In the vibrant world of interior design, Maria Isabel Segura Ruiz isn’t just a designer; she’s a source of inspiration, weaving together creativity, resilience, and purpose. As the heart and soul behind MS Design, Wellness & Health, Maria’s journey is a living testament to the incredible power of bouncing back from life’s curveballs. Out of a challenging open-heart surgery, she emerged not only as a survivor but as a designer on a mission to craft spaces that heal.
Her work with MS Design, Wellness & Health blends luxury and aesthetics to something more profound. Maria and her team see interior architecture as a magic wand, capable of turning spaces into therapeutic havens! Their goal is to create living environments that act like silent healers, enhancing overall well-being.
Whether it’s sketching out design layouts or offering a helping hand for a better quality of life, Maria and her team at MS Design, Wellness & Health pour their hearts into transforming spaces into meaningful places.
In this interview, we dove into Maria’s remarkable story and explored how her life’s challenges became the driving force behind her passion, purpose, and thriving business.
- Can you share the pivotal moments in your life that led you to become an interior designer with a focus on wellness?
The truth is that my Life Purpose found me when life considered it was the right time to be discovered; I was not expecting it at all. In my case, it knocked on my door when I was 19 years old, but it didn’t fully show itself until I was 23 years old. Please, let me share with you the
My journey through the world of creativity began when I was a kid, so Legos, crayons, puzzles, coloring books, and the curiosity of exploring places became an active part of my childhood.
Some years later, my creativity was why I decided to become an Architect. However, unexpectedly, a life-death situation changed utterly my life when I was 19 years old. It wasn´t easy to receive the news that I needed to face a risky Open-Heart surgery to fix an uncommon Congenital Heart Condition, that was suddenly discovered and needs to be fixed as soon as possible, to allow me to continue my path in this world. At that time, my beautiful world built with creativity, hopes, and dreams collapsed in seconds; I was dealing with finding a cardiothoracic surgeon and preparing myself mentally while my body was getting weaker daily. A stop in my fourth year of Architecture study in Costa Rica was not negotiable, and moving to Miami for a life-saving surgery became my priority then. Time passed, and my surgery was done successfully in Miami when I was 23; so, the question: What will I do with my life? had more presence than ever before in my life. Without being aware, this was the story of how life showed me the foundations and prepared me for what would later become my Life’s Purpose.
After my surgery and recovery, I returned to Costa Rica to finish my missing year, and my Architecture thesis was inspired by my personal life situation; at that time, I just wanted to take advantage of my health journey. Hence, since then all my designs have implied healthcare at some point. Finally, I became the registered architect in Costa Rica I once dreamed of being. Once I obtained my Architectural License in Costa Rica, I decided, in 2018, to move to Miami to pursue a master’s degree in interior architecture at FIU. Finally, in 2022, I graduated with honors as a Royal Triumph due to my leadership, effort, and contribution to the community during my journey as a master’s student. Again, my master’s thesis was based on healthcare with a design to cope with anxiety and stress by stimulating the brain’s neurotransmitters through interior design strategies. Also, I won the Best Master Project award for best research applied to design from my class. This was how I finally decided to combine all my passions and pursue a future in Interior Architecture focusing on overall Wellness.
- What inspired the fusion of architecture, interior design, and well-being in your approach?
Architecture, Interior Design, a healthy lifestyle, and creativity represent my biggest passions in life. The reason is simple: my life experience motivated me to use my design talent to help people heal through design as I did. Hence, architecture gave the basis for understanding the built environment; however, I was still missing the sensibilization that interior design offers to know how a space can impact a person’s mood, emotions, and well-being. The reason why I decided to study both and finally understand how Architecture is the best complement for Interior Design and vice versa. So, understanding that bond has become my obsession since then, and using interior architecture to heal has been my life purpose. Also, I love to share my story to motivate people that everything is possible because if you dream, you can make it a reality.
- As a wellness interior designer, how do you strike a balance between creating aesthetically pleasing spaces and ensuring they serve a functional and therapeutic purpose?
