Amanda Blain
Holistic Biopsychosocial Therapist
Stress and Trauma Specialist
Leadership Coach
I can feel it fall away,
The old, the dead,
Pieces of me are not pieces of me are no longer pieces of me.
Truth leads, and the skin is shed,
Suddenly it’s different paintings inside of my head.
How will my action and inaction impact the
next seven generations on this planet?
This is the question that guides my work. A question that I believe every individual needs to be asking themselves. But in our modern civilization, people are so consumed by daily stress that they often can't see beyond it. This can cause us to disconnect from the bigger picture, and our families, communities, and planet often suffer the consequences - for years to come.
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My work is to help you get unstuck. I've had my own challenges of healing from stress disorders, trauma and autoimmune conditions, reinventing myself after loss, and digging deep to find my life purpose (outside the limited options presented to me by the mainstream).
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My international experiences have led me into a paradoxical point-of-view - in one breath, I accept the reality that the health of our planet, and our species, in countless ways, is degenerating because our civilization has normalized practices that pollute our bodies, minds, and ecosystems ... In my next breath, my grief is alchemized into inspired, undeterred action towards CHANGE. Massive change.
I've spent a lot of time meeting with elected officials - hoping that my advocacy efforts would help usher in a new paradigm. Today, I take a different approach...
I believe that when we challenge unhealthy cultural norms, NATURALLY heal our minds and bodies, and reclaim our identities as a part of Earth's ecosystem, we come to EMBODY OURSELVES ... A sense of well-being, belonging, and purpose that cannot be lost or taken away. A power that does NOT exist out there in the hands of the politicians, the billionaires, the doctors or the shamans, but INSIDE of us.
I usually meet people like you when you're feeling overwhelmed or disillusioned over why "life feels stressful and empty and tired and like something really BIG is missing" (although you've checked all the boxes for success).
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If that's you, then REMEMBER: DIS-ILLUSIONMENT IS A SIGN OF GROWING WISER, AND THEN FREER.
In my own journey, I've transitioned from working in the world of mainstream healthcare in Chicago, to meeting lawmakers in Washington D.C, to volunteering in the Peace Corps in South Africa, to traveling the world as a journalist (to hot zones like Israel and Palestine), to living and working among the Mayan people of Guatemala while serving clients across the globe. I know that when we want to evolve, that means CHANGE. Massive change.
I can help you overcome your fears about rearranging your life for transformation and I can help you meet the needs of your psyche, body, and soul. In fact, my holistic therapy and leadership programs have NEVER failed at delivering clients the breakthroughs they want (even for people who struggled for DECADES in unsuccessful mainstream therapy).
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Our first call will happen via Zoom ... I'll be chatting with you from San Pedro Volcano here on Lake Atitlán. I can't wait to hear about your journey and help you heal, transform, and EXPAND the CREATIVE RANGE of your life.
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If that interests you, then read on to learn more about my professional background and personal healing journey.
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Witnessing the psyche-body connection in real time
As a Patient Care Consultant working with dialysis clinics in Chicago, I observed the link between mental health and physical health. I implemented comprehensive programs to include psychological support, nutrition, and patient and family education. The clinics with which I worked began to report reductions in hospitalizations and improved outcomes. This was quantifiable evidence that addressing the psyche and body as a connected whole really works.
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I was inspired by the success of my programs, but disillusioned by industry norms that prioritized profits over impact. It was time to explore alternate paths to serve. In 2013, I joined the U.S. Peace Corps.
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Training with mind-body scientists
and United Nations consultants
I was sent to Limpopo, South Africa, where I lived and worked among the Venda tribe and apprenticed with two United Nations consultants and mind-body science experts who forever changed my worldview, David Patient and Neil Orr.
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David was diagnosed with HIV in 1983, when he was told by doctors that he had maybe 6 months to live. At a time when modern medicine had no answers for him, he pioneered his own holistic treatment plans including nutrition, mental health support, and emotional healing. He lived another 34 years beyond his initial fatal prognosis, and was the longest living person with AIDS until 2017 when he died of other causes.
For over 20 years, David collaborated with psycho-neuro-immunologist Neil Orr on international projects for social, health, and economic development. Together they co-authored the book, The Healer Inside You. Under their tutelage, from 2013-2015, my understanding of the psyche-body link expanded beyond anything I'd learned through mainstream education. With their support, I launched community projects in Limpopo in permaculture and nutrition, youth empowerment, and leadership development.
Healing PTSD with body-centered therapy
After 14 months of Peace Corps service, I developed debilitating asthma, inflammatory disease, and a hormone imbalance. Doctors offered numerous medications, but none were effective.
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This struggle led me to Thotme, a Body-Centered Psychotherapist (trained in The Hakomi Method) and spiritual teacher, who helped me realize that I had been overworking in an unsustainable manner, leading to early signs of autoimmune disease. This was a pattern stemming from unhealed trauma and a subconscious fear of "not being enough." It was time to heal myself.
Where talk therapy seemed to reinforce my old ways of feeling and operating, body-centered therapy helped me heal from decades of trauma and gradually all of my symptoms disappeared.
I became inspired to help others achieve similar results, and apprenticed with Thotme for over five years while continuing education through the National Institute for the Clinical Application for Behavioral Medicine. I have learned from the world's leading trauma experts in Dr. Peter Levine's Trauma Healing program, Dr. Pat Ogden's Sensorimotor Psychotherapy for Dissociation and the Body, and Dr. Bessel Van Der Kolk's Traumatic Stress Studies Certificate program.
Implementing a bio-psycho-social approach
Today, my comprehensive approach incorporates aspects of Chinese Medicine, Holistic Psychology, Movement Therapy, Body-centered Trauma Support, Herbalism, and Leadership Development. My programs have proven successful even for participants who were previously discouraged by DECADES of mainstream medicine and therapy.
Psyche Body Soul now reaches subscribers in 14 countries, and I work remotely to support clients from all over the world. Opportunities for in-person support will expand with the opening of Primal Corazón, a nature center on Lake Atitlán, Guatemala, where program graduates will be invited to VIP immersions beginning in 2024.
Seeing life changing results...
I'm here to offer solutions that reunite us with the medicine of natural design.
It's powerful to finally see results when nothing else seemed to help.
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To see what clients are saying, click here.
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To view my offerings, click here.
