Tessa is a mentor, somatic therapist, author and teacher deeply passionate about cultivating a deeper relationship to our body, human beauty, our capacity to love and live all of Life. 

Completing her BA in International Studies with a focus on Asian cultural anthropology and her research into bodily veiling from Leiden University, she continued her studies in the field of Organizational Anthropology and graduated from VU University (MSc) on diversity studies and the influence of visibility, lookism and bodyism in the social settings. She published her insightful and personal ethnographic research on individuals with facial difference. Her academic graduation gave birth to her project To Face The World as she transferred qualitative anthropological and psychology research into her therapy and coaching practice. 

She has studied extracurricular tracks in human flourishing, Buddhist rhetoric, comparative accounts of human flourishing, philosophy and positive psychology as well as studied and trained in/as an Ayurvedic nutrionist, emotional wellbeing coaching, Jungian psychology, feminine spiritual/sexual embodiment practice, marma skin therapy, epigenetics, kashmir shavism, vipassana meditation, and is a dedicated yogic practitioner for the past 12+ years.

With her personal medical journey and risk of losing eyesight coupled with her facial birthmark, Tessa has found profound ground, presence and inner flourishing to live wholeheartedly. She continues to deepen her devotional practice in daily life.

Since 2019, Tessa has guided individuals from all corners of the globe and has taught groups on wellbeing, embodiment, empowerment, beauty, visibility, belonging and relating deeply to life in private mentorship, somatic therapeutics, keynote speaking, university teaching and writing. 

Her first book was published in 2022.

Tessa runs her private practice from Amsterdam, The Netherlands, where she is born and based. She travels the world for teaching and speaking. She is a lover of ceramics, reading and dance as creative self-expression and can often be found on the shores of Portugal's wild coast.