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Hi! I'm Silvana.

I help clinicians, healers, and coaches incorporate decolonized and liberatory values in their practices so that you can have a practice and/or service-based business that is truly affirming and welcoming to clients who hold marginalized identities.

white markee light in the shape of a question mark sideways
Featured Post

The questions I got asked the most this year…

Reader, You are receiving this (pre-scheduled) email while I am on a break. So it doesn’t address or reflect on anything that might be happening in the world at the moment. (And honestly, I’m really hoping nothing major is happening… because we’ve all had plenty happen already.) Let's see if these Qs sound familiar: How do I avoid causing inadvertent harm to my clients? How do I make sure I’m not practicing optical allyship? How can I become more aware of my blind spots? (Yes to this...

text that reads "what can you do today that you couldn't do a year ago?

Reader, You are receiving this (pre-scheduled) email while I am on a break. So it doesn’t address or reflect on anything that might be happening in the world at the moment. (And honestly, I’m really hoping nothing major is happening… because we’ve all had plenty happen already.) We’re reclaiming what we lost!! Have I been in your inbox long enough for you to hear me repeatedly say that systemic oppression is trauma? Systemic oppression is trauma in the form of disconnection: disconnection...

white markee light

Reader, I really want you to reply to this email so I’m going to make it super quick. As I’m planning my next year of offerings (workshops, Q&As, mini e-courses, lesson plans, and all other communal experiences and exchanges) I’d love to know what would serve you best as you continue (or start) decolonizing your practice. Just hit reply and answer one or all of the following questions: What’s your biggest struggle right now in embodying your social justice, liberatory, and anti-oppressive...

A blue building with red shutters and a door

This is the fifth and last letter on building healing connections grounded in awareness of power and oppression (healing connections with clients and in your community). Read on! Reader, We can’t talk about liberatory healing without looking in the mirror. The systems of oppression we’re trying to dismantle out there through out therapy and healing practice—white supremacy, patriarchy, capitalism—are in here too. They shape how we think, how we show up, and even how we heal. Decolonizing our...

piece of paper on wooden table that reads "the magic happens right where you stand"

Reader, This is the fourth of five letters on building healing connections grounded in awareness of power and oppression (healing connections with clients and in your community). Read on! I know you want to hold space in a way that is truly trauma-informed and liberatory. One where healing doesn’t require clients to leave parts of themselves behind. One that recognizes that healing is a process of reclaiming, resisting, and reimagining. One where we you hold space for the truth of your...

brown person holding a balm on one hand and applying it with the other hand

Reader, This is the third of five letters on building healing connections grounded in awareness of power and oppression (healing connections with clients and in your community). Read on! When we talk about healing, it’s easy to get caught up in ideas rooted in individualism and Western frameworks… after all, that is what we learned in school right? But for so many of us—clients and therapists/healers alike—healing isn’t just a personal journey. It’s deeply tied to your history, your...

book on the ground surrounded by autumn leaves

Reader, Heeeey, this is the second of five letters on building healing connections grounded in awareness of power and oppression (healing connections with clients and in your community). Read on! A core value that drives our work is helping people heal... We’re here because we believe in creating spaces where our clients feel seen, respected, and empowered to be their full selves. Healing isn’t just about working on the individual—it’s about creating environments where people from all...

empty road surrounded with trees with fog

Reader, A couple of weeks ago, towards the end of the last Q&A for clinicians I hold monthly, I reflected on the fact that grief seemed to be the overarching topic of the meeting. Some of us started feeling this grief with the pandemic; it escalated with the wildfires, got intensified by genocide, and now the elections. This feels wilder than the wildest wild I have ever experienced. There’s a lot of grief (and uncertainty) in the air right now—maybe more than we realize. The tightness in our...

sign on a street that reads "abuse of power comes as no surprise"

Reader, Heeeey, this is the first of five letters on building healing connections grounded in awareness of power and oppression. Read on! At the heart of everything we do as therapists, healers, and helpers is the value of healing. We’re all here because we believe in the transformative power of human connection (being truly seen & heard). Healing isn’t just about individual change—it’s about creating spaces where clients have agency to be their full healed selves. And let’s be real, we’re in...

two people holding hands

Reader, I’ve been thinking a lot about what it really means to build authentic connections in the therapy room (and beyond) when we ground ourselves in awareness of systemic oppression and power. This is more than a nice-to-have or another checkbox on the diversity forms we see in our workplaces. It’s the heart of how we practice liberation and decolonization in our work. Let’s be real for a second: the therapy and healing world wasn’t exactly built with the needs of marginalized communities...