“All healing journeys begin and end in the body.”
― Gabrielle Roth
I chose to get a Ph.D. in Myself...
I love learning (it's my favorite thing!) so I always thought I would end up getting my Ph.D. and being that college professor that you will refer back to because they shared knowledge that changed your trajectory of life. As a passionate researcher, turning my learning inward was quite different than my lifetime of schooling. It is my favorite thing to track patterns and understand how humans work! (We are so damn interesting, aren't we? So many parts and pieces!) I have been on this journey now for two decades exploring the ways that we can really grow ourselves up inside and heal the trauma we embody at a cellular level. When I think back, it started like a Dora the Explorer type of journey that quickly started feeling more like Outlander or Harry Potter! I am a kinesthetic learner, so I didn't want to "learn" all the things in my head, I wanted to touch, feel, and experience every type of healing I could get my body to participate in.
I think of life as this beautiful and painful dance of the heart where we have these lovely "choice points" that keep us on the path of our evolution. When I look back at how many breadcrumbs I ignored so I could stay boxed in and on the "normal" path, it makes my heart a little heavy. You know the one where we drink the kool-aid to college, marriage, and a career in sequential order and all by a certain age and make sure it includes a 401k and blah blah blah! It led me to two Masters in Counseling, chronic tension, migraines, a closed heart, and a soft voice that kept reminding me that I had a deep yearning for a level of connection and inner richness that I was not finding. I followed that supposed-to-life path until my heart (and Soul) said "It is time to listen up lady! This life is SO short and it is time to create and share your research!" So, I called in the sparkly bus and went on a never-ending, magical adventure on how people transform and heal? (All the while healing MYSELF first.)
Some of the major stops on my journey were...
Long story short, what I found is that we can really grow and change through embodied "experiences", not theory. And that our small self - Ego, personality, and patterning are made up of what the world handed to us as children and now we get the opportunity to revamp who we are. As women, we are also a hodgepodge of thousands of years of repression, other people's thoughts and beliefs, and it's all waiting to be transmuted into more life-giving/reclamation of freedom/open your beautiful wings phoenix type of energy! I learned that our body is the portal to our greatness and it's our biggest teacher, so it must be included in our awakening.
I think of life as this beautiful and painful dance of the heart where we have these lovely "choice points" that keep us on the path of our evolution. When I look back at how many breadcrumbs I ignored so I could stay boxed in and on the "normal" path, it makes my heart a little heavy. You know the one where we drink the kool-aid to college, marriage, and a career in sequential order and all by a certain age and make sure it includes a 401k and blah blah blah! It led me to two Masters in Counseling, chronic tension, migraines, a closed heart, and a soft voice that kept reminding me that I had a deep yearning for a level of connection and inner richness that I was not finding. I followed that supposed-to-life path until my heart (and Soul) said "It is time to listen up lady! This life is SO short and it is time to create and share your research!" So, I called in the sparkly bus and went on a never-ending, magical adventure on how people transform and heal? (All the while healing MYSELF first.)
Some of the major stops on my journey were...
- "How were people healing before psychotherapy?
- "How did humans in ancient cultures heal themselves?"
- "When did we start bypassing the body and intellectualizing our emotions?"
- "What is the mind-body-soul connection?"
- "And can someone please tell me...If we are made of energy, and everything is energy, then where does our energy body fit into all of this healing?!?"
Long story short, what I found is that we can really grow and change through embodied "experiences", not theory. And that our small self - Ego, personality, and patterning are made up of what the world handed to us as children and now we get the opportunity to revamp who we are. As women, we are also a hodgepodge of thousands of years of repression, other people's thoughts and beliefs, and it's all waiting to be transmuted into more life-giving/reclamation of freedom/open your beautiful wings phoenix type of energy! I learned that our body is the portal to our greatness and it's our biggest teacher, so it must be included in our awakening.
