Benem’s Bio

A Healing Point of View:

Health is not the absence of a disease diagnosis. Health, or wellness is an ever-fluctuating balance between all aspects of self. Including: body, mind, spirit in connection with nature with fearless expression of diversity, creativity, inner grounding with peace, joy and an ongoing sense of gratitude. Each aspect affects the other, for better or worse. Holistic healing is only possible when all aspects are taken into consideration. Something the Western Medical model does not do. Having a knowledgeable guide is essential to navigate and create a health plan that supports your unique needs. 

Holistic Care
For holistic wellness, we must consider our physical, emotional, and spiritual health. This includes the relationship with our work, our home-life, our hobbies, activities, addictions, exercise, nutrition, stress levels, interactions with medications, supplements, and diagnosis. Not to mention our cultural influences and spiritual practices.

Human Nature
Our interactions with nature and its effect on our wellness, both physical and mental, is now well documented in multiple studies worldwide. I can help you plan for and implement a strategy to reconnect with the natural world in a way that feels deeply nurturing and unique to your needs.

The Quick Fix
We have lived with the American model of instant gratification and ease, but the true destination of personal wellness is only reached by going one step at a time and knowing the path is different for every person. The key is to have as many tools in your toolkit as possible so that you are able to work on different issues as they arise in your life. Tools for stress management, weight control, depression symptoms, diabetic management, and tools for improving strength and flexibility like specific stretches and isometric exercises.

Why do I do what I do?
For me it’s about helping people find their way back to their own fullness of being. I have a particular desire to assist people through difficult transitions in their lives.  I am enlivened to see the spark of life return to the twinkle in someone’s eye after they have engaged in some transition in their lives. The more whole people there are out there, the better the world will be for all of us. It’s about building a world full of personal integrity, diversity without fear and realigning the human animal back into a healthy interconnection with nature.

Background:

Ashley T. Benem, RN, LMT
My training and experience has covered life’s continuum of care needs from pregnancy, labor, birth, trauma, injury rehabilitation, wellness, death and dying. I have a particular interest in seeing people through difficult experiences. I appreciate that no person’s situation or process outcome is the same. This allows me to resource from a diverse set of tools and skills to provide honest incites for forward movement on your path to wellness. 

My early training in Emergency Medical Services as an EMT gave me one end of the spectrum, while my licensure as a massage therapist and birth doula gave the other. I am a Registered Nurse with a focus on holistic quality of life practices. I am a Death Midwife and the original founder and past Executive Director of A Sacred Passing: Death Midwifery Services. I had the opportunity to work with my patients and their families to explore and carry out options in End-of-Life care. This included, community education, creating individualized care plans, advance directive completion, care coordination, individualized personal care, death and bereavement planning and support. My work as a home healthcare nurse allowed me to see the gaps in support in our current healthcare system. I hold wellness’s middle ground with training in Shamanic studies, dance, sustainability, naturalist study and through initiation and certification as clergy in Earth-based spirituality. I trust my inherited gifts as a Seer, I practice what I preach, I live in my body, I listen and come from a place of the highest integrity. I bring my resourcefulness, creativity, flexibility, improvisation, and knowledge forward into holistic nursing care.

Member & Licensures

  • Licensed Registered Nurse, Washington RN61233921
  • Licensed Massage Therapist, Washington MA00015141
  • American Massage Therapy Association