The Healing Eclectic

We are grateful for this most recent Google testimonial! We deeply appreciate the testimonials we’ve received throughout the years as it greatly helps our business thrive and flourish. If you’ve worked with us before and feel called to write a Google review, we welcome any positive feedback you’d like to share. Of course if there’s anything we can do to improve our services, please don’t hesitate to contact us directly to let us know. Thank you in advance for your consideration🙏🏼💕.

While we practice numerous modalities here , Myofascial Release (MFR) as created and taught by John F. Barnes, is our primary modality. So what exactly is it!? Check out these slides to learn more!

Mark your calendars! Fall workshop dates are revealed!

🫁🧘 Tuesdays 9/3, /9/10 & 9/17 - Breathwork 101: Introducing You To Your Breath our FREE breathwork workshop series
🙌🏼 ✨Saturday 10/5 - Reiki Level I Certification
🙌🏼 ✨Saturday 10/26 - Reiki Level II Certification

For more info visit our website at www.thehealingeclectic.com.

Looking forward to seeing you in class!

Contemplation for the week:

Are you addicted to your pain?

What would it feel like to let it go?

Sometimes the thought of letting go can feel quite scary because we're so used to the familiar and are too afraid to step into the unknown. Yet what if you allowed yourself to summon up bravery and embark on a new journey into unfamiliar internal territory? What would your life be like? How would you feel?

When we hit a plateau on our healing journey, sometimes it means that the next step is the need to let go of clinging onto the familiar.

The familiar can take shape in many ways.

It can be revisiting past wounds in our minds over and over again, refusing to forgive. It can present itself in the form of refusing to take care of our body with exercise and healthy eating habits. It can be as simple as skipping out on getting enough sleep.

However it presents itself for you, even if just for today, ask yourself, "how does holding onto my pain serve me?" "Is it too heavy to keep carrying?" "Have I had enough of it yet?"

Once you've come into your answers, if you find that you're ready to step into the unknown, what can one small step be? No need to overwhelm yourself. Just take that next small step into letting go and healing you.

Over the years I’ve had the privilege of staying connected to my roots in the performing arts world by working backstage, in one on one sessions and teaching workshops with numerous dance companies and circus artists.

One of the dance companies that I have the honor of working with is

Their performances are always captivating with their unique storytelling and incredibly talented dancers.

Today’s performance was no exception.

The joy I’ve witnessed over the years that comes through each of the dancers is palpable; and today, the depth of feeling and heart that emitted from the performers captured my heart and brought me to tears at various moments throughout the performance.

In the words on the program for today’s performance, Can You Hear Us Now? is “a celebration of q***r community, tap history, and finding joy in resisting the norm.” did an absolutely incredible job of bringing these words to life in today’s show with their direction.

Bravo and congratulations to and all of the dancers and choreographers in on blowing me away once again! Oh, and by the way, go see this show!!👏🏼🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️💕🎉

Sunday mini-mood board. Last image credit

As shared in yesterday’s post, I have some news that I’m excited to share with you!

Before I dive into the official news, I want to say that living as a multi-passionate healing practitioner and entrepreneur, there are many, many things that I’m passionate about. One of my top passions is teaching.

Many of you know that I come from a family of educators, and I myself have taught dance, wellness based workshops, anatomy and kinesiology courses and Reiki certifications well over the past 25+ years.

Educating others runs deep in my blood and bones.

It fills me up to no end to witness students’ inner lights turn on as they learn and grow, and even surpass the teacher, in their abilities.

Teaching and mentoring the next generations of healing practitioners is one of my soul’s missions here on this earth.

As dramatic as that last statement sounds, it’s one of the things I know to be true.

To that end, I’m delighted to share with you that next month I’ll be returning to my massage school alma mater, The New School for Massage Bodywork & Healing, to teach Myofascial Release and Craniosacral Therapy courses to the students who attend there! I’m also bringing back my group based Reiki Level I & II certifications this fall, and teaching them out of The New School for Massage as well!

If you’re a client reading this, don’t worry, I’m still providing sessions at my practice, and I’ll be teaching alongside my one on one work. Wanted you to all be in the know about the latest news at The Healing Eclectic!

Until next time, be well and take good care of you.

Weekend motto, weekend vibes. Until next time, chill and take good care of you.

