Today we’d like to introduce you to Taranda Wilson.
Hi Taranda, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I am author and co-creator of my story, which began on July 19, 1986. I was born and raised in Augusta, Georgia, where I still currently reside. I experienced trauma early on in life, losing my mother to cancer at just 8 months old. She was only 20 at that time. I was co-raised by my dad, grandparents, aunts, & uncles alongside my cousins. Although financially there wasn’t any lack that I can recall, growing up as a “motherless child” definitely had a huge impact on my upbringing & sense of self. I always knew I was different as a child. I was very sensitive, empathic, intuitive, clairsentient, & even claircognizant. Of course these are terms that I learned later on in life that brought so much clarity to my experiences in childhood & my adolescent years. I had a very deep spiritual connection even as a young child, albeit through organized religion. Growing up in Christian churches, I sang in the youth choir, was a praise dancer, & a regular on the Children’s Church program. I remember even then feeling powerful and purposeful. During my teen years I became less involved in church and more into extracurricular activities such as being co-captain of the dancing girls in my high school marching band, drill team commander in NJROTC, & of course, boys! I became pregnant with my eldest son at the end of my senior year, giving birth to him at the age of 18. That decision changed the entire trajectory of my life in more ways than one. I went from choosing between the universities that I had been accepted to picking out baby names. Still, I never questioned my decision to bring forth life into this world. I did however allow myself to remain in an incompatible relationship far longer than I should have, thinking it was what was in the best interest of our child. After almost a decade, I finally decided to leave that relationship and move on. Little did I know that my world would be turned upside down. Nothing could have prepared me for what would happen next. I faced an unnecessary and unwarranted custody battle that resulted in 50/50 joint custody (rightfully so). However the defamation & damage caused during mediation, determination, & the aftermath was intolerable. Awhile after everything settled, my pre-adolescent son asked if he could go live with father & grandmother, to which I obliged. I felt it was more important to prioritize his wishes over my personal feelings & ego even though it was gut wrenching & heartbreaking for me. That was the darkest time of my life. I fell into a deep depression & completely lost my will to live. I was diagnosed with anxiety and depression, prescribed different types of medications and dosages. I contemplated taking my life on many occasions. Then one day when I was at my wits end & while I was home alone, I Googled “painless ways to commit suicide”. Not even a minute into reading an article, the power randomly went out. It just got completely dark, jolting me back to reality. I knew in that moment that God, my Spirit guides, & my Ancestors were trying to get my attention. That literally was my wake up call! It became clear that I had a reason to live, a purpose, beyond what I could see for myself at that time. From that moment on I threw myself into my healing. I embarked on a journey of mindfulness, meditation, holistic health & spiritual wellness. I took accountability for the role I played. I let go of the blame, shame, & resentment that I had been harboring. I forgave myself for all of the ‘shoulda coulda wouldas’. I forgave all of the people who I knew I’d never get an apology from. I stopped worrying about the perception other people had of me and the opinions those had of decisions I made in my life. I didn’t need to defend myself because none of that truly mattered. My only focus was to strengthen my relationship with Spirit & Self. I knew that would be the foundation for everything else to fall into place. Hindsight is always 20/20. Looking back I realized that I needed to go through those trying times to realize how strong & resilient I am. When you survive the things that are meant to destroy you, you see life differently, more clearly. I have an unshakable faith knowing that I am being Divinely guided and protected at all times. I know that there aren’t any challenges or obstacles that I can’t overcome because my very existence is evidence of that. I was lower than low and yet still, I rise! And that’s why it’s so easy for me to connect with people on a deeper level, to be a light & a source of positivity. I have an intimate relationship with the darkness, which still lingers but I now have the tools and resources to not let it overshadow my progress and more importantly, my purpose. I’ll never allow anyone or anything to have the power to disturb my peace in that way again and I want for all of my people to get to that place of understanding, overstanding, & innerstanding. That’s why from my podcast, to my spiritual wellness practice, to the way I live my every day life, I lead from a place of love & light. It’s not without the absence of shadows & darkness. I’m still human but I make a conscious choice daily to not inflict the pain I’ve endured onto others, not even to the ones who’ve hurt me deep. I know that my purpose is bigger & greater than myself. I’m here to help others heal themselves as I too, heal myself so we can raise the vibrational frequency of the collective. The work is never done & neither is my story. It’s still being written, even though sometimes my tears may smear the ink. I’m just so grateful to be in alignment & to be tapping back into my God-given gifts. I’m happily married to the love of my life and have been blessed with two more children, bringing us to a party of 5. I’m excited to see what the next chapters have in store as I continue to evolve & elevate! In the words of myself, “In the mean time in between time, keep going, keep growing, keep feeling, keep healing!”
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
The road has been smooth at times and bumpy during others. There’s been lots of twists, turns, and re-routing since I’ve been on this journey called life. Considering I am a spiritual being having a human experience, I dwell in a constant space of duality. My human (shadow self) will often try to get in the way with old programming, self-sabotaging thoughts, doubt, and ego. However, my Highest Self knows my purpose and how sacred this healing work is for myself & others simultaneously, so I’m learning every day to completely surrender and let Spirit be my GPS.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am a spiritual wellness practitioner and traveling sound healer certified in both sound therapy and meditation. I created InnerG Vibrations as a safe and sacred space where people, particularly black and brown people, could come for rest, relaxation, healing, and spiritual elevation. I am also content creator and host of the podcast Tarandom Talk, which focuses on enlightenment and entertainment. I am most known for my positivity and LOVE of sunflowers! Much like them, I try to stand tall and always find the light even on my darkest days. A fun fact is when it’s cloudy outside, sunflowers will face each other and share InnerG (energy). My tribe of podcast listeners are actually called “Sunflowers” in honor of this concept.
I am most proud of myself for finding the courage to pursue the aforementioned endeavors, especially sound healing. I can be very introverted, sometimes shy, and hard on myself at times. Also, no one in my hometown was doing sound healing when I began. Most hadn’t even heard of it, which is not surprising considering how underrepresented black and brown people are in the health & wellness communities. Not to mention the ill-informed stereotypes and stigmas that are often attached to spirituality from a religious standpoint. But being able to put those fears aside, see the bigger picture, be intentional, purposeful, and follow my heart, not knowing how it would be received, makes me very proud. And also for maintaining my integrity. Spirituality has become quite trendy and some approach it from a very self-serving perspective. I’m proud that I’m committed to growing my practice in authenticity & integrity. I don’t believe that anything sets me apart from others. Everyone else is merely a reflection of myself, the good, the bad, & the ugly. Besides, I prefer collaboration over the competition… Maybe that’s what sets me apart from others *wink*
Is there a quality that you most attribute to your success?
I feel that authenticity is most important when it comes to being successful. No one is you, nor can anyone do things the way that you do them, and that is where the magic is! It’s all by design! BeYOUtiful!
Contact Info:
- Email: innergvibrations1111@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/innergvibrations/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/taranda.wilson.9
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/innergvibrati0n
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLE-eKacFD0LvFDgAbrJ86w
