Shifting how we speak and listen, to ourselves and others, can lead to healthier relationships and long-term happiness*
*According to an 85+year Harvard study, close relationships are the key to happiness, more so than money, fame, IQ, exercise, healthy eating, or even genes! Why not prioritize them, or at least invest a little more time and care? You might be surprised by how nourishing and enjoyable it feels. :-)
Discover how cultivating compassion, curiosity, and courage can support us in creating healthier, happier relationships - with our family members, our friends, our colleagues, and even with ourselves!
Through 'The Heart of Communication' (whether in workshops, retreats, coaching calls, or private sessions), you'll learn practices and principles rooted in ancient wisdom, modern neuroscience, and nonviolent communication (NVC), that will support you in:
Expressing yourself more authentically and in a way that increases your chances of truly being heard
Navigating challenging conversations with more calmness, clarity, and compassion
Cultivating a quality of listening that helps others feel heard, valued, and supported
Responding to hard-to-hear messages with integrity
Bringing more awareness to patterns of reactivity
De-escalating conflict while building trust
Cultivating more self-compassion by calming your inner critic with curiosity and care
Fostering more peace, harmony & joy in all of your relationships :)
Weekly, biweekly, and monthly online parenting sessions will continue. Click here for details about those.
"Mindful Self-Compassion for Parents and Educators" and "Listening Beyond Behavior: Cultivating Connection in Moments of Challenge," among other courses, will be returning online beginning in April 2026!
If you'd enjoy receiving invitations to those and other offerings as they become available, simply add your name and email here. 💕
In-person workshops and retreats returning to Europe September - November 2026!
(Italy, Austria, Romania, Czech Republic, Germany and Spain - details coming in late April / early May.)
Please don't hesitate to email Heather at TheHeartofCommunication@gmail.com.
“The most precious gift we can offer others is our presence.
When mindfulness embraces those we love, they will bloom like flowers.”
~ Thich Nhat Hanh
“Heather has offered me practical strategies to transform patterns of reactivity into behaviors that are more aligned with my values.” ~ Grace Deckers, Brazil
“Heather is connected to her innate care for others, and with her, I feel seen, heard, and understood in my challenges. She has inspired me with her commitment to walk the path of compassion.” ~ Fernanda Cecin, Argentina
"Because of Heather and the principles of NVC, mindfulness, The Compass and the many other disciplines Heather shares, I am now, at 77 years old, learning the many unconscious ways my body and mind have been habitually programmed...bringing awareness where before there was little. In the gentlest, yet clearest manner possible, Heather has led our group through many exercises and discussions, bringing awareness where before there was little. Because of Heather's caring, compassionate heart, her skilled teaching methods, and her embodiment of the modalities she shares, we are experiencing the material intellectually through her references to brain science and developmental theory, viscerally, through practicing and experimenting with our bodies, and spiritually, through the presence and unconditional love and acceptance we all feel from Heather." ~ Margery Pricket, United States
“Heather is a person who gives herself without limits, without judgment, she is a being full of compassion, love, empathy, and resilience." ~ Carolina Zamorano, Columbia
"I love how you [Heather] extract the principle after each sharing and expand it. It provides a sense of being heard for the person sharing and learning for all other participants. I learn so many facilitation skills from you in addition to all the content you share. I was so much longing for exactly a space like this." ~ Csenge Fekete, Romania
Heather offers compassionate communication and connected parenting workshops, courses, retreats, ongoing support groups, and private coaching for individuals of all ages, couples, families, schools, organizations, and community groups.
At the heart of her work is a passion for helping others cultivate the capacity for nonjudgmental awareness and empathic communication, skills that foster self-understanding and deepen connection. Heather believes that nurturing compassionate, collaborative, and purpose-aligned relationships can plant the seeds for much-needed systemic shifts and ultimately contribute to a world that cares for all.
She offers practical, accessible tools drawn from her training in Nonviolent Communication (NVC), Mindful Schools, UCLA’s Parent Empowerment Project, UCLA’s Adaptive Schools Foundations, the Nonviolent Global Liberation (NGL) community, Internal Family Systems (IFS), The Compass, Polyvagal Theory, and other integrative modalities. Her work is grounded not only in formal learning but also in lived experience, gently weaving these practices into her own life and relationships.
Heather brings wisdom from decades of supporting others on their journeys toward greater connection, clarity, and compassion. She has worked across four continents and speaks from the intimate lens of her own path of parenting and homeschooling her neurodivergent child.