The 4 Stages of Embodied Healing:
1. Growing Up
2. Waking Up
3. Cleaning Up
4. Showing Up
Gold Stars for Education
- LCPC- Kansas Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor
- Licensed Kansas School Counselor Pre K-12
- Internal Family Systems Inspired Life Coach
- Master's Degree in Rehabilitation Counseling
- Master's Degree in School Counseling
- Bachelor's Degree in Rehabilitation Education
- Attachment and Trauma Specialist
- Trained Educator for The Gottman Institute
- Collective Grief Work Specialist
- Certified in Play Therapy, KC Play Therapy Institute
- Licensed Cosmetologist (since I was 19!)
Hot Pink Stars for Embodiment...
- I got a Ph.D. in Myself :) and it has included too many workshops to list below, but here are the highlights...
- I am a registered therapist on Dr. Elaine Aron's Highly Sensitive Person website.
- Somatic Embodiment Coach
- Advanced Clinical Heart-Centered Hypnotherapist from The Wellness Institute
- Therapeutic Breathwork Coach
- Psychodrama Facilitator
- Shamanic Practitioner
- I have trained with Ellen Winner in Michael Harner's Shamanic work such as Shamanic Journeying, Death and Dying, Divination, + Spirits and Healing.
- I have studied Toltec Wisdom teachings with HeatherAsh Amara since 2015. She apprenticed with Don Miguel Ruiz (The Four Agreements) I am certified in her work as a Warrior Goddess Training Facilitator + Warrior Heart Facilitator, and Nine Moons.
- Energy Medicine Trained in...
- Access Consciousness, Certified Medical Intuitive, Heart Math Certified Trauma Specialist, Vibrational Healing, Reiki Master, Subtle Energy Practitioner, Akashic Field Therapy
- Certified Mental Health Integrative Medicine Provider (CMHIMP)
- Yoga Nidra and Meditation Teacher
- Past Life Regression & Past Life Therapy Practitioner
- Dance, Trauma, & Transformation trained
- Intuitive and Psychic Studies
- Certified Herbalist
“We are travelers on a cosmic journey, stardust, swirling and dancing in the eddies and whirlpools of infinity. Life is eternal. We have stopped for a moment to encounter each other, to meet, to love, to share. This is a precious moment. It is a little parenthesis in eternity.”
― Paulo Coelho, The Alchemist
This life is an adventure of personal alchemy...
In the core of my ancient heart, I am a Truth Teller. I document everything so I love sharing my stories with you so that you can feel if we resonate or not. Or maybe something will spark an ah-ha or inspire you to understand there is so much more to you. I also hope that sharing my process inspires you to know you can live the life you want to live and take the chance to embark on an extraordinary life.
We are the heroes of our own stories (Didn't you read The Alchemist? OMG! It's my fav!!) What would an adventure be like without the hardship that creates valleys which creates the opportunity to dance back up to the mountain to kiss the sky!? It would be such a boring story now, wouldn't it?!? The pain is where the wisdom lives and the confidence to walk the path into the unknown doesn't come from what we think it does. It comes from facing our fears and walking anyway. What helps that courage is doing our inner work so we can be in deeper connection with ourselves, others, and this conscious planet that we reside on for such a short time. When we open more to connection we can listen to the call for what is next on the path. Thanks for walking your own path and reading about mine :)
We are the heroes of our own stories (Didn't you read The Alchemist? OMG! It's my fav!!) What would an adventure be like without the hardship that creates valleys which creates the opportunity to dance back up to the mountain to kiss the sky!? It would be such a boring story now, wouldn't it?!? The pain is where the wisdom lives and the confidence to walk the path into the unknown doesn't come from what we think it does. It comes from facing our fears and walking anyway. What helps that courage is doing our inner work so we can be in deeper connection with ourselves, others, and this conscious planet that we reside on for such a short time. When we open more to connection we can listen to the call for what is next on the path. Thanks for walking your own path and reading about mine :)
Who am I?
Why am I here?
Who am I supposed to be?
