Meet Dana Denning

We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Dana Denning. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Dana below.

Hi Dana, really happy you were able to join us today and we’re looking forward to sharing your story and insights with our readers. Let’s start with the heart of it all – purpose. How did you find your purpose?

Honestly, I didn’t go looking for my purpose—it found me somewhere between exhaustion, worry, and a mountain of sticky notes trying to make sense of it all.

For years, I was the classic corporate achiever—project plans, deadlines, performance reviews, rinse and repeat. It was safe, predictable… and a little soul-sucking if I’m being honest. Then my son was born prematurely, and we later discovered he was neurodivergent. Overnight, our home life became a masterclass in nervous system management.

Every sound, every light, every piece of clutter suddenly mattered. Our home could either calm him—or completely overload him. That’s when the lightbulb moment hit (soft, dimmable lighting, of course): design wasn’t just about how a space looked—it was about how it felt.

I started rethinking everything through a new lens: how can our surroundings help regulate stress and support healing? What began as survival turned into a calling. That’s how Nourished Nest was born—a blend of holistic interior design, sensory science, and real-life parenting.

Now, I help other families like ours create homes that feel good. Spaces that soothe instead of stimulate. Because when your environment supports calm, everything else—connection, rest, joy—has a fighting chance.

Purpose, it turns out, isn’t something you chase. Sometimes it shows up when life flips everything upside down and whispers, “Start here.”

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?

I’m the founder of Nourished Nest, a holistic interior design practice that helps families create homes that feel as good, not just look good. My work focuses on helping parents uncover the invisible stressors in their environment—those subtle things like harsh lighting, clutter, or sensory overload—and transform their homes into calming, sensory-supportive spaces that nurture emotional well-being and nervous system regulation.

What makes this work so meaningful is that it grew out of my own family’s journey. I realized how powerfully our surroundings shape how we feel, function, and connect. That experience became the foundation for what Nourished Nest is today—a bridge between design and nervous system science, with a healthy dose of real-life parenting honesty.

Earlier this year, I had the incredible opportunity to speak at the 2025 Happily Family Conference, which reached families around the world and co-authord the book The Perfectly Imperfect Family. Both experiences reinforced how many parents are searching for practical, relatable solutions to help their families find calm in the chaos—and how deeply this message resonates.

Professionally, I’m now focused on expanding my Spaces That Soothe workshop series, 1:1 coaching programs and self-paced courses, which guide families step-by-step in transforming their homes into supportive environments. These offerings are not only helping me scale Nourished Nest and build long-term sustainability, but they’re also creating a ripple effect of calm in homes everywhere.

At the heart of it, my mission is simple: to help families move from overwhelm to ease—one space, one small shift, one exhale at a time.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

Looking back, the three things that shaped my journey the most were resilience, curiosity, and emotional awareness—none of which came from a textbook.

Resilience showed up the hard way. When life threw curveballs—medical challenges, sensory overwhelm, endless unknowns—I learned that the goal isn’t to “bounce back,” it’s to adapt forward. Every setback taught me something about flexibility, both in parenting and in business.

Curiosity became my compass. Instead of asking, “Why is this happening?” I started asking, “What can I learn here?” That shift opened doors I didn’t even know existed—from studying nervous system science to blending it with interior design in ways that truly help families heal.

And emotional awareness—that one’s the quiet superpower. Understanding how our environments affect our mood, focus, and nervous system regulation completely transformed how I design spaces and how I lead.

For anyone early in their journey:

Don’t wait until you have it all figured out—start curious and stay flexible.

Listen to your body and your burnout cues; they’ll tell you when something’s off.

And most importantly, build work that feels aligned with your real life—not just your résumé.

Because when your work and your “why” finally match, everything else—momentum, confidence, even profitability—flows so much easier.

One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?

Absolutely. Collaboration has been one of the most rewarding parts of this journey. I love partnering with others who share a passion for helping families find calm—especially professionals in holistic health, parenting, education, or wellness spaces who see how the environment impacts emotional regulation and daily life.

I also enjoy connecting with neurodiversity advocates, therapists, and designers who want to bridge the gap between science and the spaces we live in. Together, we can amplify awareness and create real, sustainable change for families who need it most.

If you’re reading this and thinking, we could do something powerful together, you’re probably right. Reach out through any of my social channels.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.nourishednest.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nourishednestdesign
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/nourished-nest/