Hi. I'm Cherie. Dancer, mentor, therapist, daughter, sister, tree hugger, herbalist, lover of life.
Yes, life sure is a journey!
My own life journey took me from growing up in the suburbs of the east coast across the country to the San Francisco Bay Area, and continuing west across the ocean to the Big Island of Hawai'i, where I currently reside, and have passed through many other places in between.
Living here on the island, living in alternative communities, learning about permaculture, the oppression and wisdom of indigenous peoples, group process work and ritual, and working with youth in wilderness therapy and rites of passage, taught me a lot about the ways in which we are part of, not separate from the earth and her many natural different rhythms, and how important it is to respect each other and this earth we are a part of. This understanding is both at the core of, and the inspiration behind, my practice.
It was here I first felt a deep calling to help facilitate transformation and healing at this crucial time on Earth, to offer back.
I believe it is in coming together to awaken that true transformation is possible. We are all individuals with different perspectives that weave a web of one; We can enlighten each other into new ways of learning or perceiving the world around us.
I understand that to be a capable helper, to help guide people through their own fires, I must be willing to pass through the dark myself, and grasp and embody how to navigate those pathways.
It was only after dancing with my own shadows, holding steady and falling apart in scary and confusing times, experiencing deep and powerful medicine journeys, and not understanding how they fit into my everyday reality, moving through that fire and fumbling my way through the dark, trusting lightness, finding the courage to move forward, that I felt ready to take a step, embodied and empowered to honor my calling, the ways in which I give back.
It is a continual journey.
I am still learning.
I have spent the last 25 years working and playing with conscious personal growth, traversing pathways of dark and light, with 20 years of dance, namely the Open Floor and 5Rhythms movement meditation as my main spiritual practice. Throughout my many years of traveling through countries in Europe, Asia, North and South America, I have learned so much from life, different cultures, and teachers of indigenous traditions, and finally, moved to the bay area in 2007 to pursue graduate studies in somatic counseling psychology, and complete licensure in Marriage and Family Therapy. I deepened my relationships with plant medicines and with movement, worked somatically with elders living with dementia, business and law students, women in recovery, war veterans, rites of passage and in nature with children. It has been through these lenses that I learned the most about how to be with, accept, and move through stuckness, struggle, and transition. My personal experiences all inform me, offering a greater perspective, and are woven together with my training to create a truly unique practice for us to explore together the magic of the healing journey.
I offer this wisdom and experience to you, from my own struggles, so that you know you don't have to do this alone. In a session, I will be your companion as we explore together the best way for you to move forward, whether that is through somatic work, giving movement to the places you feel stuck, nature therapy, standing with your back against a tree for grounding, or integration counseling, being witnessed sharing your soul's journey, fears and dreams.
Other fun facts about me:
*Once spent a night in an igloo in the eastern Sierra mountains.
*Exchanged herbal medicine recipes in an Acupuncture hospital in India
*Slept overnight at 16,000 feet on the Tibetan Plateau.
*Co-built two Earthbag constructed structures; a Sound Temple in Thailand, and backyard cottage in Portland, OR
Yes, life sure is a journey!
My own life journey took me from growing up in the suburbs of the east coast across the country to the San Francisco Bay Area, and continuing west across the ocean to the Big Island of Hawai'i, where I currently reside, and have passed through many other places in between.
Living here on the island, living in alternative communities, learning about permaculture, the oppression and wisdom of indigenous peoples, group process work and ritual, and working with youth in wilderness therapy and rites of passage, taught me a lot about the ways in which we are part of, not separate from the earth and her many natural different rhythms, and how important it is to respect each other and this earth we are a part of. This understanding is both at the core of, and the inspiration behind, my practice.
It was here I first felt a deep calling to help facilitate transformation and healing at this crucial time on Earth, to offer back.
I believe it is in coming together to awaken that true transformation is possible. We are all individuals with different perspectives that weave a web of one; We can enlighten each other into new ways of learning or perceiving the world around us.
I understand that to be a capable helper, to help guide people through their own fires, I must be willing to pass through the dark myself, and grasp and embody how to navigate those pathways.
It was only after dancing with my own shadows, holding steady and falling apart in scary and confusing times, experiencing deep and powerful medicine journeys, and not understanding how they fit into my everyday reality, moving through that fire and fumbling my way through the dark, trusting lightness, finding the courage to move forward, that I felt ready to take a step, embodied and empowered to honor my calling, the ways in which I give back.
It is a continual journey.
I am still learning.
I have spent the last 25 years working and playing with conscious personal growth, traversing pathways of dark and light, with 20 years of dance, namely the Open Floor and 5Rhythms movement meditation as my main spiritual practice. Throughout my many years of traveling through countries in Europe, Asia, North and South America, I have learned so much from life, different cultures, and teachers of indigenous traditions, and finally, moved to the bay area in 2007 to pursue graduate studies in somatic counseling psychology, and complete licensure in Marriage and Family Therapy. I deepened my relationships with plant medicines and with movement, worked somatically with elders living with dementia, business and law students, women in recovery, war veterans, rites of passage and in nature with children. It has been through these lenses that I learned the most about how to be with, accept, and move through stuckness, struggle, and transition. My personal experiences all inform me, offering a greater perspective, and are woven together with my training to create a truly unique practice for us to explore together the magic of the healing journey.
I offer this wisdom and experience to you, from my own struggles, so that you know you don't have to do this alone. In a session, I will be your companion as we explore together the best way for you to move forward, whether that is through somatic work, giving movement to the places you feel stuck, nature therapy, standing with your back against a tree for grounding, or integration counseling, being witnessed sharing your soul's journey, fears and dreams.
Other fun facts about me:
*Once spent a night in an igloo in the eastern Sierra mountains.
*Exchanged herbal medicine recipes in an Acupuncture hospital in India
*Slept overnight at 16,000 feet on the Tibetan Plateau.
*Co-built two Earthbag constructed structures; a Sound Temple in Thailand, and backyard cottage in Portland, OR