"We're all walking each other home" - Ram Dass
I support deep feeling and deep thinking dreamers and doers who are unfulfilled with the status quo and are yearning to live their most purpose-driven and creative lives.
Tuning In
Understandably, it can be difficult to stay embodied and engaged in a culture that bombards us with injustice, constant distractions, and a never-ending cycle of quick-fix consumption. Personal development often glorifies the grind, hyper-independence, and emotional bypassing, leaving us feeling dysregulated and that we are at fault for our inability to adapt to this broader disfunction, rather than questioning this unsustainable cultural narrative.
On the outside, we may appear to be thriving, but deep down our negative self-talk grows louder, and the masks we wear weigh heavier on us. Disconnecting from ourselves and our true emotions becomes a survival method, a temporary coping solution, that at one point or another no longer becomes optimal or even optional, as our bodies grow louder in their signaling that this pace, this version of ourselves, isn’t working anymore. This can show up in a myriad of ways: low energy and self esteem, chronic stress, difficulty sleeping, creative blocks, chronic busyness, unhealthy habits, mindless technology use, boredom, apathy, addiction, social withdrawal...
This is your body and spirit asking you to tune in and understand what shifts and realignments are needed. This is an opportunity and a bridge to who you will become.
Embodied Change
Somatic, or embodied, coaching helps us to discover the answers to these questions and challenges by working through the body to engage the fundamental life energy that animates and shapes who we are. Just as the body is intelligent enough to send us these signals (however disruptive and uncomfortable they can be at times), the body is also a well of intuition and wisdom guiding us towards balance and wholeness.
Many of us regard the body as simply the container for our physical being, but present neuroscience, as well as traditional wisdom, reveals a fuller picture of how our bodies shape every aspect of our life - our embodied strategies for belonging, love, safety, acceptance - and that the body reflects our joys and our pain, our commitments and longing, our talents and gifts, our wounds and healing. Working through the body then is a direct path to our self-awareness, capacity for choice, and transformation.
What yearns to come to life? What is complete and what wants expression? How do I numb or enliven myself? How do I move towards or away from life? To work through the body is to connect with the animating forces that make us feel alive.
A deep acknowledgement of interdependence and interconnection to all living beings and the larger fabric of life is foundational in somatic work.
For many people who have been unsuccessful with other approaches and attempts at creating meaningful change, a somatic approach offers a different pathway. The self knowledge about our embodied patterns and the practical tools to make conscious choices are dynamic skills that create ongoing, sustainable, grounded, and purpose-driven transformation. As a somatic coach, my passion is to support people to:
Regenerative Transformation
Heal from past trauma and negative self beliefs that hold you back, cultivate self awareness, confidence, and trust; hone and honor your intuition and choices
Cultivate deeper connections with others, all living beings, and the natural world, enriching your circle of support and nurturing personal resilience through interdependence
Reignite creativity, nurture artistic expression, and create space for inspiration, flow, play, and personal fulfillment.
Develop supportive habits and rhythms that nourish mind, body, and soul, promoting wellness, peace, restoration, and joy in daily life.
Reconnecting to your core values, ensuring your work and life align with your purpose, while building a more just and sustainable world from a place of embodiment and wholeness
Foundations of Coaching
Coaching is a relationship. A relationship between you and I, between us and your goals, and your goals and your transformation. It is a space and time that exists for the sole, intentional purpose of your exploration, healing, and growth. It's important to distinguish that it is this process that you are investing in when undergoing coaching. You are investing in the embodied changes you will make and integrate into your present and future selves.
I hope that in our sessions, you feel as if you connecting with a trusted companion and guide, one who deeply cares for you, shares in your concerns, and celebrates your successes with you wholeheartedly. I hold space for everything that may come up in our working together - the challenging, the uncomfortable, the heavy, but also the joy, the laughter, the surprise, and the relief. I believe it's important to be gentle, open-minded, solution-oriented, and to explore a playful approach to this work where possible.
Our Sessions
How our sessions are structured and flow is a co-created dance, but ultimately client-led. Some folks may want to address something specific happening in their lives (perhaps a relational conflict, creative block, an issue at work or home), while others may want to focus on a general theme or what's arising in the present moment, and often this focus might alternate between sessions. All of the above is welcome.
A session may involve talking, movement, noticing sensations present in the body, bilateral stimulation, and exploring posture and breath to bring more embodied awareness to your patterns and to identify practices to help you develop more perspective and range for how you engage with the world.
In working with me, there isn't a one-size-fits-all script or set sequence of tools, but an approach that centers who you are and is based on mindful observation of what could be useful in the present moment. Together, session by session, we will identify clear intention for our time together, and weave a connecting thread that culminates in increased awareness, choice, and practical capacity building that supports your daily lived experience.
An important part of how I coach is that I honor and welcome feedback and evaluation as an ongoing and collaborative discussion that is intentionally built into our working relationship. I believe the coaching relationship should reflect the values of honoring and honing a client's inner intuition, choice, and embodied decision making and for that to be exercised and encouraged in the "here and now" dynamic of our coaching sessions. Collaboration and consent is essential.
Getting Started
The transformation process isn't always "sunshine and roses", or linear for that matter, but in my humble opinion, it is always worth it. You are more than worthy of healing and love, and living your deepest and most creative dreams. I can't think of anything the world needs right now more than our embodied presence. We all need supportive people —friends, mentors, and guides—who can walk beside us along the journey from where we are to where we'd like to be and I'm honored to hold that role for the people I work with. I offer the following options for 1:1 and group coaching:
Clarity Session
These sessions are one-time, 90-minute sessions, that are focused on gaining clarity on an immediate dilemma, life decision, or transition. These sessions are for a specific, short term goal, and require no ongoing commitment or prior consultation call. Book directly and we'll get started working together to gain insight, resources, and action steps to get you unstuck and moving forward.
1:1 Membership Coaching
This is a monthly subscription coaching option that offers ongoing and more holistic support as we meet regularly (twice a month, or more as desired), to explore your deeper long-term visions and goals. These sessions start at $150/hr and coaching memberships include additional benefits and discounts to broader Cura Collective programming. Beyond increased individual support, one of the benefits of the membership program is connecting with a broader support community, getting to learn with other skilled teachers and fellow members, and access to a broad range of healing arts.
This program has a 3-month commitment for enrollment, and then will then be offered on a continue-as-needed and desired basis thereafter. You can learn more about this program and explore what it would be like to enroll in coaching together, by booking an initial consultation here:
Group Membership Coaching
Coaching Groups are small, intimate cohorts that meet together over the course of a season to explore themes of somatic coaching and regenerative living. In a supportive community setting, you’ll engage with practices that help you reconnect with your body, nurture your well-being, and cultivate a lifestyle rooted in balance and sustainability. We often find that it is the connections and supportive relationships that grow between members that ends up being the most impactful.
Groups are $60/session, and meet twice a month for three months. Participating in coaching groups also comes with discounts to broader Cura Collective programming, including individual coaching services.
Join Upcoming 2025 Groups
This group will be led and facilitated by Olivia and Erin Pfahler.
Dates, times, and details for the Sept-Dec group will be posted in June. Please join our mailing list at the bottom of this page to stay up to date on these and other Cura announcements.
Somatic Coaching Sessions are available via videoconferencing and can be participated in from wherever you are in the world. I regularly offer tiered, sliding scale payment options for individual and group sessions for those experiencing financial hardship. Openings for sliding scale sessions are announced on our Cura mailing list as they become available.