Meet Alyssa Nadolny | Intuitive Tarot Reader, Medium, Poet, and Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Alyssa Nadolny and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Alyssa, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
I grew up in Connecticut and as much as I have always been creative and wished to pursue a creative career…creativity and artistry was and is viewed as impractical. It was drilled into my mind from an early age that in order to succeed, I would need to have a practical job that was consistent, dependable and low risk to pay the bills. But I knew I needed a job that was my passion and from a young age I felt innately helping others was my purpose for being here. I didn’t always know how I would get there but I knew I had a calling greater than myself. So when nursing school presented itself, it checked all of the boxes and made sense. I could help others, keep my hands and mind busy at the same time, have a steady paycheck and live in my purpose. My poetry and my spirituality were private sects of my life that I just accepted would forever be that way…simply hobbies. But bedside nursing drained me emotionally, physically, spiritually and mentally. I found myself feeling as though I wasn’t bettering people’s lives but simply putting band-aids on gunshot wounds. We were patching people without getting to the root source of their ill health: socioeconomics, undiagnosed and under treated mental health disorders, poverty, and trauma. It then made sense, seemed practical, and necessary to go back to school to become a psychiatric nurse practitioner and work in the community to get at the root causes. I was also going through my own cPTSD healing and writing poetry to process. I simultaneously kept experiencing synchronicities that I couldn’t ignore: angel numbers, prophetic dreams, dreams with animal guides and silently predicting things around me. I was presenting to the world as someone who was normal, hard working, and a go getter. In my private world I was having these intense spiritual experiences and scared of being viewed as weird. When I moved to Denver, I immediately met other like-minded people who were spiritual and I tried to continue living my double life. But then I kept meeting other women who were professional AND spiritual…it was normal. It made be realize I didn’t need to just have a practical job but I could also actively pursue my creative and spiritual pursuits which were typically very intertwined with each other. I slowly came out of my privacy with my creative and spiritual gifts by surrounding myself with an incredibly supportive community around me that allowed me space to accept myself first. Once I made the realization that I could do both and then decided to be public with my gifts so I could help others on another level…it just made sense and work stopped draining me. I was pursuing endeavors that were practical, creative, artistic, spiritual and by default filling my cup; I was finally feeling fulfilled and in alignment with my purpose. I guess you could say it was apart of my journey and my destiny.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I’m a contracted psychiatric nurse practitioner and I am also an intuitive tarot reader, medium and poet. What sets me apart is that not only do I have professional experience…I also have a lot of personal experience. I am intuitive, well-versed in my trauma, my trauma healing and well educated in psychiatry/mental health. I have experienced a lot of loss in my life. I have worked incredibly hard on myself, my spirituality and my mental wellness. All of these different facets to very different aspects of who I am, my craft, and how I am able to hold space for others inform and influence each other. I approach my clients as a spiritual practitioner the way I would my nurse practitioner clients: with zero judgment, emotionally safety, and encouragement. Most of all: I listen. I am most proud of how my personal, professional and spiritual lives are beginning to combine into one. The work put into all areas of my life has taught me how to keep my nervous system regulated no matter what role I am stepping into each day so that whichever people I come into contact with feel safe.

If you told me ten years ago I would be a psychiatric nurse practitioner, intuitive tarot reader, medium and poet…my jaw would have dropped on the floor and would’ve told you you’re lying It’s been a journey and not an inherently easy one but a rewarding one for sure. I stayed true to myself no matter what. If I hit a roadblock or a dead end…I found a way to make a new path and trust rejection is just divine redirection.

I want the world to know that it’s possible to be multifaceted and diverse. That there is an inherent duality to human nature and our professional lives are no different. We are not bound and chained to one singular box of who we are or could be…personally and professionally. So long as you stay authentic, operate in high integrity, and do anything with all of the love in your heart…you can never do anything “wrong.”

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
If my best friend was visiting the area and I wanted to show them the best time ever…I would first take them to CosmicTea Holistic Shop to get a dressed candle, a healing or a tarot reading to blow their minds. We would then go to Mercury Cafe for drinks and Friday poetry open mic night. On Saturday, we would bop around on South Broadway to shop during the day. I would need to bring them to Sushi Den for an incredible dinner. My personal favorite is hopping around with out of town friends in LoHi to different classy, quiet bars for really nice cocktails as well. I also try to get all of my friends to Tracks or HQ at some point for a fun night of dancing, depending on each venue’s night. On Sunday morning, we would go to the South Pearl Street Farmer’s Market for coffee and to stock up on Bjorn honey and whatever else our hearts desired and then eat at Breakfast on Broadway. I also love to cook and entertain when friends come into town so I would have us make pasta and sauce together at my home as well. (Colorado has the best Mexican food but this east coast gal needs authentic Italian food from time to time and the best sauce comes from my kitchen…humble brag).

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Elizabeth Filkin and Morgan Wise from CosmicTea Holistic Shop have been instrumental, influential and huge tenets in my story. They created a space where women and people of all walks of life can come to heal. The amount of self-growth, learning, healing and deconditioning I have been able to do in this space to not only develop my spiritual gifts, accept myself, and overall become a better, kinder, more authentic human being has changed my life. These women are my neighbors, my friends, my bosses and I have nothing for the utmost respect, love and reverence for them as spiritual women, human beings and pillars in my community. They opened their doors and home to me when I knew no one, have accepted me in all stages of my healing and life, held me accountable and have loved me and encouraged me from the moment I met them. Not only are their individual stories inspiring, but the amount of work they continue to put into themselves so that they operate in the highest of integrity makes me feel like the possibilities are endless for us all and inspires me to do the same. They way they have healed themselves and stepped into their power as women and spiritual workers is a blueprint for the rest of us to do the same.

Instagram: @poetry_and_prophesy

Twitter: @poetrynprophesy

Image Credits
Brandi Elizabeth Ashman