Once upon a time, in the "heart" land of Kansas, there was a girl who danced to a different beat. She was curious and fascinated by the world and how it worked. As she grew up with crazy hair and the coolest fashion, she couldn't help but look around for where she might "fit" into this sepia-toned world. She looked everywhere for beauty, more color, and more richness in this life. She danced her way through childhood, touching the trees, listening to the wind, and kept looking for her "path". One day she asked a wise person, "Who am I supposed to become?" She was told to go see the town Shaman. As she sat across the fire from him crying, he said, "Oh my sweet girl, there is not a path outside. The path you seek is always unfolding inside. Listen to the sparkle in your eyes. Listen to the dance in your heart. Listen to the animals that guide you. Listen to the trees as they are teaching you. Remember who you are, dear one. The treasure is buried within your heart. It is in your cells. You just need to uncover it."
She then realized she had been on the path all along. That the path is not linear, but spiral. It is a scavenger hunt of breadcrumbs that show you the next step. She knew there was not a box for people like her. As she gave herself permission to "be" who she really is, the huge pink flower in the center of her chest opened up and she listened to her body's wisdom. She had chosen this life adventure to dance with all of who she is - which is complex and uncomfortable - as she is always flowering, opening, and shapeshifting into what is next. Her heart is always leading the way and conspiring for the greatest good if she is paying attention. She stopped "trying" to fit into that boring sepia-toned box as she knew she is here for more. She chose to "be" who she came here to be, opened her rainbow wings, and danced into what made her feel the most alive and free.
She then realized she had been on the path all along. That the path is not linear, but spiral. It is a scavenger hunt of breadcrumbs that show you the next step. She knew there was not a box for people like her. As she gave herself permission to "be" who she really is, the huge pink flower in the center of her chest opened up and she listened to her body's wisdom. She had chosen this life adventure to dance with all of who she is - which is complex and uncomfortable - as she is always flowering, opening, and shapeshifting into what is next. Her heart is always leading the way and conspiring for the greatest good if she is paying attention. She stopped "trying" to fit into that boring sepia-toned box as she knew she is here for more. She chose to "be" who she came here to be, opened her rainbow wings, and danced into what made her feel the most alive and free.
“The voice I finally heard that day was my own–the girl I’d locked away at ten years old, the girl I was before the world told me who to be–and she said: Here I am. I’m taking over now.”
― Glennon Doyle (Untamed)
Uncovering My Magic...
Let's go deeper...we are deep people, aren't we? So, who am I really? The closest thing I can share to describing who I am is if Lisa Frank (think 80's magical unicorns) and Harry Potter had a Baby :) In all seriousness, it has taken consistent inner work and dedication to uncover my truth and to understand that I am who I am, which isn't something stagnant but something fluid. I am always changing, shapeshifting, and becoming more of who I am.
I am a Scorpio Sun, Virgo Moon, and Sagittarius rising. (Mystical. Deeply Emotional. Gypsy Soul. :)
I came in with the knowing that I was here to do big things. The little parentified-therapist inside of me started so young listening deeply, paying deeper attention, and loving everything with a huge heart. As a Highly Sensitive/Intuitive/Empath, I sense and "know" things. I knew so young that I had to "tone it down" because I was "too much" for the linear world. Who I thought I "was" covered up by who I thought I was supposed to be, what people wanted me to be, and what society/ church/ school told me I didn't want to be.
We all start so young giving up our authenticity for attachment (aka we want to be seen, loved, and valued, so we lose ourselves), and those of us who have shame stories in our ancestral lines - l would do whatever it takes to be "good" and not hurt someone's feelings or be selfish (oh the kryptonite!). I had to get really curious about why I was the way I was, and what I didn't know about myself, so I could be brave enough to go out into the dark, holding up my lantern, looking for my truth.
