A Personal Reflection

Sometimes we think we’ve moved on from our past, that we’ve healed what once hurt us. And often, on the surface, that’s true. Yet it isn’t until we choose to go deeper, into our triggers, patterns, and the body’s memory, that we realize how much still lives beneath awareness.

During my most recent retreat this past summer at Ananda Lodge, guided by Kimberly, I had an experience that reshaped how I understand healing.

In one journey, I felt intense sensation in my lower back and abdomen. Fear arose immediately, and my mind searched for meaning. But as the experience unfolded, with calm, grounded support, it became clear that what was surfacing was not physical illness, but a deeply held emotional imprint.

Trauma doesn’t disappear. What isn’t fully felt often settles quietly into the body, waiting for safety and compassion to be acknowledged.

With gentle inquiry and presence, an experience from many years ago emerged, one carrying fear, guilt, and self-abandonment that I had long pushed out of awareness. The medicine didn’t ask me to analyze or fix anything. It invited me to stay, to feel, and to meet myself with compassion.

Through tears and release, something shifted. A weight I didn’t even know I was carrying lifted. What remained was clarity, forgiveness toward myself, and a deep awareness of how much love my inner child had always needed.

That experience stayed with me long after the retreat ended. I felt lighter, more alive, and more whole.

This is the kind of healing that doesn’t come from force, but from creating the right conditions. When we feel safe, supported, and guided, the body knows exactly how to lead us home.

This medicine has become a trusted ally in my own healing journey, and sharing this work feels like a natural extension of who I am and how I serve. Witnessing people soften, expand, and reconnect with parts of themselves they didn’t know were waiting is deeply moving. Holding space for this experience in a place that feels so aligned is something I feel profoundly called to do.