Daily Inspiration: Meet Denise Michelle

Today we’d like to introduce you to Denise Michelle.

Hi Denise, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
You see the last few years have been, shall I say, a dark night of the soul. I began my Life Coaching business in March 2018 after spending close to a decade in the yoga industry as a yoga teacher and studio owner in Downtown Los Angeles. I built a community out of nothing and considered us the misfits of yoga. Because my studio, The Yoga Place, wasn’t your average studio. I created a space for people to heal their hearts. It was therapy without them realizing that they were learning to process their emotions, love themselves and grow. But at the time I wasn’t a SelfLove Expert, I worked myself to the bone working 7 days a week for 5 years. I began to resent my dream job and started using surfing (and smoking a lot of weed) to run away. Until the day I took a surfboard to the face that would not only split my face open but would split me open. And I began to heal on a deeper more spiritual level. I knew I was destined for more than to be confined to a tiny studio in DTLA. And I felt a deep calling to share my deepest, darkest secret. …that at the time, I was living with a mental illness I was born with called Borderline Personality Disorder. And somehow, I felt like it was time to announce it the world in the most public way – I wrote an article and it got published in Elephant Journal.

https://www.elephantjournal.com/2014/04/dealing-with-borderline-personality-disorder-through-yoga-denise-waling/

This would eventually lead me to close my studio in 2016 and I was going deeper into debt while healing myself. In 2017, I came to a financial collapse and filed for bankruptcy. I barely made ends meet by working as a yoga teacher and bodyworker – still tired and unfulfilled. Overall it took me 14 years to heal BPD and had to save my life over and over again. And I found myself deep in suicidal depression, I was lost as to what I was supposed to be doing with my life. I had been studied in Yoga, Meditation, Reiki, EFT, Massage Therapy and Sound Healing yet I knew there was more.

Depressed and bankrupt, I was eventually led to a seminar with my 1st mentor, Mary Morrissey and with $0 in the bank signed up to study as a certified transformational life coach. I had 48 hours to find the money and after a series of failed attempts, I put myself on FB Live asking for just one person to help support me. I knew in my soul if I could help just 1 person it would all be worth it. 4 hours before the deadline, the money came through a wealthy client who set up a prepaid package with me and I began studying my tail off. Six weeks, March 2018, Bridge The Love launched. I had set up a business and now had to fill my slots. I found my footing and began – within 6 weeks I was in service to 10 clients. In 6 months had generated $42K in my business and within 12 months, generated $111K. I paid back my studies and was on cloud nine.

The next year I studied RTT Hypnotherapy with Marisa Peer In London because I soon realized what I had to offer was more than transformation. I was a coaches coach, helping people through their own deep trauma. But it didn’t stop there. I infused all aspects of my work and my title The SelfLove Alchemist was born.

My business took a huge turn in 2019 when I discovered my home had been riddled with mold and my body was quite sick. I had to get rid of all of my furniture and half of my belongings on top of intensive detoxing. The detox was challenging in itself and I had to pull way back on my work hours because my energy levels were so low. I stopped doing group programs and focused on 1:1 and raised my prices.

Then the pandemic hit a few months later and we all know how that affected us. Except what was to come next, I couldn’t have anticipated. I eventually manifested my dream home in Topanga, CA in the Santa Monica Mountains but as I moved in Sept 2020, my Grandfather, who helped raise me, passed away. I started a relationship with grief and three months later, I would be met with another loss, my Mother, who contracted Covid in the hospital after being treated for diabetes. I lost all direction, questioned everything and my identity was compromised. Many days I could only bathe and feed myself and the months that followed were in a fog. I couldn’t even see my family because Covid was spreading everywhere, so my sisters and I were forced to grieve alone. YET still – I was still showing up regularly on social media and even launched my first book, Asian Women Who Boss Up: Secrets from Women Who are Forging Their Own Path and Thriving. This was the last project my Filipino Mom would see. Days before she died I received the cover and sent it to her. She was my biggest cheerleader and so proud of her daughter for, in her words, having the courage to do what she couldn’t.

During this time I did everything I could to keep showing up on video in numerous interviews, sharing authentically and vulnerably the great accomplishment as well as the incredible loss I felt. I was still getting by with 1:1 clients and even hired my first VA.

Fast forward to July 2021, my beloved dog (who was my son) suddenly died from congestive heart failure. I was shattered and my family back in NC flew me home to grieve. Three days home, my father became violently ill and learned he had Covid…WTF. Now I’m facing losing BOTH my parents in the same year?! WHILE having just lost my dog. Five weeks my sister and I fought to save my Dad’s life and he made it through by a sliver. I came home to CA and 9 days later, I was on another plane back to Michigan this time – my dad’s sister passed from lung cancer and while I was there, I visited my great aunt the day before she passed away. Death upon death – the grief was intense.

In total, Sept 2020-Sept 2021 – I lost 5 important beings and almost losing my dad)

And yet STILL, I kept showing up. Kept sharing, kept opening my heart and made a huge decision to invest with Tony Robbins in Mastery University and Leadership Mastery. I knew if I wanted to rebuild my life from a new place, Tony would know how to help me do it and he sure did deliver on that.