I am a Scorpio Sun, Virgo Moon, and Sagittarius rising. (Mystical. Deeply Emotional. Gypsy Soul. :)
I came in with the knowing that I was here to do big things. The little parentified-therapist inside of me started so young listening deeply, paying deeper attention, and loving everything with a huge heart. As a Highly Sensitive/Intuitive/Empath, I sense and "know" things. I knew so young that I had to "tone it down" because I was "too much" for the linear world. Who I thought I "was" covered up by who I thought I was supposed to be, what people wanted me to be, and what society/ church/ school told me I didn't want to be.
We all start so young giving up our authenticity for attachment (aka we want to be seen, loved, and valued, so we lose ourselves), and those of us who have shame stories in our ancestral lines - l would do whatever it takes to be "good" and not hurt someone's feelings or be selfish (oh the kryptonite!). I had to get really curious about why I was the way I was, and what I didn't know about myself, so I could be brave enough to go out into the dark, holding up my lantern, looking for my truth.
“We trade authenticity for attachment and this becomes our ideal identity–our default avatar. We try to prove it by behaving in alignment with our ideal identity, that we are worthy of being loved and accepted. We also receive it from those around us, information on what loses us that acceptance, love, and approval, and so these become our shadow selves–our unwanted identities.”
― Tanya Valentin
I gently held my heart and curiously wondered...
- Who I was before the world told me who I should be??
- Who would I be if I was fully alive and free?
- Who would I have been if I would have came in with a magical guidebook ;) and my parents would have seen that I actually am this magical child?!
- And then where in time did I leave myself to become someone else?
In 2011, I kicked off the journey of embodiment with the intention to find and heal "little me". I began seeing a hypnotherapist and doing regression work to help unthaw the life of freeze and bring safety back into my life. I also started practicing breathwork that allowed more space to open internally. As parts and pieces started to come back to life I then started to trust that I was safe enough to feel my feelings more.
Our inner children are directly connected with our stuck emotions or in other words our emotional body is actually our inner child. (Read that again)
What still fascinates me is that so much of my pain, hiding, and codependent patterning (all of our collective family patterning) is all a bunch of old generational trauma that was not even mine to carry! It showed up as dissociation, chronic pain and tension migraines, and immobility to make decisions and really being terrified of really being alive. I started seeing that my adult personality was just a compilation of childhood coping skills.
Our inner children are directly connected with our stuck emotions or in other words our emotional body is actually our inner child. (Read that again)
What still fascinates me is that so much of my pain, hiding, and codependent patterning (all of our collective family patterning) is all a bunch of old generational trauma that was not even mine to carry! It showed up as dissociation, chronic pain and tension migraines, and immobility to make decisions and really being terrified of really being alive. I started seeing that my adult personality was just a compilation of childhood coping skills.
"Highly sensitive beings suffer more, but they also love harder, dream wider, and experience deeper horizons + bliss. When you’re sensitive, you’re alive in every sense of this word in this wildly beautiful world. Sensitivity is your strength. Keep soaking in the light and spreading it to others.”
— Victoria Erickson
— Victoria Erickson
I live in a "wildly beautiful world"...
Waking up my inner children allowed me to wake up everything in my life. I had to unarrest the parts of myself that somewhere along the way I shut down. I knew in my heart that I had chosen this life of learning for a reason and I want to experience and savor every ounce of it. I signed my name in permanent ink to no longer abandon myself in this lifetime. I knew this was going to be tough stuff, but I had no choice but to jump! I was at this place of there was no going back "there". Every day I choose to be here and to be fully alive, which means - I am here to feel all the play, pleasure, pain, and the glorious energy of possibility! And to do that I had to unfreeze my body. What I found was that the Magic inside never leaves...it is just waiting for you to remember.
I have unarrested my magic in the following ways...
I have unarrested my magic in the following ways...
- I see through eyes of beauty. I am so in love with this planet and her beauty IS my everything. It is my biggest gift and abundance that I have created a slow life that I can pay more attention to her beauty.
