My Story

When people ask what I do for a living, I tell them, "I literally and figuratively recondition bodies so they have the tools to change their health’s status quo​."

But what I really want to say is:
I create welcoming, simple spaces for people to be curious about their own influence over their wellness
And what I really REALLY want to say is:
I knit, read fantasy and classic YA, love detective dramas and BBC, drink tea by the quart-sized mason jar, and collect random facts for their entertainment and general usefulness… because the more love I can pour into what energizes ME, the more I can teach you how to build habits and patterns that invigorate and strengthen YOU.
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​I’m Paula Billig, and you can probably tell that teaching about wellness with a combination of solid knowledge, saucy questions for authority, and a flare for the dramatic (but no drama!) is my jam.
 
People come to me when they’re curious about this alternative stuff, when they’re feeling disconnected from the “morebiggerfaster” culture. Together we create new trails in the wellness jungle- it’s like having an adventure tour guide and an executive assistant at the same time. I simplify the chaos, break down the overwhelm into processes and action steps, and strategize to find the shortest path to the biggest goals.
 
I’ve earned 15 years experience running a Reformer Pilates studio, so my high-touch, eagle-eyed, personal attention game is on point. I also have 10+ years teaching Herbal Wellness, and a lifetime of herbal training, so my personal and professional continuum from Intuitive to Logical is broad and deep. My unique position between these two “industries”, fitness and alternative health, gives me an exceptional vantage point to help you navigate your personal journey. 

Still Curious?

​Here’s how I see it:
 
Every choice we make, everything we do or don’t do, adds onto everything else. It’s all inputs.
It just so happens that my dual fascinations, physical movement and plant chemistry, are HUGE sources of potentially positive inputs! And together they are exponentially more powerful (this just means that 2+2= something much, much bigger than 4)
 
Let me tell you a secret- some of this just happened by happy accident.
 
When I was very young, my mom shifted our family to a regimen of herbal supplements and what you’d now call a low-inflammation diet. She was at her wit’s end with her twin toddler’s constant ear infections and let me tell you, it worked.
 
I’ve known herbal medicine was my destiny since elementary school. (I have a cousin who remembers me giving her a tour of my herb garden when I was 9. What a nerd! Me, not her.)
 
At some point I finally made the connection between that tall plant by the side of the road, its picture in a book we had, and the Mullein capsules we took.
 
I don’t know if I can explain how profound this was for little me- these pills we took weren’t just replacements for the medicines that we used to take that made me crazy hyper and sick. They were PLANTS. That I could GROW. And get to KNOW. 
We lived way far out in rural Pennsylvania, and suddenly everything around me morphed from “home” into “potential”.
But how does a girl get from 1980’s rural life (more insulated and isolated than you can imagine!) to today’s roaring online life?

​There were a few twists and turns:
  • There was many a summer spent as a princess with an interactive children’s theater (dramatics/no drama, remember?!)
  • There were the years working with the Conflict Education and Resource Team while getting my BA in Human Biology at Temple University
    • ​and my EMT certification, too
  • There was a dreadfully unhappy stint as a full-time housekeeper (it was no Downton Abbey, I assure you!)
  • There was a Craigslist ad that led to me buying a pilates studio in my mid 20’s, mere months before the crash of ‘08
  • And there was a fateful workshop with Maia Toll, who became my first formal herbal teacher and opened my eyes to the reality that it wasn’t too late to live my destiny
    • I just had to figure out how, since there was no pre-ordained hierarchy to follow- and I loved that ​
And now here it is, the future, and here I am- a hybrid of herbalism, pilates, independence, community, logic, intuition, nourishment, alignment and movement (literally & figuratively).
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Take The Next Step

I've collected some of my favorite resources- herbal, gardening, professional, and more- in a free Resources Hub right here. I invite you to join us there and explore!