About Me

Hello there. I am Irena, or Dr. Nayfeld if you're feeling formal (Dr. Nay if you're feeling fun).

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I am a psychologist of human development, education consultation, facilitator, and guide. Those are some of my titles, anyway. Other identities I hold include poet, dancer, dreamer, Ashkenazi Jew, white-bodied, immigrant, refugee, queer, aunty, wild woman, aspiring medicine woman, soul-nurturer, and nature lover. 

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I mention those identities because I deeply believe that we do right by each other when we acknowledge that we bring all of our pieces to whatever spaces we occupy.

 

My personal and professional paths have merged over the years as I have moved towards living and working in more humanity-affirming, liberatory ways. After spending many years in chronic pain, burnt out and disconnected from myself,I have spent the last decade rehumanizing, remembering, and reclaiming the pieces of me that I had been taught to leave behind. This (ongoing) personal journey has changed my life. My own healing deeply informs the work that I do, the world I aim to create, and the ways that I show up for the humanity of others.

I hold a  Ph.D. and M.S. in Developmental Psychology, as well as Certifications in Feminine Embodiment Coaching and Forest Therapy. I have spent many years as an educator, teaching and developing programs, trainings, and professional development for early childhood educators.

Over the last 15+ years I have spent time working, training, and collaborating with organizations such as Stanford University's Department of Education, New York University's Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development, CUNY Brooklyn College and City College, the National Institute for Early Education Research, Strozzi Institute for Somatics, Deep Coaching Institute, School of Embodied Feminine Arts, Forest Therapy School, among others. 

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Some personal nuggets:

I love reading, live music, swimming, and frolicking in nature.

I am learning to play the frame drum.

I speak Russian, English, Spanish, and am learning Brazilian Portuguese. 

I spent the last few months living in Peru and Brazil.

I am currently apprenticing part-time at an herbalism farm in upstate NY.

If I could meet anyone dead or alive (not related to me), it would be Maya Angelou.

I can dance forever.

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