Built in limestone between the seventeenth and nineteenth centuries, Bassines carries a long lineage woven through the stones, forests, and surrounding hills of the Condroz.

For centuries this small hamlet stood on a quiet slope as a meeting point between families, lands, and eras, shaped by those who lived and protected it. The soil still holds traces of ancient alliances, noble houses, and the people who worked the fields every season.

Growing up here connected me to something older than my own story. The landscape felt like a living archive of generations, a place where history whispered through the woods at dusk and silence held the memory of everything that had passed. Bassines became more than a childhood setting. It revealed the invisible threads that link a family to a land, and a land to a wider history.

This place stands today through what remains, through what has been lost, and through the memory carried by those who walked here. My roots were shaped in these fields and forests, yet Bassines belongs to a larger story. It invites anyone who encounters it to feel the quiet presence of time, and the enduring resonance of the land.

From the fourteenth century onward, the seigneurie of Bassines passed through numerous families, through alliances, inheritances, and ecclesiastical transfers that mirrored the complex history of the region.

The original castle disappeared for lack of maintenance, taking with it a remarkable tower and the ceremonial entrance once used by horse-drawn carriages. What survives echoes a long lineage: the baroque pillars in blue stone, the eighteenth-century wing overlooking the park, and the farm buildings whose origins go back to the Ancien Régime.

During the war, my great grandfather Comte Herbert van den Steen de Jehay chose to open the castle as a hidden school for Jewish children, and together with my grandmother he moved into a small house in the village while the castle remained devoted to their protection. Bassines served as a school from 1939 through the Second World War and sheltered Jewish children under the direction of Professor Eugène Cougnet. This presence lives as part of its silent heritage.

Until I turned eleven, every weekend of my childhood unfolded in Bassines. The woods were my territory, yet the heart of my world lived around the farm. I imagined myself becoming a farmer, spending my days beside the local families who worked these fields for generations. Summer meant hay bales under the sun, the scent of grass, and long evenings waiting for calves to arrive.

Sometimes, in the middle of the night, I heard tiny stones tapping against my window, a secret signal from the farmer that a cow was giving birth. I crossed the courtyard half asleep, lantern light on the stone walls, and watched a new life emerge into the world. I was invited to choose names, an honour that made me feel part of the lineage of this land.

Bassines vanished from the Belgian landscape four decades ago when my grandfather chose not to invest in the extensive renovations the estate required and moved instead to the sunny south of France in Uzès. Once a historic estate of the Booton family, later of the Rossius de Liboy lineage, and eventually of the comtes van den Steen, this small hamlet stood as a coherent architectural ensemble on the heights of the Condroz.

Since my early childhood, I struggled with the side effects of what psychology defines as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), hypersensitivity (HSP) and high potential. I often felt weighed down by the persistent symptoms of impulsiveness, distractibility, and restlessness. As far as I can remember I always had the feeling of not belonging. First within my family, then at school, with my friends, at work and in society at large. Those symptoms make it challenging to build trust and intimacy in relationships, often creating misunderstandings and hurt feelings.

I faced numerous challenges in the traditional education system. Despite having a higher IQ than all my classmates, I struggled to stay focused and engaged in the classroom. As a result, I pursued an intensive alternative education program that was designed to accommodate my specific learning needs. This only added to the feeling of 'being different' and not belonging.

The situation got even more challenging during my teenage as the various therapists, psychologists, and psychiatrists that I met approached ADHD as an incurable chronic disease. This perspective nourished a feeling of hopelessness that I cultivated during almost 20 years. Even though they were doing there best to support me, I never felt that my parents really understood how challenging life was to me at that time.

For 20 years, I lived with the belief that as I was told my condition was incurable. This resulted in intense feelings of loneliness, hopelessness and even suicidal thoughts. I never felt receiving the support I need neither from those mental health professionals or my family.

This made building trust and intimacy in my romantic relationships a monumental task. Despite my best efforts, I found that most of these relationships would end dramatically and leave me feeling hurt, misunderstood, and more alone.

Everything changed for me when I first visited Burning Man in summer 2012. Through this experience I was able to experience a different reality, one in which I felt accepted and connected to others in a way I never experienced before. This powerful transformative experience helped me understand that my reality was not set in stone and that I had the power to shape it. It showed me that there were others out there who also saw the world differently, and that it was not alone.

After my transformative experience at Burning Man, I came to understand that another reality was possible for me. This realization sparked within me a deep curiosity about alternative medicine solutions that could help me manage my emotions and free myself from my own limitations. I began exploring various forms of alternative medicine, including energy therapy, meditation, mindfulness, and other practices known to effectively manage mental health difficulties. Through this process, I discovered a wealth of tools and techniques that have helped me to better manage my symptoms, free myself from my emotions and live a more fulfilling life.

As I developed my curiosity about homeostasis and our ability to heal ourselves, I discovered that ADHD condition is so often underdiagnosed or misdiagnosed. Even though people don't easily talk about it, it is actually a very common condition that affects a significant portion of the global population. According to WHO an average 5-7% of children and 5% of adults are suffering from an ADHD condition and more than half of the world population is experiencing emotional distress.

As someone who has lived with the challenges posed by those conditions for much of my life, I have finally come to realize that they're not simply burdens to bear, but rather gifts that have shaped me into the person I am today. Far from being obstacles to my growth and success, my experiences have gifted me with an unparalleled level of creativity, innovation, and empathy. They have given me the ability to see the world from a unique disruptive perspective, to challenge the status quo, and to bring fresh ideas and solutions to the table. I now understand that these conditions are not weaknesses, but rather strengths that have enabled me to forge a path of my own, to live a life that is authentic and true to myself, and to touch the lives of others in meaningful and transformative ways.

As I want to honor my transformation, I felt a strong call to put myself at service and support others to experience a similar transformation. This is how I cam to decide to dedicate the rest of my life to helping others free themselves from their emotional sufferings.

Nothing fulfill me more than sharing my story and the tools and techniques that have helped me on this journey. I wish to inspire that this transformation is available to all of us and to empower others to take control of their own mental health and create a life that is fulfilling and meaningful.

My vision is to provide people with a digital sanctuary that could support the in their journey towards personal transformation. Create a safe space where individuals could come together to share their own experiences, express their vulnerability and support one another in their metamorphosis. Noös would serve as a beacon of hope and a testament to the power of the human spirit to overcome adversity and flourish together.

Whether with Noös, the conscious social network I founded or here through providing direct support and guidance, I am committed to doing my part to help others break free from the emotional prison of their conditions and create a life that is rich, vibrant, and filled with hope and possibilities.

At your service.

A.