Welcome to my Heart Space!
My Mission
If I am an ancestor of the future, then what can I do to leave behind a better world?
While I have had many jobs in my life, what has my soul come here to do?
Here is my mission, as I currently understand it …
Restore Women’s Culture
It is time for the culture of women to be restored to the earth, and for us to rise once more as embodied leaders of our tribe. The culture of the feminine, our heritage, that has been taken from us through 5000 years of patriarchy and it’s shaming of all things intrinsically feminine, desecration of our voice and values, and genocide of our wise women over millennia. The time has come for us to restore our culture of connection, reclaim our life-giving values, and weave our embodied wisdom back into our communities. Only through the returning of the vibration of the Divine Feminine, and the balancing of the female and male principles, will the world experience a renaissance – a flourishing of love, peace, and unity with all life, from the ground up, and from the womb outwards.
I’m helping Restore Women’s Culture through:
Educating on sacred menstruation and empowerment through the Menstrual Cycle
Podcasting about the magic of our menstrual cycle at The Red Temple Podcast
Mentoring young women on their journey to adulthood in my Girls Circles
Leading womb-led Rites of Passage events in my community
Reroot Indigenous Wisdom
Our modern industrial world and its education system propagates the perception that we are linear, mechanical beings, destined for continuous productivity until we die. However, we can see all around us, this model of linear reality and relentless “growth” is not serving humanity or the planet we live on. Working with the natural rhythms and cycles of our bodies, our earth and our cosmos, returns our worldview from linear to cyclical, restores our embodied connection to nature, and realigns us with the sacred rhythms of life. Reclaiming the fullness of who we are as cyclical beings, and reconnecting to our original indigenous nature is a revolutionary act. It is an act against the industrial model of reality, against the controlling patriarchy, but most of all is it an act of self-care for ourselves and one of the biggest gifts you can gift the world at this time. It is true “progress”, and the medicine we and our world needs at this crucial time of transition. This medicine is also intimately connected to the medicine of the Divine Feminine and the restoration of our culture as women.
I’m helping Reroot Indigenous Wisdom through:
Leading workshops on my Irish medicine wheel, the Celtic Wheel of Life
Facilitating Women’s Circles based on Irish indigenous wisdom
Reawaken the Heart of Humanity
We are living in a “broken realm”. Buddhists call it “Samsara”. A world of fear, discord, and separation perpetuated through the continual hijacking of our thinking mind over our true nature. The dominant state of consciousness on our planet right now is the unquestioned belief that we are our thoughts, and that what we are perceiving through our thinking mind is the absolute truth of reality. What results from this mis-identification of who we are, and mis-perception of what we see, is a world of insanity (with suicide, homocide, ecocide, and genocide being some of the results of this insanity). What’s needed now, more than ever, is a rescue mission for humanity, before we destroy each other and this beautiful planet. We need to be led out of the exile in our heads, and anchored back into the vast, spacious home of our hearts. Our heart: our home of unconditional love, peace, and unity with all life.
I’m helping Reawaken the Heart of Humanity through:
Writing and soon publishing my spiritual travel memoir, loosely titled The Truth Book
Guiding Meditation events in my community
If I am an ancestor of the future, then I wish to leave behind: a world where the embodied wisdom of the feminine is deeply honoured and reverently celebrated; a people who’s innate connection to nature and the natural cycles have been restored; and a humanity who live more fully from their hearts, at one with all life. This is the New Earth. And we are co-creating this together. Is éa ~ It is so.
About Me
Being Irish
If you can’t hear my accent as you read this, let me tell you that it’s an Irish one! I’m from Co. Limerick, outside a village called Doon, in the south west / mid west of Ireland. This patch of county Limerick was traditionally the stronghold of the Ryan Clan over 1000 years ago, with the ancient ruins of the old Ryan Clan castle tucked away in a woodland about 10 miles from my home. There is something beautifully grounding about knowing that you were born and grew up in a place where your direct lineage of ancestors have been living, for well over a millennia. Even though I have traveled all over the world, and am now living very far away, I feel my roots deeply, and carry my name of Ryan with honor and pride.
