harder, I had changed from the inside out.

I remember asking my professor, “How is this possible?”

His answer changed the course of my life.

He explained the neuroscience behind mindfulness, how our brains and nervous systems can literally change through consistent practice.

I was hooked.

That curiosity has never left me.

After completing my Honours Psychology degree and my Bachelor of Education, I continued studying for decades. While I was a classroom teacher, I completed many courses through Mindful Schools and became a very experienced mindfulness teacher and also a certified yoga teacher. I studied the pioneering work of Jon Kabat-Zinn, explored breath work, and continued learning from researchers, teachers, and authors whose work deepened my understanding, my practice and my teaching.

Eventually, I had the privilege of creating and leading an eight-week mindfulness and well-being program for students from Kindergarten through Grade 12 during my time in a district-wide special assignment educational role.

The results were deeply meaningful.

Our students and educators reported better focus, improved emotional regulation, and one unexpected outcome that delighted us all, many of them were sleeping better too.

Those results mirrored what decades of mindfulness research have consistently shown.

After witnessing these changes in my own life, in my classrooms with my students, and then in thousands of students, educators, colleagues, and families, I knew this work was too important to keep inside the walls of a school.

Today, my mission is simple.

To make mindfulness practical, evidence-informed, and accessible to anyone who wants to lower stress, improve focus, sleep more deeply, and become more fully present for the life they’re already living.

If that’s what you’re looking for…

You’re in the right place.

I’m so grateful our paths have crossed.

As you leave today, take one slow, deep breath.

Let your shoulders soften.

Unclench your jaw.

Feel your feet on the ground.

Notice this moment.

Because this moment is your life.

This moment is the only place where we have the opportunity to notice, to choose, to grow, and to create meaningful change.

I’m so excited to walk this path alongside you as we learn to become more present, more aware, and more fully engaged in the beautiful, ordinary moments that make up our lives.

Thank you for being here.

I can’t wait to share this journey with you.

With much gratitude, big love, and warm wishes,

Jodi

Mrs. Nolin • Ms. Mindful