- I am a Dancer - Trained as a Ballerina that turned to a dance floor in my 20s, then salsa + ballroom in my 30s, and walked onto an Ecstatic dance floor at 38 that brought me back to life. Currently, you can find me as a nightly kitchen dancer who is constantly making playlists!
- My love language is travel and experiences. My heart bursts with all the things that are possible by going to new places and touching the unique beauty! I love experimenting with how my energy shifts when visiting all things weird, sacred, and metaphysical. I have snorkeled with the sacred Honas in Hawaii, danced in the desert under the Milky Way, fire walked (3x), and have sat in many sacred sweat lodges of ancient wisdom. My favorite travel moment is being in Key West, Florida, where every night at Mallory Square everyone stops what they are doing to fully be present to watch the sunset...followed by a round of applause. (Be still my heart!)
- I am a kinesthetic learner, so I am all about sensations, feelings, tastes, smells, touch, and sounds! Sunset is my favorite color. Purple sage, lilac, and autumn are my favorite smells! Lemon, lime, and pumpkin are my favorite flavors.
The Heroine's Journey is to wake up to your truth...
The day you realize that it is only YOU that has the power to create the life you want is the day you step into the Heroine's shoes and cross the threshold into your new life. I am here on a special mission to deliver a new level of support in all the ways we can bring human beings back to living a more magical, integrated, and connected life!
Prior to embodying the Heroine on my journey, I chose to be educated to fit into the boxes of Clinical Psychotherapist, Rehabilitation Counselor, School Counselor, and Cosmetologist. Organically, I'm a tapestry of sensitivity that is highly intuitive and empathic and as I gently started the path on my healing journey, my rigid and frozen body started melting and then I started "remembering" more of who I am.
Actually, I woke up from all the beliefs, programming, and false narratives that keep us living a small life.
When you start waking up with a body that hasn't been fully expressed since childhood, it can be quite scary to your "keep it all together" body. I knew I wanted to actually "participate" in my healing, not just talk about it. So I signed up for long-term experiential programs where I could embody my "knowing". One of the first things that blew my mind was learning that 90% of who we are is unconscious! I found a healing community with The Wellness Institute and spent all my money flying across the country every three months for a couple of years doing my inner child healing, deconstructing my ego, and shifting all these outdated beliefs in my subconscious programming.
Doing my own inner work is the biggest gift I gave and continue to give myself. It opened me to everything that brings in more color and life. I currently still meet weekly to do my own work with like-minded groups of healers dedicated to awakening. I also have mentors, teachers, and yes, I still have a therapist I see every Thursday!
As a healer my self-care, healing myself, and being as conscious of a human being that I can be is my job.
Conscious living is a moment-to-moment practice. Being self-aware is noticing things every single day. There is no enlightenment or end of the road. It is a spiral of deep relationships you can have with yourself where you get to work with strengthening what you already know from this lifetime and others.
Prior to embodying the Heroine on my journey, I chose to be educated to fit into the boxes of Clinical Psychotherapist, Rehabilitation Counselor, School Counselor, and Cosmetologist. Organically, I'm a tapestry of sensitivity that is highly intuitive and empathic and as I gently started the path on my healing journey, my rigid and frozen body started melting and then I started "remembering" more of who I am.
Actually, I woke up from all the beliefs, programming, and false narratives that keep us living a small life.
When you start waking up with a body that hasn't been fully expressed since childhood, it can be quite scary to your "keep it all together" body. I knew I wanted to actually "participate" in my healing, not just talk about it. So I signed up for long-term experiential programs where I could embody my "knowing". One of the first things that blew my mind was learning that 90% of who we are is unconscious! I found a healing community with The Wellness Institute and spent all my money flying across the country every three months for a couple of years doing my inner child healing, deconstructing my ego, and shifting all these outdated beliefs in my subconscious programming.
