
ABOUT LEAH
For the last decade, I have been learning, laughing, dancing, playing, crying, and sharing in the waves of love, life, and death with people around the world. I have always been interested in the raw undercurrent of experience and the wisdom that emerges from within.
I learned early-on that our bodies are a vehicle for profound self-discovery and awareness, and that we express in many languages beyond the verbal.
More clarity came when I was introduced to Thich Nhat Hahn’s monastic community at the Thai Plum Village International Practice Center. I was guided through the compassion-based practices of meditation and mindfulness, which cracked me wide open. Experiencing the interconnectedness of our human family and the Earth revealed a bond that transcends time and space. A will and focused dedication was activated within me: to live and work for inclusive, integral, personal transformation and together, a global collective transformation.
Discovering breathwork a few years later was a profound experience of my life's many streams flowing into one. Learning is a life-long path, and the breath has taken me down many. The breath spans the realm of the conscious and unconscious, science and art, physiological and energetic. And the more I learn, the more I delight in the depth and dance of living this miracle called life.

WHAT I'M ROOTED IN
I am committed to the practice of loving-kindness and awareness.
I am committed to the work of change-making.
I am committed to inciting curiosity and possibility within the challenges and complexities of life.
I am committed to cultivating and listening to my Intuition, Heart and Spirit.
I am committed to the continuation of my ancestors journey of liberation.
I am committed to softening and opening my heart to grow compassion for all beings.
I am committed to loving myself more and more fully so that love expands far beyond myself, creating a web of connection amongst all living things.
I envision a world where everyone understands and experiences themselves as a vital part of one human family. A world where we all feel connected, to ourselves, one another, and the earth.
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If you are curious about my work, please reach out. I would be grateful to hear from you and it would be an honor to work with you.
Education
Master of Social Work (current)
Barry University, Miami Florida
Trauma-informed curriculum
Professional Diploma in Applied Breathing Sciences
Behavioral Counseling, CBT, HRV Biofeedback, EMG Somatic Biofeedback, and Breathing Muscle Psychophysiology
Maria Katsamanis and Sandra Reamer
Certified Behavioral Breathing Analyst
Professional School of Behavioral Health Sciences
Respiratory Psychophysiology, Breathing Habit Assessment, and Breathing Habit Modification
Peter M. Litchfield and Sandra Reamer
BA in Cultural Anthropology
University of California Santa Barbara
Thesis: Buddhist Mindful Eating in a Western Context
One-year abroad program studying Thai Culture
Thammasat University in Bangkok, Thailand
BA in Studio Art
University of California Santa Barbara
Professional Development
Certified Clarity Breathwork Practitioner
Levels 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, Assistant of Levels 1-4
Ashanna Solaris and Dana DeLong
Numa Somatics Level 4 Practitioner
Levels 2, 3, and 4
Elective: Trauma-Informed Equity and Diversity
Trevor Yelich
Usui / Holy Fire® Reiki
Attuned I, II, Advanced and Master Practitioner and Teacher
Dr. Lorri Santamaria
Usui Reiki
Attuned I, II, Advanced and Master Practitioner
Ashanna Solaris
Trauma-Informed Yoga Training
Yoga Behind Bars
Healing Trauma with Dr. Peter Levine
8-hour Workshop
HER: Women's Mystery School
9-month Immersion
Bring Out Your Dead: Ancestral Medicine with Daniel Foor, PhD
11-week Immersion
NVC: Nonviolent-Communication
10-week Course
Medicinal Herbalism
18-month Foundational Herbalist Training
Ojai School of Herbal Studies
Herbalist & Clinician Carol Wade
Professional Experience
Private Practice, delivering group workshops and individual sessions in somatic breathwork, breathing behavior analysis, and Reiki energy healing for 6 years
Clinical MSW Intern at PsychED Solutions, a mental health community center conducting mental health evaluations and providing psychosocial rehabilitation for adults
Breathwork for Kitsap Recovery Center, an in-patient drug/alcohol recovery center
English Language and Sexual Education for EMPOWER, an organization that serves sex workers in Thailand
Circus Arts Occupational Therapy for CirusAID, an organization that serves youth and teens in refugee camps in Greece
Dancer and dance teacher for 15 years