I grew up surrounded by rolling green fields, and always loved nature and the beautiful landscape around me. As a teenager, I wanted to “save the planet”, and decided to study Earth Science in University College Cork (UCC). I graduated with a first class honors Bachelor of Science degree, and went on to do a Masters in Sustainable Development in the Dublin Institute of Technology (DIT). I started my professional life as a postgraduate researcher with the Futures Academy, DIT and then moved back to Cork to work for The Cleaner Production Promotion Unit, UCC, as an environmental researcher, consultant and trainer.
At 28 I felt a deep dissatisfaction with life. The academic study of the environment felt dry and barren, and my work wasn’t as inspiring as I thought it was going to be when I was younger and thought I could make a difference. Knowing there was something more to be explored and understood about life, I gave it all up and went to “seek truth” in Nepal and India. Perhaps, in the end, the planet ended up saving me!
I am one of three sisters, which has been a beautiful blessing in my life. The power of sisterhood is a profound gift I wish to share with others. So it was such a joy to have discovered Moon Mná (“Mná” is Irish for women, pronounced ‘men-aww’) – a community offering Women’s Celtic Circles, Rites of Passage, and Divine Feminine ceremonies. Having completed their comprehensive Women’s Circle Facilitator Training course, I’ve been facilitating Women’s Circles both in-person here in Austin, Texas and virtually via zoom since 2021. I’ve also been leading women’s circle-based Rites of Passage events. It’s so exciting for me to go deeper into my own indigenous Irish wisdom tradition, and work with the Divine Feminine in the form of powerful Irish Goddesses. It feels like a beautiful coming home to a truth that was there all along.
Truth-Seeking in Nepal & India
In 2009 I gave up my job, my apartment and life as I knew it in Ireland, threw on a backpack, and ventured East to seek truth and find meaning. I was 28, about to turn 29, and I just knew there was “something more” – a supreme truth to life that I yearned to directly experience. I travelled solo for the year, living in Kathmandu for 5 months, exploring the high Himalayan lands of Ladakh just west of Tibet for 3 months, and finished my journey on the hot humid plains of Calcutta, in Mother India.
In my quest to seek and find truth, I immersed myself in Buddhism and received life-changing Dharma teachings from a lineage of high Tibetan Lamas. I meditated many long hours in Tibetan Buddhist gompas (temples) and Theravada Buddhist meditation centers in Nepal and India; practiced Yoga; was initiated into Reiki and Pranic healing; had the sweet privilege of being part of a rural Nepalese community in the Kathmandu valley; co-ordinated English Conversation Clubs and classes with Nepalese girls and Tibetan refugees; trekked through the highest mountains in the world; stayed with Ladakhi nuns in the Himalayas; attended the teachings of the Dalai Lama; traced some of the steps of Jesus in his supposed lost years in India; meditated for many many more hours in a Himalayan meditation cell on the borders of Tibet; and worked in the Mother Teresa homes for children and for the dying in Calcutta. It felt like the education I truly yearned for, beyond the academic world. Education for the Heart.
I’m currently writing a book about this profound truth-seeking journey based on my travel diaries from that year. Every moment that I’ve spent working on this book throughout the years has been a supremely holy moment, and I can’t wait to share it with you when it’s finally birthed out into the world! Visit my Truth Book webpage for a preview!
The practice of meditation has given me so many gifts since that time, that I felt called to offer monthly guided meditation sessions here in the Texas Hill Country. Visit my Meditation webpage to learn more.
Living in Austin, Texas
I always thought I’d live my whole life in Ireland, and presumed that after my truth-seeking adventures in Asia, I would return home to the same or similar life. But the Universe had different plans, apparently. Unbeknownst to myself, I had met the man I was going to marry in a Buddhist meditation center in the Himalayas. He was not Irish. He was not Indian. He was American. So at the end of 2011, I moved here to the U.S. of A. to be with my soon to be husband, Brian.
Brian is a visual artist and musician, and I’m so grateful for his wild creative and loving energy in my life. Over the years, he has inspired me to follow my own creativity, passion and mission in life. Visit Living Light Designs, Ask The Light Miracle Cards and The Living Light for some of his beautiful underwater light creations from the sacred waters at Barton Springs, Austin Texas.
Despite how wonderful my husband and Austin are, it was a difficult transition. Over time I realized I had to reinvent myself. With a vision of working for myself, helping people directly in person, and engaging my organizational skills, I started my own professional organizing business and worked for various clients in their homes and home offices. In 2016 this work transitioned to becoming operations and sustainability manager for a new eco-friendly wedding venue and wellness retreat in the Texas Hill Country, The Cedars Ranch.