It's no secret to the clients and students I've worked with over the years that I'm on a healing journey right alongside them. Although I've taken years to study certain modalities that I've personally found beneficial in my own healing, and will only offer modalities at my practice that I've had personal experience with, I'm still constantly learning and discovering what my body needs in order to flourish, especially when the unexpected challenges occur with regards to my health.

This latest endeavor was born out of a necessity when I found myself in situations where I wasn't able to access my self-care tools based on Myofascial Release, Yoga and Tai Chi. What to do when the body goes into panic in the midst of a meeting for my business or in the waiting room of a doctor's office when one can't just lay on the floor and start rolling on a therapy ball or drop down into a yin yoga posture?

What I've found is my body intuitively guiding me to my breath.

What I also found is that while the breath is accessible at any time, and without breath there is no life, there are issues that can arise when the breath is operating with an underlying breathing dysfunction.

You see, many of us are walking around utilizing only 10% of our breathing capacity, and breathing in a dysfunctional way can actually create ailments in the body!

So in usual Heather-style fashion, I dove into the hypothesis and asked myself, "Can I help my body heal through my breath?"

To that end, I took the basic knowledge and breathwork experience acquired during my 200 hour Yoga Teacher Training and started testing out my inquiry. Along the way I started to realize that I needed more information and guidance, so I followed the call to complete a 25 hour Breath Coach Training, which as you can see I recently completed; and am in the midst of completing a trauma informed approach to this work.

The techniques I've learned thus far, and have practiced over the past 8 months, have led me to feel better when incorporating these techniques throughout my day to day experience.

I'm especially noticing a profound level of healing when breathwork is combined with John Barnes Myofascial Release Approach (JFB MFR) that I practice with clients and for self-care healing. For example, when releasing the diaphragm muscle (the primary muscle used in respiration, yet is HIGHLY underutilized in many of us humans) with JFB MFR, then training the body to further stretch and strengthen the diaphragm with diaphragmatic breathwork techniques, the capacity to breathe more fully is enhanced.

All of this to say, I'm continuing to self-explore the healing effects of breathwork, as well as incorporate them into sessions with clients; and again in Heather-style fashion, I'm also dreaming up some group based workshops to offer at my practice and look forward to sharing more details when the time comes. Until then, stay tuned and be well!

HNY!🎊. Wishing you a wonderful 2024! Pictured here was the mantra card that was pulled for the clients I worked with yesterday. It got me thinking about how 2023, for me, was a year that I declared to be a year of health. Indeed, gratefully, it was! Yet I also remembered this journey of health I went through had its peaks and valleys, and I remembered some days didn’t necessarily feel healthy but rather a two steps forward, one step back kind of day. Then I found myself reflecting on how I got through those more challenging days was focusing on what I was grateful for in the moment. More specifically speaking I would focus on how grateful I was for the functions of my body that were feeling healthy and having faith that the rest of my body would catch up to the game. I also reflected on how it was equally important to focus on gratitude for my body on the days when I felt fully vibrant and healthy. It was a mental marker for me to remember what it felt like to be in good health and soak my body in that feeling of gratitude. Remember, we have to feel in order to heal. I know I’ll be carrying this experience with me throughout 2024. Now I ask you, what are you grateful for when it comes to your body? In what ways can you show your body some love as a result of this gratitude in the year ahead? Make it a great year, and may it be a healthy one! Also, this mantra card is from the beautiful deck created by We still have a few left in stock, so check them out next time you’re in for a visit!

This week is the last call to sign up and a personal testimonial from me. Read on to learn more details!

Last Call To Sign Up! Last Call To Sign Up For IN>VISIBLE! Good day and happy December to you. We're nearing the last opportunity to sign up for this week's ...

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A Thank You, A Reminder & A Sale! A Message Of Gratitude For You "Gratitude turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, confusion ...

