symbolizes Living with Freedom, Joy, and Passion

was the name I came up with for my new e-mail address when I decided to leave my career and "follow my heart" to study dance and live in New York City. In the name, "dances" does not literally stand for dance, it stands for letting your heart be free...free to be passionate, to love, to hope, to experience joy...to say the things you really feel, and to do the things you really want to do with your life. Many of us dance when we are happy and joyful. is a name that, to me, represented my action of ceasing to live life based on the expectations other people had of me and trying to do things the perfect and safe way, to living a life based on my true wants and desires...the passions I believe God planted in my heart to go after and live!

How We Settle and Don’t Live Authentically

Being authentic is not as easy as you might think. Think of all the times that you didn't say "no" when you should have, or when you stayed in relationships that you didn't really want to be in because you didn't want to hurt the other person, or be the “bad” guy. Think of the times you were hurt, angry, or sad … but told everyone else things were fine. Think of the times you ate food to avoid a problem or comfort yourself instead of choosing to deal with your circumstances, or that job that you won't leave even though you hate waking up to it everyday. Think of the people you always try to please just to avoid arguments or confrontation.

Our Fears

We have all these dreams in childhood, we get hurt, and we close up. We become afraid of failing, looking silly, or getting our heart broken. We hunker down and try to do the "safe" thing. That's where I ended up. I was an audio engineer in Orlando, FL for 5 years prior to moving to NY. That last year I was waking up every morning asking myself "What am I doing with my life?" I stayed in my job because 1. it was a "good" job...safe, and secure.. 2. my parents had spent so much money on school for me that I felt a certain obligation to make a career out of it and I didn't want to disappoint them and 3. because what I really wanted to do seemed impossible and impractical .... I was afraid of failure, so I didn't even approach it ... probably so much so that I rarely even thought about the things I really wanted.

Gaining Weight

I had gained about 20 pounds since high school; I ate for comfort and entertainment. I hadn't been on a date in 4 years and I was 23 years old! I should've been having fun, learning, exploring, and living out my adventurous side.

Finally, someone who played a very important role in my life repeatedly asked me "Where is Melissa?" I thought she was crazy until one day she explained to me that I always said the things I thought I should say, feel, and think, but what I didn't share with her was what I really did think, and feel. She was the first person that ever saw through me and I am grateful for her to this day!

I discovered that I didn't even know what I really thought and felt anymore. I was so used to pleasing other people and doing the "right" thing. The one and only thing that I did know was 100 percent genuine about me was that I loved to dance. So I immersed myself in classes with the hopes that it would lead me to the rest of ME! It definitely did, and it led me back to a childhood dream of moving to New York.

Going After My Childhood Dream

I created a plan and seven months later I was flying to New York City with just a couple bags to explore and study dance for 6 months. I had lost 25 pounds, I felt confident and great. I was me again and it felt amazing! I was doing the things I wanted to do since childhood!!

A year later I found myself studying at the Institute for Integrative Nutrition, and decided to build a coaching practice that would help others on their journey to live passionately. I want to help people become more confident in themselves, develop a more positive body image, figure out what their lost dreams are and overcome their fear of going after them. I want to help them lose the weight they have wanted to lose for years and to develop a healthy relationship with food.

Basically, I want to see your heart dance!

So that is how came to be! I hope you will not sit back and waste any more time! Get on the journey of YOUR life. Call to set-up and appointment together we will create a plan! 917-689-6530