Amanda McKoy Flanagan

Amanda McKoy Flanagan

A native New Yorker turned Coloradan, I combine urban insights with a nature-inspired philosophy in my approach to love and loss. I’m an award-winning author, certified intuitive grief coach, writing coach, energy healer, podcaster, and life-long spiritual seeker.

Co-founder of the nonprofit organization, Castle Rock Clubhouse, a recovery clubhouse providing meeting space for various 12-step programs, I’m passionate about sobriety, meditation, and connecting with others on a deep and meaningful level. As a compassionate, certified grief coach and writing coach, I empower individuals to navigate life's toughest transitions with clarity, healing, and creative expression.

With a focus on energy healing and holistic wellness, I guide clients toward emotional and spiritual recovery, helping them release trauma and regain balance. Whether you're working through grief, seeking creative direction, or exploring personal growth, my services offer a transformative approach to living fully.

As an award-winning author and podcaster, I share wisdom and stories that inspire personal development and healing with a focus on resilience and empowerment, offering actionable insights for overcoming challenges and embracing change.

I hold a bachelor’s degree from the State University of New York at Albany in English and journalism and a master’s degree in social work from Stony Brook University, New York. Nevertheless, life has been my greatest teacher by far.

I live in beautiful Castle Rock, Colorado with my amazing family and pup, Dolly.

My Grief journey

I’ve had three emotional breakdowns since getting sober in 2006—each one was the result of unprocessed grief, but all did not follow a physical death. The first one happened after my boyfriend in recovery overdosed when we were both eight months sober. The second was from the loss of identity, relationships, and the sense of familiarity of people, places, and things after moving across the country in 2015.

 

But it was my brother’s death that took me down…not to my knees but straight to the floor. I couldn’t push the grief down any longer. I was forced to finally face the pain.

 

My marriage took the biggest hit. I decided I didn’t love my husband and told him I was thinking about a divorce. After three years of individual and marriage counseling, working my 12-step program, and hours of meditation and time in nature, I learned and accepted that my “I don’t love you” was really, “I’m afraid you’re going to die.” My unhealed trauma (from all the death, unresolved childhood trauma, and generational family dysfunction) convinced my brain to protect me from pain of future loss. Protect me it did, but at the expense of meaningful connection with my husband as well as with my true essence and purpose on Earth.

 

Three years into my healing process, I returned to the love and light that was always inside but covered up with pain. I wrote an award-winning inspirational memoir, started a podcast about human connection, and spend most of my time leading workshops and retreats to help other women return to their own love and light! I live with an open heart and a pure desire to connect with everyone and everything around me deeply and with substance.

 

I’m glad you’re here. Let’s connect. I would love to help you set yourself free.