In recent days I’ve felt inspired to deepen my understanding of Reflexology. I’ve been practicing reflexology over the past 15 years and this call to deepen my practice was strong. In a effort to move forward in this direction I recently studied Integrative Reflexology with two of my favorite teachers, Tracey Moon and Sharon Nash of Cultivating Inner Stillness, where we not only went over a massage therapist hand friendly approach to practicing reflexology, we also learned how this form of reflexology also incorporates Structural Alignment, Psychoneuroimmunology and Meridian Theory. I was particularly excited to incorporate the Chinese Medicine aspect of this work as my heart is still with working with meridians ever since I studied Chinese Medicine at Midwest College of Oriental Medicine but decided to leave after I had a deep realization that working with acupuncture needles wasn’t the medium I was best suited to work with. All in all, this training not only has provided me the education to enhance my work with you, it was also a deep healing experience for myself. Now, lo and behold, I’m a Certified Integrative Reflexologist! Now back to the workshop...Sharon and Tracey have a beautiful way of weaving cognitive and experiential learning, along with moments of self-reflection, that creates a workshop experience highly conducive to learning and deeply healing at the same time. If you’re a fellow manual therapist, I highly recommend learning from them! In the meantime, if you want to experience reflexology, let me know at your next session. Learn more about other continuing education classes myself and Elsa have partaken in in our upcoming newsletter. To sign up for our newsletter, check out and sign up on my webiste.

Heading into the weekend starting off in my go-to relaxation pose called constructive rest position (this is a legs elevated version). To name a few benefits, this resting posture creates a hammock for the pelvis to help the Psoas muscle and surrounding structures to relax, it helps release tension in the diaphragm, improves circulation in the lower body and can help quiet the mind. Lay down on the floor or a yoga mat and place your legs up on a chair or couch to create a 90 degree angle in your knees. Cross your arms over your chest or place them by your sides, palm up. Breathe, allow your body to sink into the surface beneath you, and let go. Try this pose on for size and tell me how this pose made you feel in the comments below!

This past weekend I began the journey towards my Integrative Reflexology certification, along with my study buddies, Sadie and Lilly! I’ve been practicing reflexology for 15 years now and have been on a quest to deepen my practice and understanding of this work, and this integrative approach was more than I hoped it would be! While I have a great deal more to share in this month’s upcoming newsletter, I will say here that I had an opportunity to practice reflexology on myself on a day where I wasn’t feeling my best, and from this experience I was directly reminded just how healing and transformative this work is. Stay tuned for more details in our next newsletter and in the meantime, be sure to ask about incorporating reflexology into your next session with me!

Today marks the last call to sign up for the LIVE Fluid Fascia: Spring Series where we'll be focusing on self-treating TMJ Dysfunction. Tonight at 6:30pm CST, or for the next seven days if you can't attend live, we'll be covering how to safely self-treat TMJ Dysfunction, which has become an epidemic in our modern day lives.
In today's workshop, learn about the painful impacts TMJ Dysfunction, how to safely self-treat with Myofascial Release, Craniosacral Therapy and Therapeutic Movement, not only the symptomatic pain but also some of the root causes of TMJ Dysfunction.
As in the first three classes of this series, we'll begin with a grounding technique, then move into a mini-anatomy lesson, before we spend the rest of our time together self-treating symptomatic pain and releasing tension patterns in the root cause regions for preventative measures.

This will empower and enable you to self-treat, rather than wait for your next hands on treatment to feel relief.

You have the option to sign up for this single workshop within the series ($35/each workshop). This fee covers workshop participation and email/phone support if any questions arise after the workshop

Also, if you can't make it live but want to learn what we'll be covering, a recording will be sent out to all participants that will be available for 7 days to watch at your leisure.

Please keep in mind that this workshop is most suitable for those who've experienced mild to moderate TMJ pain whether it's chronic or an occasional bout.

This workshop is not suited for those in acute pain from a recent injury or accident, experiencing acute symptoms, or recently recovering from dental work or surgery and not yet cleared by your doctor to return to normal daily activities.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding your participation in this course, please reach out to Heather by contacting her via email at [email protected]

If you don't have any questions or concerns, and would like to sign up, click on the link in bio for registration information and details.

Looking forward to virtually see you tonight!

Tonight in The Fluid Fascia: Spring Series at 6:30pm CST, or for the next seven days if you can't attend live, we'll be covering The Effects Of Text Neck, which has become an epidemic in our modern day lives.

In today's workshop, learn about the painful impacts of text neck, how to self-treat with myofascial release and therapeutic movement, not only the symptomatic pain but also the root causes of text neck, and play with healthy posture patterns.

As in the first two classes of this series, we'll begin with a grounding technique, then move into a mini-anatomy lesson, before we spend the rest of our time together self-treating symptomatic pain and releasing tension patterns in the root cause regions for preventative measures.

