The vision behind Turtle Bower comes from Valerie’s own struggles to survive, identifying all the gaps in the social safety net by helpfully falling through them.
She has had over thirty years of experience supporting herself and others through chronic illness, burnout, relapses, and complex, long-term illness needs. Valerie weaves a natural gentleness and bent for community building into creating structures that can hold everyone while boxing no one in. Prepared to be a communal leader and individual guide, she brings deep knowledge of meditation, day-to-day illness management, appropriate pacing for renewal, and a repertoire of health recovery tai chi and gentle movement knowledge.
The spoonie communities she runs are often filled with immediately practical advice and thoughtful, nuanced, generative discussions, making participants feel welcome, valued, and better equipped. On an individual level, previous collaborators and advisees have praised her flexibility, kindness, and deep wells of practical knowledge with regards to healing body, mind and soul. Her life focus is to create a place where good food, long rest, gentle joy and companionship can provide the respite and healing so many people need to rebuild their health and their lives.