Nicky Halliday

Bio

Nicky’s passion for nutrition began while travelling the world and discovering a wide range of cuisines. When she returned to Ireland, she chose to study Nutritional Therapy and became deeply interested in the relationship between food and overall health. After completing her course with distinction, she wanted to combine her love of cooking with her growing knowledge of nutrition. When she discovered Bauman College Holistic Nutrition and Culinary Arts School, she felt strongly called to continue her studies in Berkeley, California, and made the bold decision to leave her banking job behind.

There, Nicky expanded her understanding of nutrition and learned how to prepare nourishing meals designed to support optimal health and healing. These qualifications became the foundation for her own successful business in the health food industry.

Experience

One of Nicky’s biggest professional challenges was launching the fresh food deli at the well-known Hopsack health food store in Dublin 6, where she worked as head chef for four years. Her work there was recognised with a nomination at the Irish Restaurant Awards in 2018.

Following her time at the Hopsack, Nicky travelled to Central America, where she gained valuable experience as head chef at the Farm of Life healing retreat centre in Costa Rica. During this period, she embraced a different way of living and healing through time in nature, yoga, and meditation. She also experienced profound personal openings through plant medicine work, including peyote, ayahuasca, psilocybin, and cacao. Nicky sees these as powerful tools for opening the heart, releasing stored emotions and blocks, deepening self-understanding, and awakening a more compassionate and creative self for a harmonious, fulfilling life.

Education & Qualifications

Nicky’s additional training includes NLP Coaching and Belief Clearing Practitioner work, and she is currently studying Vocal Therapy and Shamanic Trance Dance. She believes these practices can help reconnect people with their inner healer.

She offers personal consultations, ceremonies, and coaching sessions for mind, body, and soul. Her work includes wellness coaching for women navigating HPV, gut issues, and an unhealthy relationship with food. Alongside nutritional guidance and menu planning, she shares practices that support women in releasing shame and fear, building self-love and acceptance, and feeling empowered and confident to cook, eat well, and step into their full potential.

Nicky has shared cacao ceremonies in many countries around the world and continues to offer this medicine with love and respect. She also caters for retreats and hosts her own wellness retreats, workshops, and ceremonies throughout Ireland during the year.

Personal Healing Journey

Nicky has walked many healing paths herself. She transformed her long-standing unhealthy relationship with food and healed her skin and digestive issues through a self-tailored gut-healing diet. She also lived with HPV and cervical dysplasia for 14 years and underwent two hospital procedures in an attempt to remove abnormal cervical cells. Ultimately, she healed naturally while living in nature at Farm of Life in Costa Rica.

Current Role

Nicky is now in her second year working with Inwardbound, having joined the team on more than six retreats.