Margie Woods shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.
Hi Margie, thank you so much for taking time out of your busy day to share your story, experiences and insights with our readers. Let’s jump right in with an interesting one: What is something outside of work that is bringing you joy lately?
Sailing has been my biggest source of joy outside of work lately. There’s something about being out on the water that completely resets me. It’s a mix of adventure and presence. I feel a sense of freedom and autonomy like nowhere else. Whether I’m sailing alone or with others, it’s one of the few places where I feel completely present and grounded. It’s one of my greatest teachers in life.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I’m Margie (with a hard “g,” like Margarita) Woods. I’m an artist, photographer, avid sailor, and creativity coach. Through my work at Language of the Soul™ Studio, I support women in connecting more deeply with themselves through art as a form of self-care and healing. My approach is about letting go of perfection and learning to trust your own creative voice. I teach therapeutic art journaling workshops and offer one-on-one coaching sessions that help women find freedom, self-expression, and emotional balance through creativity.
What makes my work unique is that it blends art, psychology, and play in a way that feels accessible and deeply personal. I have a master’s degree in psychology and more than thirty years of experience using art journaling as a healing practice in my own life. I believe creativity isn’t about making something pretty, but about connecting with your truth and giving it form. Right now, I’m focused on bringing these teachings online so more people can experience the healing power of art from home.
Amazing, so let’s take a moment to go back in time. What was your earliest memory of feeling powerful?
It actually wasn’t until I was 48 when I sailed across the Pacific Ocean alone on my 34-foot sailboat. That experience almost ten years ago shifted everything for me. Out there, with no one to perform for or please, I found my own center and sense of power for the first time. I felt free from the fawning and people-pleasing patterns that had shaped my life after surviving ongoing childhood trauma and the CPTSD that followed. It was the first time I truly felt powerful, not because I was doing something extreme, but because I was finally feeling my own power and standing in my truth without apology or influence from anyone else.
When did you stop hiding your pain and start using it as power?
I started turning my pain into power about thirty years ago, when I began using art as a tool for healing. That was the beginning of learning to face what I had carried and give it a voice through creativity. Over the years that followed, as I worked through my trauma layer by layer, my art became both witness and medicine.
The biggest shift came more recently when I began working with a trauma therapist. I started to see my survival patterns clearly and learned to recognize and regulate them in real time, especially fawning, which had been my main way of surviving as a child and young adult. That awareness brought a new level of freedom and authenticity to my life and to the work I share with others. Through somatic practices, I also connected the dots that art itself is a somatic healing practice, a way for the body to speak what words cannot.
I was never consciously hiding my pain, but when I truly woke up, I saw that dissociation and fawning had been quietly doing that for me all along.
So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. What’s a belief or project you’re committed to, no matter how long it takes?
A belief I’m deeply committed to, no matter how long it takes, is that healing equals freedom. I believe that when we begin to heal, we reclaim the parts of ourselves that were lost to survival. Making art and engaging with creativity is a powerful pathway to that healing. I believe art heals on a deep level, and that’s why I do this work. My commitment is to help people find ways to heal themselves and wake up to their own power and truth. That’s what fuels everything I do, and it’s what I’ll keep showing up for as long as I’m here.
Before we go, we’d love to hear your thoughts on some longer-run, legacy type questions. What do you think people will most misunderstand about your legacy?
I hope people won’t misunderstand my legacy, but one thing I’ve struggled with is that people often can’t, or don’t want to, see the struggle and the hard-fought peace behind what looks shiny on the surface. For much of my life, I had to hide my pain, and I think that sometimes makes me appear as though I have none. I don’t want to dwell in pain or be seen as a victim, but I do want people to understand that the only way out is through, and that none of us are alone in that process. Healing asks us to feel it all.
I want my legacy to be that we can all feel safe and free to speak and live the truth of who we are. My hope is to help people feel safe enough to heal and grow, to know that their truth and their voice matter. I hope my legacy reminds people not to judge a life by its exterior, but to stay curious about what’s real beneath the surface, avoid assumptions, and always lead with compassion. And to not shy away from pain, but to learn to feel it all. That is freedom.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://languageofthesoulart.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/language_of_the_soul_studio/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/languageofthesoulart/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/languageofthesoul
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@languageofthesoulart
Image Credits
Andrea Scher