Then along came the year 2020, and it changed everything. For me, it was also the year I turned 40. Within the few weeks of my 40th birthday, lockdown hit the world and I lost my job as venue manager. It was a perfect storm! Now I had all this free time to figure out what I wanted my new decade to be like. I spent weeks creating vision boards and delving deep into my hopes and dreams for the rest of my life.
What emerged from this deep dive, was a commitment to an online training course on mentoring girls with Journey of Young Women. You can learn more about that in my Girls Circle webpage. However, in truth, this course was really mentoring me, and healing my own inner girl in ways I still can’t fully comprehend. So instead of running girls circles, what opened up for me at this time was, in fact, the idea to facilitate Women’s Circles. And by the end of 2020 I’d found the Irish Moon Mná, and started their online training on facilitating Celtic-themed women’s circles.
Traversing this deep Divine Feminine journey with both my girls mentorship and women’s circle courses, I was introduced to the book “Wild Power”. With it came the brand new concept that the Menstrual Cycle may actually be more powerful than we ever imagined, and menstruation itself a doorway to our deepest spiritual selves. I was truly blown away. Something I’d considered so flippantly throughout my life, as well as something that gave me much physical pain, was starting to turn into one of the greatest revelations of my life.
In 2021, I started facilitating womens circles in Austin Texas based on Irish indigenous themes. Easily woven into this earth-honoring path, was the menstrual cycle, and soon the indigenous path and the menstrual cycle became the core spiritual navigators in my life. My Priestesses of the Spiral Path women’s circles gathered momentum throughout the years, and soon we were a thriving sisterhood community, honoring all the sacred cycles of our life, including those of our wombs and those of our seasons. Before we knew it, we were organizing A Menstrual Art Exhibit and co-creating a Shamanic Womb Cave for local festivals. On Mother’s Day 2024, Clare of the Solstice and I started co-hosting The Red Temple Podcast, musing about the magic of our menstrual cycle experiences.
And just like the spiral, we keep ever-evolving. Who knows where the next curve of the journey will take me. All I know is that I’m grateful to be traversing this sacred path, and riding its holy ebbs and flows together in community with you all.
If you’re interested in more information about my education and professional background, as well as my previous volunteer work and other interests and passions, then keep on scrolling …
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Education
Training, Certificates & Informal Education
2023: Moon Mná Women’s Circle Facilitator Training Course Certificate – Moon Mná, Online (Ireland)
2022: Circle-Based Mentorship for Girls Course Certificate – Journey of Young Women, Online (USA)
2022: Rose Priestess Certificate – Magdalene Rose Temple, Online (UK)
2019: Eckhart Tolle’s School of Awakening Course Certificate – Eckhart Tolle, Online (USA)
2015: Shamanic Reiki Practitioner Level 1, 2 & 3 Certificates – Feileacan Ministry, Austin, Texas
2009: Pranic Healing Course Certificate – Yoga Vidya Pranic Healing Foundation, Kolkata, India
2009: Reiki 1st & 2nd Degree Certificates – Reiki Foundation Usui Reiki Ryoho, Kathmandu, Nepal
Formal Academic Education
2007: Certificate in Training & Continuing Education (1st Class Honors) – NUI Maynooth, Ireland
2003: MSc Sustainable Development (1st Class Honors) – Dublin Institute of Technology, Ireland
2001: BSc Earth Science (1st Class Honors) – University College Cork, Ireland
Work History
2016 – 2020: Venue Operations & Sustainability Manager – The Cedars Ranch, Wimberley, Texas
Operations manager for an eco-friendly Texas Hill Country wedding venue and wellness retreat. Work included: Lead and client management; Marketing and promotion; Social media; Blogging; Website management; Graphic design; Networking; Organizing exhibits; Planning events.
2014 – 2016: Professional Organizer – Brenda Ryan Organizing, Austin, Texas
Professional organizer and member of the National Association of Professional Organizers, working with clients in their homes and home offices. Work included: Establishing / updating filing systems; Preparing official documents; Researching; Bookkeeping; Contact management; Optimizing space and storage.