Doing my own inner work is the biggest gift I gave and continue to give myself. It opened me to everything that brings in more color and life. I currently still meet weekly to do my own work with like-minded groups of healers dedicated to awakening. I also have mentors, teachers, and yes, I still have a therapist I see every Thursday!
As a healer my self-care, healing myself, and being as conscious of a human being that I can be is my job.
Conscious living is a moment-to-moment practice. Being self-aware is noticing things every single day. There is no enlightenment or end of the road. It is a spiral of deep relationships you can have with yourself where you get to work with strengthening what you already know from this lifetime and others.
“To become a great teacher, one must become a teaching.”
― Gabrielle Roth
When you wake up, ask is to find your teachers and your tribe...they are everything!!!
Collectively we are finally waking up! (I have only been waiting for my entire existence to get to this moment!!)
When we are healing ourselves, we are healing everyone and everything around us. I am here because I have had the best teachers! We all need guides on this journey! Being part of conscious groups of beautiful humans is like being in webs of love + truth telling that always support me to stay awake to what I don't see. Who would I be as a conscious leader if I didn't know in my own body what freedom feels like?
I love shining light on all my favorite human teachers...Jim Krieder, Renee Brown, Jim Morningstar, HeatherAsh Amara, Ellen Winner, Tom Gigliotti, Kathy Barringer, and Susan Miller!!!
And for all the humans who have shown me their hearts and are part of my Soul Family...
You are my life's greatest gifts.
Thank you, thank you, thank you. Thank you for being my lights, my supports, my everything! I love you.
When we are healing ourselves, we are healing everyone and everything around us. I am here because I have had the best teachers! We all need guides on this journey! Being part of conscious groups of beautiful humans is like being in webs of love + truth telling that always support me to stay awake to what I don't see. Who would I be as a conscious leader if I didn't know in my own body what freedom feels like?
I love shining light on all my favorite human teachers...Jim Krieder, Renee Brown, Jim Morningstar, HeatherAsh Amara, Ellen Winner, Tom Gigliotti, Kathy Barringer, and Susan Miller!!!
And for all the humans who have shown me their hearts and are part of my Soul Family...
You are my life's greatest gifts.
Thank you, thank you, thank you. Thank you for being my lights, my supports, my everything! I love you.
The heart-centered humans I work with get results in connecting to a larger life and opening their hearts to deeper acceptance of what it means to be on a path that feels like TRUTH. Helping you embrace your authenticity is my JAM, because I wholeheartedly believe that your uniqueness holds the key to your brilliance. I want to help you illuminate everything you think is not enough so you can see that you already are divine.
I want to end as I normally do - hand on heart and expressing gratitude - I am so honored to be a witness to the people that have crossed my path. I don't think there are mistakes when we cross paths or meet along this journey. This awakening work on our spiritual journey is such a sacred journey and to be a part of your unfolding is my honor.
PS...Don't forget...Consciousness is Contagious! Spread Your Light!
Lovingly,
I want to end as I normally do - hand on heart and expressing gratitude - I am so honored to be a witness to the people that have crossed my path. I don't think there are mistakes when we cross paths or meet along this journey. This awakening work on our spiritual journey is such a sacred journey and to be a part of your unfolding is my honor.
PS...Don't forget...Consciousness is Contagious! Spread Your Light!
Lovingly,
"We waste so much energy trying to cover up who we are when beneath every attitude is the want to be loved, and beneath every anger is a wound to be healed and beneath every sadness is the fear that there will not be enough time. When we hesitate in being direct, we unknowingly slip something on, some added layer of protection that keeps us from feeling the world, and often that thin covering is the beginning of a loneliness which, if not put down, diminishes our chances of joy. It’s like wearing gloves every time we touch something, and then, forgetting we chose to put them on, we complain that nothing feels quite real. Our challenge each day is not to get dressed to face the world but to unglove ourselves so that the doorknob feels cold and the car handle feels wet and the kiss goodbye feels like the lips of another being, soft and unrepeatable.”
-Mark Nepo
-Mark Nepo