Join our conversations with people who love the sea as much as we do…
For our 21st Sea Soul community interview, we’re chatting to Camilla Todd, a nature and mindfulness-based stand up paddle board instructor whose work at SUP and Soul combines paddle boarding with life coaching, health & well-being, yoga, SUP yoga, body confidence and wild swimming… How good does that sound!
Tell us a little bit about you:
My name is Camilla, and I’m mostly known as Cami. Last year, I turned 40 and at the ripe age of 40 years and one day, I got engaged to the love of my life. We’ve shared the last 13 years, so I’m very excited to be taking this next step in our adventure together. Although planning a wedding during an ever-changing pandemic landscape is an interesting challenge!
I currently live by the seaside in Brighton & Hove, and am a British Norwegian.
“I’ve spent most of my adult life living in the UK, so most of my friends think of me as English, but Norway is very much a part of my soul.”
We lived in Norway for 3 years when I was young, and the culture and traditions have played a big part throughout my life. My family on my mother’s side, as well as my sister and her family, all live in Norway – so I tend to spend a couple of months per year over there. I’m so enchanted by the place – every time I touch down I feel an overwhelming sense of arriving home, and cannot help but shed a tear when I leave. One day I’ll live there – just not yet.
What does nature, and the sea in particular, mean to you?
“Nature, the sea, rivers and waterways are my lifeline. They mean everything to me. Now more than ever. I’ve always been deeply connected to nature and water, but this year my connection grew tenfold (as it did for so many people!) – in a whole new way and on so many levels. Immersing myself in nature helped soothe my soul during lockdown.”
Simple things like watching the mischief of our local squirrels at play, and listening to the singsong of the birds in the trees, helped to calm my busy mind! Walks and runs along the seafront were the perfect antidote to being locked up at home – we felt so blessed to be close to the sea.
The first really long bike ride into the Sussex countryside after lockdown ended in May 2020 – gosh how wonderful was that feeling of pure freedom and the overwhelming beauty of spring?!? It truly filled my heart with joy – I shed many a tear as we cycled through the rolling hills and watched the sheep and cows munching away as if nothing had happened. On an even deeper level, I had the honour of turning our local waterways into my office – completely unexpectedly!
“During lockdown, I lost my main source of income as a marketing consultant in the travel and leisure industry. Luckily, the year before, I’d turned my hobby into a qualification and become a paddle board instructor. After losing my work, I decided to throw caution to the wind and invest the last of my pennies in a fleet of paddle boards, swapping the car for a van…”
In June 2020 I started a mobile SUP business – SUP & Soul. And over the next 5 months had the incredible privilege of introducing stand up paddle boarding and our local waterways to many souls in desperate need of a serious dose of nature!
I’ve seen firsthand what an amazing impact water and activities like paddle boarding can have on our wellbeing. I hope to be able to keep offering this respite to people as soon as the current winter lockdown lifts in spring 2021. I’ve no doubt that after Christmas and the long winter months stuck indoors, it’s the exact medicine people will be in need of – that and the vaccine!
How do you feel on a good day?
I’m generally a cheerful person and feel truly fortunate to be in good health. I try to look after myself and enjoy a balanced diet and exercise which I think massively helps to stabilise my mood!
How do you feel on a bad day?
If I have a bad day, it’s normally down to my inner critic telling me I’m not good enough. I understand it’s not true and I have methods for calling it out, but sometimes it can take a little while to recognise that’s what’s going on and to realise that I have the power to change the narrative.
I’ve noticed this happens more frequently when my dietary habits worsen, or if I don’t manage to be active regularly. At first I was surprised to learn just how much of an impact these things have on our mood, but now that I have come to understand more about the human body and mind I totally get it. Which does help with making better choices and finding balance.
Who or what is inspiring you right now?
This month I started a new role (which I’ll be doing alongside my SUP business!) with an organisation that’s all about purpose in business and working for the common good – from the environment to people to wildlife and everything in between. I find the work they do 100% inspiring and I feel so privileged to be a part of the team.
“It fills me with hope to see the dedication of so many people from all walks of life choosing to do and be better across the world. To see the extent of the movement to help protect our planet and the life on it is so encouraging – it’s about time we collectively stood up, joined forces and worked together.”
Of course, we have a long way to go, but there’s serious momentum and I’m one who always looks for what should be celebrated as well as what needs to be done. In fact, it’s what draws me to people like you, and your work through Sea Soul Blessings. Wonderful souls who are all trying to do their bit to make the world a better place. That’s inspiring.
What do you worry about on a typical day?
The state of the world. And the role I have to play in it and how I should and could be doing so much more. But then I turn off the news, close down the apps and leave my phone in another room and remind myself that something is better than nothing.
Where do you find joy?
On my paddle board!!!! Every single time. Even when things get a bit hairy. Nothing brings me more joy than being on the water and watching the world go by. Actually that’s not true, I also love being out on my bike with my partner…err fiancé. We’ve recently started mountain biking together and it’s great fun – mildly terrifying now and then but mostly awesome!
It might sound a bit lame but I just love lying on my bed and watching the squirrels in my garden play and bury their treasures. They’re so fluffy and silly!
What do you love to do, read, watch or listen to?
I’ve been listening to a lot of podcasts this year while out running or walking. I frequently tune into Jay Shetty or Brene Brown for spiritual, self love and uplifting type content for ideas and inspiration for how to care for ourselves and others. They have had some really interesting guests over the years.
I also really enjoy Clare Obsorn’s podcast Clare Talks Rubbish, and The Joy of SUP podcast that was recently launched by Jo Moseley – both women are blue mind kindred spirits and they do a lot of work to champion protecting our oceans and waterways, raising awareness around plastic pollution and supporting the #2minutebeachclean.
