I’m Laurenz, 24 years old. I see myself as a nomadic person, in lifestyle as in my thinking.
I was raised nearby the coast of Belgium. I lived with my parents and my four year older brother in a nice neighbourhood in Blankenberge. Growing up I had one big passion. Dancing. The dance studio was a second home for me.
Being raised in a small town as a gay wasn’t always easy. When I was 18 I had a relationship with a guy from Antwerp and that was the ideal excuse to move to the big city. I started my studies psychology and I felt that I was growing. I felt happier than ever. After my studies I moved to Lier to live together with my boyfriend.
Actually, I wanted to stay in Antwerp city but my boyfriend and I had an age gap and he already had a house in Lier. I was terrified of losing him so I decided to try. I felt caged. I felt like I couldn’t breathe there… While my relationship was coming to an end, my career became everything I ever dreamed of. I worked as a therapist in a private practice, I was a psychological counselor in a children’s psychiatry, I taught yoga in several yoga studios… I felt all these responsibilities. The need to stay on my feet while everything I always had known was breaking down.
J was my anchor. My rock. After 8 years I decided to leave him. I came back to Antwerp and started living from place to place. Where I first had a lot of ground underneath my feet, suddenly there was nothing left. I kept on going because I felt that if I stopped that I was letting people down. I was struggling with anxiety and depression. Even leaving the house made me so anxious that I was physically nauseous. I stopped working for more than a month and got help from professionals around me. I was the patient this time and sitting on the other chair was hard and confronting. I kept my head up for everybody around me but felt terrible on the inside.
After a long process I decided that this was not how I wanted to live my life. I felt that I had to find another way of living. I wanted to follow the sun. I quit my job(s) and went to Spain with my best friend for 6 months. I lived in Valancia, Malaga, Sevilla, Madrid,… It gave me the air that I needed. I felt space to be who I am and discover myself. The roads of the world led me back to my own heart. New plans where growing in my head and my new project came to life. Nomadic mindset. With the help of the new love in my life, P, I had the courage to start a private practice for mind, body and flow therapy. 6 therapists are working in our practice in the city centre of Antwerp.
P gave me the strength to follow my dreams. He came into my life when I was doing better and he met who I really am. Now we are running a Nomadic mindset together and living in Antwerp, for now. We will always stay free birds, we promised ourselves. We will always keep the nomadic mindset going, follow the sun, right?!