For Tanya van Tonder, life is about slowing down, paying attention, and remembering the connection to oneself, nature, and the world around us.
It’s not about having all the answers.
At 43, Tanya describes herself as a curious multipotentialite whose life has unfolded through many different paths. She works as an intuitive energy healer and Reiki practitioner in Hermanus, is part of the communications team for a global animal welfare organisation, creates content, works at festivals and events centred around wild plants, and is developing her own Nature Woman project.
Beyond these different roles, she is best described as deeply curious about the natural world and ways people can live more consciously within it.
Her journey into Reiki was gradual – not dramatic. After years of navigating the pressures of modern life, work and relationships, she began looking for ways to feel more grounded and connected. Reiki felt familiar.
“It spoke to me on a deep level of familiarity – as if the practice was already within my bones and I just needed to be reminded,” she says.
Tanya studied Usui Traditional Reiki, achieving Shoden Level 1, Okuden Level 2 and Shipiden Level 3 attunement from Reiki Master Teacher Hannalie Benade.
Her understanding of healing extends beyond Reiki. She has developed a close relationship with plants through years of personal exploration, making remedies, growing, foraging and learning from others. Tanya credits Annette Muller of Wild Nettle as an important influence, while remaining humble about her own knowledge.
“I’m a student of this, not an authority on it,” she says.
Tanya approaches traditional plant knowledge with respect. She acknowledges that no formal cultural or family lineage was handed down to her, and she is conscious of learning from traditions without claiming what is not hers.
For Tanya, these practices are woven into daily life through food, plants, walking, stillness and time outdoors. Reiki and nature are not separate worlds, but different doorways into the same deeper connection.
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