Who I Am

I was born and raised in what used to be a small beach town in San Diego—Ocean Beach—and when I was older, found Humboldt County—in Northern California an hour and a half south of Oregon—for the first time in 1976, and moved here in 1994. I have lived in four of its communities: McKinleyville, Arcata, Sunny Brae, Ferndale, and most recently, King Salmon.

In 1999, I received my BS in Liberal Studies, with an emphasis in Recreation Administration, and minors in Business and Leadership Studies. Following that, I moved back to San Diego where I pursued a master’s degree at the University of San Diego in Theology—creating a focus in Feminist Theology, and graduating with honors.

In 2020, I obtained a PhD in Transformative Studies at the California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS) in San Francisco. I am a first generation college graduate in my immediate family, and one of two in my extended family to obtain a MA or PhD.

My dissertation, entitled Re-Cognizing the Divine Feminine: An Autoethnographic Journey of Healing Through Nature combined research in trauma, physiology, neurobiology, and somatics, and how, when interacting with Nature—experiencing the Divine Feminine—healing occurs. While this was an autoethnographic study, the findings showed the process I developed could be applicable and generalizable.

My latest project is close to my heart in incredible and unimaginable ways. The course “From the Inside Out: Somatic Practices for Writers and Integral Scholars” is my first offering that combines my doctoral research in trauma, 40 years of spiritual practice, and 20 years of exploring writing pedagogy, ten of it in higher education. 

I live with my beloved 4-legged journey-partner-pup, Bodhi, on the shores of Humboldt Bay (near Humboldt Bay National Wildlife Refuge) where we are privileged to walk almost every day. The backyard is my sanctuary, where I care for the plants, birds, and other beings that visit; I have a sit space to just be, or read, or write, watch the birds, or go belly up on the lawn.