My name is Nancy Stevens Zwerin and I was born and raised in Raleigh, N.C. I spent 26 years working in the medical field followed by 17 years of owning my own pet sitting and dog walking business.
At the tender age of 22, I began supervising a department in the clinical pathology lab of a large hospital trauma center. The healing arts always beckoned me, although in my early years I really wanted to move to California and become a backup singer for The Carpenters. I think music also qualifies as a healing modality. I’ve spent many moments with people who were in different stages of anguish and pain, life and death. My only thought was to try and bring them comfort and do the best job I could to support their healing process. This was challenging because my job was to stick a needle in their veins and draw their blood for testing. It’s not easy to balance the paradoxical dilemma of having to be in the personal space of a complete stranger, stick a needle in them and want to bring them comfort at the same time.
I began walking my spiritual path in my late twenties after the death of a close friend, and I was filled with questions about life and my purpose. Death actually found me fairly early in my life, having lost my father when I was 16 years old due to a sudden and fatal heart attack brought on by bad genes and overwork. I began to research and over the years read many books on the topics of spirituality, psychology, death, and life after death. Some of my favorite books were Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah by Richard Bach, The Celestine Prophecy by James Redfield, and Seat of the Soul by Gary Zukav. These books just lit me up and left me feeling energized and alive and more curious and engaged in life. When I discovered meditation, I felt that finally I had a lifelong tool that still supports me no matter where my journey takes me. I owe a debt of gratitude to Deepak Chopra, Oprah Winfrey and David Ji for their profound teachings along with Wayne Dyer, Hay House and Esther Hicks, who channels Abraham, a group of highly evolved souls.
Having become active in my local spiritual community back in the early ‘80s, I found others like myself who longed to better understand what it means to be a spirit in a physical body. During this time, I began to realize that I was a sensitive and empathic person. In fact, as a teen I used to say that I was too sensitive for my own good, and in many ways this was true at the time. I felt a lot of sadness and pain for others and then found it very hard to let go of that. It sort of became my own pain.
If I saw a dead animal that had been hit by a car on the road, I was left feeling devastated. I needed to learn how to have healthy boundaries for myself so that my soul could evolve and so that I could grow into the person I was born to be. It was during this time that I experienced really close bonds with my horse, Bizarre, my Springer Spaniel, Fibber McGee, and, of course, who can forget little Trouble kitty. Being with my pets brought me comfort and joy and helped me begin to regain some balance in my life. My pets made me laugh, helped me get grounded (sometimes quite literally, thank you Bizarre), absorbed much of my sadness and always appreciated my love.
I wanted my life to mean something and I very much felt compelled to find my soul’s purpose. I began participating in Reiki shares in 1997 and received my first Reiki attunement in 1998. Today, I’m a Reiki Master/Teacher level practitioner and a member of the International Association of Reiki Professionals.
I was also active with NAPPS (National Association of Professional Pet Sitters) and chose to serve on several committees and eventually became a director on their board. I have to learn by doing because I’m not the best reader or alert audience member. I need hands-on participation. By the end of 2019, after managing my pet-sitting business for 17 years, I felt it was time to put more focus on my own spiritual evolution, personal growth and health. I immensely enjoyed working with our clients, their pets and my staff, and I’ll always cherish those memories. Once I made the decision to sell and found a business broker, my business sold within 48 hours of being posted. I think my broker is still in shock since he had given me “the talk” about how it usually takes a year to a year and a half to sell a business.
From a very young age, animals have been a magnetic draw for me. I find comfort and joy in their presence and steadfast companionship. I am still filled with awe and amazement when I observe animals in nature. As I’ve gotten older and had more life experience, I’ve found that I have more time to enjoy my love for animals and pets in a whole new way. Animals love Reiki! Who knew?
When I use my Reiki skills to offer healing energy to animals, I am blessed and honored when they choose to show me their world and how they perceive their life and their love for their family. Many of the pets I work with are experiencing either behavioral or physical issues and some are even in transition to leave their bodies. I know and can sense that the Reiki energy is supporting them and helping each pet with whatever they’re going through. But the most beautiful part of offering this service is the reassurance and validation of the special love that is shared between pets and their owners and family members. Pets often show me how immensely they love their owners. To be able to share this with their owners is priceless, and, as humans, we seem to really need a lot of confirmation about these often silent yet deeply committed relationships. Why is it so hard to believe how loveable we are?