Although no one can truly be captured in a list, details sometimes reveal more about a person - so here are a few labels and noteworthy things about me.
Communications Professional & Healer
25+ years of communications experience (corporate to NGO)
Team Manager and Mentor
Multiple award winner (including Mercure - award best new comer magazine
6x international awards including Lovie Awards and Digital Communication Award & Digital Impact Award)
Certified Energy Healer
In house Energy Healer at B. Amsterdam
Therapist at Binqy (workplace wellbeing)
My path to energy & quantum healing
For years, I was the person who developed strategies, told stories, and helped organizations clarify their message. Until illness forced me to look differently. I began searching for ways to recover well from a serious illness alongside conventional care.
That search brought me to energy healing. And what began as personal recovery grew into a new path: guiding people toward more peace, clarity, and connection with themselves. Not either strategic work or healing – but both. Because the skills I developed in PR, stakeholder management, and leadership turn out to be exactly what brings intuitive development to the workplace. And so my work as The Traveling Healer began.
Two worlds that strengthen each other
Sound familiar? You walk into a meeting room and immediately sense a heavy atmosphere. Or your gut says 'no' to a proposal that looks perfect on paper. Those signals are always there – we've just learned to ignore them. In my work, I teach professionals to take that intuition seriously again and to use it.
Communications Experience
With extensive experience in developing and executing communication plans for various organizations, I prefer to operate at the intersection of strategy and implementation. I have a strong sense for target audiences and media, developed through years of experience in PR, stakeholder communications, and the publishing world.
Previous Employers & Clients
DPA
AFC Ajax
Delta Lloyd
Iamsterdam/ Amsterdams Uitburo
Vrije Universiteit
WPG Media
Studiekeuze 123
Marine Stewardship Council (MSC)
Leren voor Morgen
Dinamo Fonds
More information can be found via LinkedIn
Side Activities
Advisory Board IsyB Fund
As a member, I dedicate myself to small-scale initiatives in the Cayman Islands working on sustainability and community development. This microfund supports local projects—from mangrove protection to biodiversity education—that often make a big impact with limited resources.
I strongly believe in the power of these 'everyday heroes' and am happy to contribute to their visibility and progress.
Mentor at Stichting Giving Back
As a mentor, I guide a high school student who, as a first-generation student, is exploring what she can do after graduation. Together we look at her interests and talents, and I use my network to give my mentee a better understanding and feel for what's involved in studying and working.
Education
Sociology, University of Amsterdam, Propaedeutics
Communication Science, University of Amsterdam, Master's Degree
VWO (Pre-University Education), Alberdingk Thijm College in Hilversum
Courses
2024 Economics for Change – School of Change
2019 Creative Writing for the Web (Frankwachting)
2015 Digital Marketing Strategy (Nyenrode Business University)
2013 Corporate Communication and Social Media (VU University)
2010 WPG Course – Management Skills
A Random List About Astrid
🧚🏽♀️ Most used emojis: 😎 🙊 🧚🏽♀️ 😁
📚 Best book: Honolulu King by Anne-Gine Goeman (NL) - Paddy Clarke hahaha- Roddy Doyle (EN)
📺 Favorite series: Derry Girls
🙏 Best spiritual book: My Experiences Preceding 5,000 Burials - Hamid Bey
He came to America in 1927 to challenge Houdini and proved that his mastery over suspended animation and heartbeat was genuine spiritual ability, not tricks. This firsthand account from a spiritual master bridges ancient Egyptian wisdom with documented demonstrations that reveal the boundaries of human consciousness .
📍 Special place: The Oude Kerk, Amsterdam (did you know a ley line runs through there? A true power place!) and Arthur Findlay College near London
🎵 Best artist: Prince – had the privilege of seeing him live
🎶 Best story behind a song: Starfish and Coffee – The Story
🎸 Guilty pleasure music: Wichita Lineman – Glen Campbell
🎶 Best Dutch song: Onderweg – Abel
💜 for words like; flabbergasted, bamboozle, discombobulate. gordian knot, mazzeltov
🍜 Best food: Flexitarian at heart, but rendang? Always!
🍽️ Favorite restaurant: La Vallade - Amsterdam
☕ Fixed ritual: Friday morning coffee at Hesp