This will empower and enable you to self-treat, rather than wait for your next hands on treatment to feel relief.

Please keep in mind that this workshop is most suitable for those who've experienced mild to moderate text neck pain whether it's chronic or an occasional bout.

This workshop is not suited for those in acute pain from a recent injury or accident, experiencing acute whiplash symptoms, experiencing acute pain from a bulging disc or herniation in the cervical (neck) spine, or recently recovering from surgery and not yet cleared by your doctor to return to normal daily activities.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding your participation in this course, please reach out to Heather by contacting her via email at [email protected]

If you don't have any questions or concerns, and would like to sign up, click on the link in bio for registration information and details.

Looking forward to virtually see you tonight!

If your low back is ever a pain, virtually join us for tonight’s Fluid Fascia: Spring Series class at 6:30om CST where we’ll be doing techniques to release fascial restrictions around the low back. If you’re interested in joining us but can’t make it live, the recording will be available for 7 days after the workshop for you to watch at your leisure. Please keep in mind, if you’re currently suffering from acute low back pain or healing from a recent surgery, now isn’t the time to participate.

Today’s the last day to sign up for the entire Fluid Fascia: Spring Series! Here’s what we’ll be covering in today’s workshop at 6:30pm CST (recordings will be made available for all participants, especially those who can’t attend live). After today you can sign up for one, two or three remaining classes. For registration info, check out link in bio!

Answering The Fluid Fascia: Spring Series FAQs in today’s post! Read on to learn more…

it was all about releasing the rotator cuff in this photo from the first iteration of workshop during lockdown in 2020. When it comes to matters of the heart, we can carry a lot of protective energy in this region that can turn into painful patterns if we don’t proactively work through what we’re trying to protect within ourselves. Releasing the rotator cuff through myofascial release can be a gateway into releasing stuck emotional energy in this area. To learn more about how to safely and effectively practice self myofascial release, check out the for The Fluid Fascia Spring Series, that can be taken in person OR online starting April 24th!

Literally can’t help but dance wherever I go!😉😂. In the process of flying back from a lovely time in Florida with my mom and sis! Stay tuned for upcoming posts that share some travel tips for the health of your soft tissue! Until then, be well.

It’s with deep appreciation that I share these words with you. Also, sending a warm thank you to all of you who’ve written positive testimonials over the years🙏🏼💕✨.

Reminder! Todays the last day to take advantage of the Early Bird rate for spring series. Use code Earlybird at checkout to enjoy 10% off!

These are just to name a few of the myriad of benefits of myofascial release.

“Soften into Sensation,” is one of my favorite quotes by my myofascial release mentor, John Barnes. I’ve so often heard over the years clients and students want to ‘dig into’ their tension or force it out in some way without realizing that one of the roles of the fascia is to protect the internal structures it embeds. So when intense outside force tries to dig into fascial restrictions, it’ll be met with resistance. So I invite clients and students to play with John’s words of “soften into sensation” while cultivating a sense of patience and allow the fascia to release, then note what changes occur as a result of adopting this way of working with the tissue. Try this on for size yourself and would love to hear how it goes in the comments below!

It’s such a beautiful Sunday over here I’m blessed to run my practice out if this lovely, serene haven in the midst of busy, buzzing Chicago. Also, the upcoming Fluid Fascia: Spring Series workshop will be taking place here and filmed here for those of you participating online. Check out link in bio for more info. Until then, wishing you a blessed Sunday!

These were taken back in 2016 when I first started teaching The Art Of Letting Go Workshop (now known as The Fluid Fascia) at the wonderful where we just focused on specific myofascial release techniques. So what’s changed over the years in this workshop? Firstly, there is an option to participate in-person OR online! Secondly, you can expect techniques to include not only, myofascial release, but also therapeutic movement, yin yoga postures and a dash of energy healing techniques. Thirdly, we’ll be focusing on cultivating a sense of ease for specific ailments. Last but not least, recordings will be available for 7 days post each workshop AND a streamable version will be available for purchase on Fluidify Fascia & Wellness once the series is complete! So if you’re thinking of joining us, sign on up at link in bio and I look forward to seeing you there!

Thank you for your testimonials! Here are our latest two🙏🏼✨💕