Balance is a keyword in any situation, but accomplishing it is not as straightforward as it sounds. In my case, a wise combination of theory, practice, client specification, and talent are a balance between creating aesthetically pleasing spaces and ensuring they serve a functional and therapeutic purpose. I would say that my skill and design awareness have helped me create healing environments that aid and encourage the healing process. However, talent is not everything, so it is essential to incorporate theory, practice, and skills into my daily design approach. In my case, I love to reference the personal situations of each client, as well as their personality and tastes; additionally, I try to incorporate evidence-based design principles.
- MS Design, Wellness & Health positions itself as a design coach. How do you guide clients through the process of transforming their living environments for better well-being?
Education is a crucial concept for me and my clients. So, for me, it is super important to explain to them the reason for any design decision or choice we make as a team. Yes, a team! The reason is simple: I am a designer who has the ability and skill to make the vision of my clients’ space a reality. They will be the protagonists of the space that will be the healing environment to help them achieve a better quality of life. Also, I love implementing evidence-based theories in all my designs and a balanced combination of architecture and Interior Design.
- Where do you see the future of wellness interior design heading, and what role do you envision for MS Design, Wellness & Health in that landscape?
In my opinion, I see the future of Wellness Interior Design heading towards a significant proliferation. Proof of this is the considerable increase in tourism and inhabitants seeking a healthy lifestyle daily.
I envision MS design, Wellness and Health positioning as a strong reference in that market. My best references are my clients and my life story because life taught me how to use design to create healing environments that helped me fully recover faster while my mental and physical well-being was nurtured. Hence, I use my talent and life experience to help people feel better inside spaces by creating healing-built environments. As human beings, we spend more than 90% of our time inside buildings, so let’s make them more than aesthetic spaces and take advantage of how they can be used to improve our mental and physical health.
In brief, I want my potential clients/followers/fans to recognize me and my design brand MS Design, Wellness, and Health, as proof that design can be a powerful healing tool. I am living proof of that!
- Looking back at your journey, what reflections do you have on the intersection of personal resilience, purpose, and your success as a wellness interior designer?
As I have explained in the previous questions, I discovered my life path, passion, and purpose by facing a crucial life experience that made me reborn as an experienced and resilient Wellness Interior Architect, polished and sharpened not only by training at school but also because of my particular life story. So, I feel so proud to say that I design not only from the designer’s perspective because I also design as a person who has healed through design. Being able to do what you love is the secret component to always having a smile on your face, and if you can also help improve people’s quality of life, you have found your purpose in life. In my case, I did it because of facing my Open-Heart Surgery. Honestly, I believe that all my talent and designs come from the depths of my heart!
Now, I feel proud of calling myself a Design Coach who teaches and uses design to heal while my followers’ and clients’ quality of life is enhanced. I am a person who loves to follow a healthy lifestyle and to use design and creativity to feel better by adding colors to grey days, so my job reflects who I am. I love to educate my clients that Interior Architecture is more than aesthetics since it can also be a powerful healing tool. I also love to learn and am constantly learning to assure my clients and followers that they will always have the best quality in everything I do. For example, in June 2023, I attended the European Healthcare Design Congress. What an experience!
Also, my positivism, empathy, and love of being alive mirror my personal life motto: “If you are living a second life opportunity, do the best of it”. Hence, I love to use my talent and life experience to help people feel better inside spaces by creating healing-built environments.
In conclusion, my own life experience delimited my life’s mission since I used creativity and design to face the anxiety, stress, and depression of being stuck in a place for weeks caused me while I was recovering from my Open-Heart Surgery. I understood that design colors, finishes, and materials can help to improve or deteriorate your health. I started the experiments by combining them and using evidence-based design to foster and improve my physical and mental healing process. So, my success as a Wellness Interior Architect results from being polished by life situations, school training, and professional practice. At this point, the intersection of my resilience and purpose became the basics for what, years later, would be my success as a Wellness Interior Architect.
Hence, I firmly believe that Architecture and Interior Design can be a great healing tool; I am living proof of that. In brief, this was how life became my mentor and polished me to use my talent and sharpen my abilities to heal through design while reborn resiliently through my life purpose. Sometimes, you discover your life’s purpose by facing your worst life adventure, but later, you understand that everything you face has a reason to do. Now, I feel proud of who I am and love to share my life experience to motivate others and explain the reason and the passion behind my work.
