The Journey to In-Body

My interest in somatic healing, holistic health and integrative healing practices comes from years of personal experience living with and managing my own history of trauma, abuse, addictions (big and small) and mental health swings. After trying multiple types of traditional medicines and therapies alongside being on medications throughout the majority of my life I found that everything was a band-aid fix. There was very little to no whole-person discussions. No suggestions of what to do. Just a medication that numbed the feeling then wore off after some time, leading to needing something else. In my experience I was not able to find a place that focused on getting to the root of the issue and then working to heal that.

After having my kiddo in 2018 I searched for people and places that took a different approach; a system that focused on the importance of the mental-physical and physical-mental connection. I dove deep into the world of alternative healing. I found places that taught me how to sit with the discomfort, how to find and take the sacred pause between reaction and response. I found spaces that taught me coping mechanisms that facilitated awareness and correction; tools that  lightened the impact of  my wounds that could lead to a deeper level of healing and removal of reactions, thought patterns, and behaviors all together.

Read on for a more detailed overview of how I got to be where I am today. - Peace -

I went to Purdue University and graduated with a degree in Sociology with the desire to help people. I graduated at the same time the housing market crashed in 2010-2011 and could not find a job that was stable and paid enough to support a decent living. So I went and found a job that would pay the bills and afford me my fun life! But I still wanted to have a professional career. It was then that I decided to return to school and get my MBA. I graduated in 2014 but did not immediately go to work. I moved home to take care of and spend time with my terminally ill mother. Once she passed in 2015 I started looking for a 'big-girl job' and found the world of marketing and advertising to be an amazing outlet for my creative and analytical brain. I took a job I didn't think I would like but unexpectedly found an industry where I was able to put both sides of my brain to work: video advertising! I really enjoyed it! I created (and still do) commercials, videos, and educational segments. I worked with, and still do, local businesses on their marketing and advertising through television in news and news wesbite, sports like NFL and MBA, and locally targeted digital advertising such as streaming and personal device-level advertising. It taught me so much. I would not be able to have started this business without learning all I have from the experience of partnering with local business owners I worked and still work with! I found fullfillment as I was able to help people in a different way: supporting business owners in their ventures.

But I still felt like I was called to help people on a more personal level. So, while working in the marketing industry, I continued my studies and personal development on my own. I always had a passion for the study of neurobiology, neuroscience, trauma therapy practices and read dissertations and educational content continually. In part because I was searching for a way to help heal myself as I was on multiple medications and still having panic attacks daily. Then I had had my kiddo in 2018. I did not have a good pregnancy, postpartum hit me hard and when I thought I was finally seeing some light at the end of the tunnel covid hit, shutdown happened and I was confined to my home. As with many people this did not help my mental health and I went downhill again. I thought: enough is enough, there has to be a different way. So I stared searching for alternative healing options not knowing if it would even make a difference. Thinking that I might as well give something else a try since the mental health medical system was failing me, and had been, for most of my adult life.

That was when I found the "We are the Women" program created by Julie Santiago and was immediately enamored with the processes for healing she offered. Finally, I had found a space that got it! I learned so much about mindfulness, awareness, embodiment, somatics, and all the "new age" ways of healing that are really just a returning to how us humans used to connect and heal. I dove head first for a year and a half to graduate from both the Awaken and Rise programs. I went on retreats, learned the impact of communal gathering and sharing, and was initiated into the world of the mind-body-spirit connection. This is where my healing clicked and I have been off medications for almost six years.

It was through this experience that my passion for helping others on a personal level reawakened and I started absorbing everything I could about  the ever growing alternative and integrative healing and therapy spaces. I found the science behind the magical woo-woo tools and what happens to the body, mind and spirit when those tools are used and integrated into everyday life. I learned what powerful healing it can bring to not only those with a similar past as mine, but to those who struggle with all kinds of issues that are and are not related to mental health, trauma, abuse, addiction, and so many other "disorders" we see happening all around us like anxiety or social media addictions. I found I was a great coach and mentor to people - friends and family came to me for life advise and others would just open up and talk to me in the grocery store, even if I didn't know them. It solidified my desire to share with others the tools that I learned - to help others heal.

So what did I do? I kept educating myself! I found "The Embody Lab" with Dr. Scott Lyons. He created a space that brough together some of the best and brightest minds in psychology, physiology and psychosomatics: Dr. Peter Levine, Dr. Gabor Mate, Dr. Bessel Van Der Kolk, Nkem Ndefo, Deb Dana, Dr. Anderson, Dr. Rae Johnson, and so many others that had been diving into and researching the world of integrative somatic and mindfulness work combined with psychology and neurobiology for the past 30 years. I had found my place! In 2023 I graduated from their program with continuing education in somatic therapy and went through a mentorship program with Dr. Lyons to become a somatic therapy practitioner.

I started seeing people one-on-one in 2024 as a somatic practitioner, and in October of 2024 I bought the physical space I now operate In-Body Connection out of on Well's Street in Fort Wayne. I see clients there one-on-one and teach them the tools to help themselves stay healed. I started bringing alternative medicines and healing modalities to the space such as ecstatic dance, sound healing, reiki, tantra, yoga therapy, adn more. But it is just the beginning. I dream of hosting my own retreats, healing circles, and expanding to help people through online courses. I know all this is possible and I cannot wait to bring these to everyone around me.

The journey has been long but is also just starting. I cannot wait to see what unfolds as time passes as the future is yours to make.

Thank you for reading this, thank you for being a witness to my journey, and I hope that I can support you on yours as well.

Love and Peace,

Tessa