I feel it’s important to share that I have been a mentor at LEAP Foundation for the last 4 years (minus 2021) and I get to help future leaders 15-25 with questions they have in leadership and entrepreneurship. One girl at 16 years old, sat across from me and had this look of awe. She mentioned that she couldn’t believe she was sitting across from me. I was one of the people she wanted to meet in life on her vision board!! (WHAT?!) She went on to share she struggles with BPD and somehow found me, when she found out I was mentoring at LEAP I was on the top of her list of mentors to sit with. After the event, the students get to write notes to the mentors as a thank you and I feel called to share what she wrote:

“I appreciate Denise Michelle because of how down to earth you are. You radiate such wonderful energy. It’s almost unbelievable to me that actually met you. And I want to share something with you…You are one of the people in my life that truly saved me from ending it. As someone who also deals with BPD, I find it so inspiring that you have found a way to become so successful despite what life threw at you. You are so beautiful honestly, you have such a wonderful aura. Thank you for loving yourself and teaching others to do the same. Lots of Love!”

This. This is why I keep going because of people like her. You never know who you’re impacting and she’s right despite it all – I keep showing up – even on the really painful days.

So with this being said … here is my official bio and list of accomplishments. My hope is that you can understand how my deeper WHY and how all of our stories impact others. My story is someone else’s story. YOUR story is someone else’s story. Let us keep making a difference in whatever way we can so we can be the change we wish to see in the world. Thank you for reading.

I’m Denise Michelle, The SelfLove Alchemist®! I’m an award-winning SelfLove Expert, Transformational Life Coach, Author & RTT Hypnotherapist! Through the SelfLove Mastery, I help spiritual entrepreneurs, healers and influencers recognize their potential, break through limiting beliefs and blocks so they can feel empowered and successful while increasing Love and value in the world.

My path began nearly 20 years ago after being diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder. I have dedicated my life in self-love mastery overcoming the illness, along with suicidal depression, anxiety, addiction, sexual abuse, domestic abuse and bankruptcy and am on a mission to help create change in the world. I began my journey in spiritual entrepreneurship as a certified yoga/meditation teacher and yoga studio owner in Los Angeles, which led me to leading international and domestic workshops and retreats. I have studied various healing modalities including massage therapy, reiki healing, sound healing, Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) eventually landing in my life’s mission in service as a transformational Life Coach and master healer utilizing the method of RTT (Rapid Transformation Therapy) Hypnotherapy.

Through my journey, I have created HypnoHealing® – a modality which combines all my methods of study to help people in an effective and efficient way back home to their authentic Self. I believe Love is the most powerful medicine and when we have the tools and skills to create real solutions from Love, I believe we can truly change the world. First, we heal ourselves then can help others. The healing must start within each of us and that creates a ripple effect on this planet. I am a leader helping to create more leaders!

Bridge The Love is not just a brand, it’s a movement.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I have overcome some serious adversities in life – all for a purpose and in 2020 after losing five family members including my mother to covid, it reaffirmed my WHY. Yes, I can give you my CV with my list of accomplishments but my greatest accomplishment is my ability to break hearts open, help people see themselves from a place of love and compassion and strive to make this world a better place. My biggest accomplishment is devoting the healing work for myself so I can help others.

Every day I think about how I can add more Love and value into people’s lives, often this includes being self-aware enough to see how my thoughts, energy and actions create an impact.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I always thought I was an entrepreneur until I discovered I am an Artist who is entrepreneurial. Hello game changer! That right there made things way more fun and creative.

I LOVE educating on all things SelfLove, self-care and self-healing.

Here’s what I have found…

People will often have transformative experiences but find themselves in default behaviors and patterns not knowing how to make it stick. I help guide people with real life-changing results and use the avenue of SelfLove Mastery to help them do that.

Most of the people I come across are seeking life purpose, transformation, change, personal growth, inner child work, and healing traumas. My SelfLove Mastery digital courses, coaching and mentorship help create radical and permanent change in people’s lives so they can authentically be who they are. They can discover why they are here and begin to take steps toward living their life purpose. All of my students and clients are in service in some way. Together we are creating a ripple effect to make change in the world through transformation and love.

People begin to see massive changes in their relationships, health, careers (whether it’s changing their career or stepping into it further) and learn how to prioritize self-care giving themselves more time freedom to do what truly feeds them.

Transformation CAN be made with ease and grace without burning the candle at both ends AND with a whole lot of fun.

Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc?
OMG where do I start. I have a freakin’ library at this point. I study everything from psychology to manifestation, to energy healing to business development to relationships.

BUT I will say my top 3 key books:

The Alchemist – I read it every year

The Science of Getting Rich – I’ve read this book close to 100 times

The Game of Life and How to Play It – read between the lines and you will experience MAGIC

My fave podcasts include: Gabby Bernstein, Lewis Howes and Manifestation Babe

Resources – yes I have many and it really depends what people are seeking to learn. Mold illness – I’ve got a guide for that. Thinning hair – I’ve got a guide for that. Health hacks – yup that too. Emergency preparedness – yup, I’ve even got a guide for that.

If you message me at hello@bridgethelove.com subject line SelfLove Library – you can get on the waitlist for the extensive library I am putting together!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.BridgeTheLove.com
• Instagram: @denisemichellexoxo
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/theselflovetribebtl/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/DeniseMxoxo
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwYfh7NzZ2TCQgdSyRN4eWA