2012 – 2014: Project Manager & Administrator – The WaterLight Healing Project, Austin, Texas
Co-founded a non-profit arts project providing visual art to community and healthcare facilities to support wellbeing and promote healing. Work included: Running a successful crowdfunding campaign; Researching grant-funding options; Writing grant proposals; Administering project budget; Organizing exhibitions.
2006 – 2008 & 2010 – 2011: Environmental Researcher, Consultant & Trainer – University College Cork
Academic researcher, consultant and trainer with the Cleaner Production Promotion Unit, UCC. Work included: Completing environmental reports and research papers; Preparing proposals for EU funding; Delivering environmental training to businesses nation-wide; Leading a carbon footprint study for the University.
2004 & 2006: Postgraduate Researcher – The Futures Academy, Dublin Institute of Technology
Postgraduate researcher working with Dublin business associations to prepare a book chapter on Business Improvement Districts (BIDs) for academics and professionals. Investigated environmental sustainability principles in Public Private Partnerships in Europe, in conjunction with Smart Futures consultancy in the UK.
Conferences, Publications & Awards
Conferences
2019: Co-Organizer of Self-Compassion Workshop with Dr. Kristin Neff – Wimberley, Texas
2014: Speaker at The Global Alliance for Arts & Health Conference – Houston, Texas
2011: Speaker at Environ Conference on Carbon Footprinting – University College Cork, Ireland
2008: Organizer of Corporate Social Responsibility Conference – University College Cork, Ireland
2007: Organizer & Speaker at Waste Management Seminar – University College Cork, Ireland
2004: Speaker at Environ Conference on Ecological Footprint Analysis – University of Limerick, Ireland
Publications
2019: Article “Dream Weddings Can Also Be Green” – Austin Awakenings Magazine Sustainable Spotlight
2008: Chapter Co-Author “The Adoption of the BID Model in Ireland” – Routledge
2008: Paper “Journeying Towards A More Sustainable World” – University College Cork Chimera Journal
2004: Peer Reviewed Paper “Ecological Footprint Analysis: Irish Study” – Journal of Irish Geography
Awards
1999: Awarded “College Scholar” in recognition of academic achievements – University College Cork
1998: Awarded “College Scholar” in recognition of academic achievements – University College Cork
Volunteer, Community & Youth Work
2019 – 2020: Ladies Let’s Talk Volunteer – Austin, Texas
2010 – 2011: St. Vincent de Paul Conference Member – Cork, Ireland
2010: UCC Wellness Society Meditation Guide – University College Cork, Ireland
2010: Primary School Cultural Awareness Class Presenter – Limerick, Ireland
Oct – Dec 2009: Mother Teresa’s Missionaries of Charity Volunteer – Kolkata, India
June – July 2009: Vajrayana School for Sherpas & Tibetan Refugees English Conversation Teacher – Kathmandu
April – July 2009: Nepalese Girl’s English Conversation Club Co-ordinator – Bungamati, Nepal
Feb – July 2009: Himalayan Buddhist Meditation Centre Public Relations Volunteer – Kathmandu, Nepal
2004: Primary School Ecological Footprint Project Co-ordinator – Tipperary, Ireland
2000 – 2011: Chernobyl Children’s Project Mulkear Outreach Group Member – Limerick, Ireland
Yoga & Meditation Courses
July 2015: 10-Day Vipassana Meditation Course – Vipassana Meditation Center, Dallas, Texas
Sept – Oct 2009: Personal Meditation Retreat – Mahabodhi International Meditation Centre, Ladakh
Aug 2009: Agama Yoga Course & Yoga Trek – Ladakh, Indian Himalaya
May 2009: 10-Day Introduction to Tibetan Buddhism Course – Kopan Monastery, Nepal
March 2009: 10-Day Vipassana Meditation Course – Vipassana Meditation Centre, Kathmandu, Nepal
Feb – July 2009: Daily Hatha Yoga Classes – Himalayan Buddhist Meditation Centre, Kathmandu, Nepal
Feb – July 2009: Daily Guided Meditations – Himalayan Buddhist Meditation Centre, Kathmandu, Nepal
July 2005: Raja Yoga Meditation Course – Brahma Kumaris Meditation Centre, Ubud, Bali
You then realize that you don’t live your life, but life lives you. Life is the dancer, and you are the dance.
Eckhart Tolle