I always seem to have a million books on the go at once. Right now I’m currently reading Gabrielle Bernstein’s The Universe Has Your Back – I was a bit dubious about it at first, but since picking that book up I’ve experienced so many odd moments of synchronicity that it’s impossible to ignore.
I’m also enjoying Losing Eden by Lucy Jones – some really thought-provoking discussion of nature and the work that needs to be done to both bring back and protect our wild spaces. It’s really interesting to realise how much some of the old trespassing laws in England restrict us from being able to access the natural spaces on our doorstep. That’s bizarre to me, because in Norway, we have the right to roam uncultivated land the country over, and Norwegians are well known for their connection with nature and their outdoorsy lifestyle. Lots of food for thought in there.
“If more people had access to our natural spaces in the UK, what would the impact be on our collective desire to protect it – not to mention the collective mental wellbeing of our nation?”
I also just finished The Art of Gathering by Priya Parker which is fascinating – she explores how we can gather together better. Looking at the reasons behind bringing people together, and designing and facilitating gatherings in honour of that rather than because “it’s what you’re meant to do”. It’s really made me think about our wedding actually – and how we can honour ourselves more in how we celebrate and share in it with our nearest and dearest…or not if that’s what feels right! I love it.
I enjoy anything that makes me question myself and why I do things – I’m discovering more and more about the power of choice and being more conscious and intentional as I walk through life!
What makes you cross?
Litter! Seeing it everywhere. Seeing people drop it without a care in the world. Seeing it on TV shows even – that kind of behaviour shouldn’t be normalised! We all have a collective responsibility to do our bit for this amazingly beautiful planet we call home. I just cannot understand how anyone finds it acceptable to toss their litter wherever they want and walk away. And cruelty to animals – which actually littering plays a significant role in hurting our wildlife too. Please just don’t.
How do you look after yourself?
“I have vices. And I try to accept them as a part of me instead of beating myself up for enjoying the naughty things in life. “
It’s a very recent shift in thinking actually. I’ve had the wonderful influence of people like Claudine Nightingill-Rane of Seascape Blue who is a body confidence coach – she joined a recent mini retreat I hosted and I was able to share in the Body Confidence workshop she designed and facilitated. Questioning old patterns and behaviours around self talk and being mean to ourselves because of the way we look instead of celebrating all the amazing things our bodies can do.
I love cake. I love wine. I love love love crisps. I hate exercising in the cold and dark. But I do also love vegetables. And yummy home cooked meals. I love being outdoors when it’s not dark and miserable. I love so many different kinds of outdoor sports and activities.
So I balance all of these things and try not to beat myself up if I do more of one thing than the other. I like honouring my needs in the moment and accepting that sometimes my need is a slice of cake or a large cold glass of Sauvignon Blanc and other times my need is to get outside and just paddle paddle paddle. And all of these needs are ok.
What would you most like to change about your life?
I’d like to be more free in where I live. For it to be easier to just up and go somewhere else for a few weeks, months or years without it being such a palava – laws/restrictions/work visas and permits etc etc. When you get past 35, it’s not as easy to work abroad. Well that, and now because we’ve left the EU!
I love Brighton, well Hove, but I’ve been here for 14 years and I’d like to be able to just go live somewhere else every now and then and enjoy a different space and learn about all the idiosyncrasies of the local area without the rigmarole of moving. My partner doesn’t embrace change as easily as I do. But, we have a van now, so perhaps post-lockdown that could be our new goal – to get out and explore more!
What have you learnt about life that you wish you’d understood earlier?
Gosh there’s so many things that I don’t know where to start, and yet equally, without them I wouldn’t have been open to the learnings that time and experience have both offered.
“I trust that I’m exactly where I need to be right now, or that I’m meant to be here. And that my path here was the right path. With all its ups and downs. How could it have been any other way? Or I wouldn’t be here with those learnings now.”
But also – don’t be so quick to take everything so seriously. There is a lightness to it all even amongst the heaviness and the lightness is a choice. Even when it feels out of reach.
How would you describe Sea Soul Blessings in 3 words?
Uplifting. Joyful. Connecting.
How do you use your Sea Soul Blessings? What do they help you to change?
Before we get on the water, I invite my SUP students and guests to pick a card and take a moment to honour themselves and the watery space they’re about to explore. I usually take a photo of the card and corresponding message and share it with them so they can keep hold of the memory.
“I’ve found that the Sea Soul Blessings cards give both me and my guests the space to stop and notice before embarking on our adventure together which is just really lovely. And talking of synchronicities – more often than not the card and message I’m drawn to is ALWAYS relevant!”
I’ve also had the card “May you begin” sat on my new desk this week as I’ve started my new job and I shared it with my new team during our team check-in and they totally appreciated the sentiment. And that’s why I love where I work – they just get it.
If someone was thinking about trying Sea Soul Blessings, how would you encourage them?
I’ve bought two packs as gifts for friends who are sea lovers as well as using them myself and for my SUP guests. Every single person has had a “surprise and delight” moment when they’ve first engaged with them which I just love to watch. So if you love the sea, and love to be surprised and delighted, then these are perfect for you!
Find out more
If you’d like to find out more about Cami and Sup and Soul, visit her website at www.supandsoul.co.uk. You can also find her on instagram @supandsouluk and Facebook
You can read more of our Sea Soul Community interviews over here.
And if you’d like to read more from Sea Soul Blessings, sign up for the Sea Soul Newsletter, full of sea wisdom, self compassion, special offers and the latest news from Pippa.
A year of sea and kindness
I’m thrilled to be sharing our monthly subscription, a year of sea and kindness, with many of the previous participants in our Sea Soul interview series – what an honour that is! If you’d like to find out more about our monthly subscription for sea souls, head over here.
