Step Into Conscious Connection

Welcome to Let's Unpack That, where practical magic meets intentional gathering. Guided by Sarah, a down-to-earth counsellor with a cosmic edge, this space is for warm-hearted innovators who are blazing their own trail and strengthening their communities. Here, we unlock everyday mysticism through deep listening, playful transformation and modern-day ritual.

Cosmic Session

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The Initiation

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Circle Facilitation

meet sarah

Circle Facilitation
(Express Interest via contact form)

The Cosmic Session

The Cosmic Session is a dynamic 90-minute spiritual guidance experience for curious innovators, creatives and mystics who want confidence and clarity on how to lead themselves through a current life challenge.

The Initiation

Initiation is a 4-session immersion for community-centred folks who have a gift for gathering people together and are yearning to create spaces of intentional connection, depth and sisterhood.

SELF ATTUNEMENT > SELF IMPROVEMENT

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Can you feel the shift over the past few months?

We have just entered a 20-year astrological portal of Pluto in Aquarius. The last time this happened on earth was 1778-1798.

That transit birthed:

🫵🏽 The American Revolution (independence from Britain)
🫵🏽 The French Revolution (overthrowing the monarchy)
🫵🏽 Haitian Revolution (the world's only successful slave revolt)
⚡️The Industrial Revolution
📚 A Vindication on the Rights of Women published by Mary Woolstonecraft, considered one of the earliest feminists texts

Whether you believe in astrology or not is none of my business.

But when I think to the future, when I think about the fact that in twenty years the baby boomer generation will have passed away (and hopefully we have figured out a way to care for them), it's like wow.

Millennials will be essentially: calling the shots and ruling the world.

And I can't help but think that all the movements we have seen move from the shadows to the forefront over the past decade have had an important purpose.

Things like therapy, breathwork, neurodiversity exploration, gender exploration, astrology/human design, bio-hacking, psychedelics etc. can first appear to be like naval-gazing.

But what I am seeing is a collective UNCLOGGING.

Like, clearing the pipes for what is to come.

Getting to know yourself and your individuality SO WELL so that you can sparkle it around your community with pride.

In my view, knowing your neurotype and doing ice baths is important if it means you are figuring out how to live in harmony with your own vessel. But what really feels juicy and ripe with innovation now, is what can we create TOGETHER when we join our de-conditioned minds and liberated bodies?! What kind of exciting future awaits us?! What will our Revolution be?!

So with Pluto in Capricorn behind us, I'm so content to be leaving hungry self-improvement and hyper-individualism to just "be your best self" in the past too. It was simply a doorway.

Our hard-won self-attunement has to have a collective dream too, because otherwise, what's the damn point? 👽💌 🌎

SHAKE OFF!! || MARCH 14, 2025 ||

Loves. There comes a time when no amount of journalling, crying, meditating and eating your vegetables will bring you back to homeostasis.

And we all know how obviously good it is to dance. I'm not going to ramble on about that.

I'm talking about the CATHARSIS of not CARING anymore. Throwing your head back so far that the tight responsibilities of your emails and work stress are galaxies away.

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The next Shake Off is on the New Moon eclipse.

If you've paid any attention to the cosmos you'll know that mercury retrograde and eclipse season can make things feel a little wild, a little chaotic, a little unexpected and you kinda just have to roll with it.

We've got all of that coming up in March. And honestly, how great. Sometimes the planets can shake things up that we don't have the courage to.

So - in the midst of potential madness - come join us 🎊

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Shake Off is the kind of event where you don't have to feel "in a party mood" to go out.

We WANT you to bring your exhaustion, your "this week has been fucked", your "I just had a break-up".

Shake Off is a space to be with others without anything being asked of you.

You can dance alone in the corner and move the energy from the week. You can sit in the plush front room and just hang out. You can twerk wildly for hours and not have sloppy drunk people cramping your style.

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Curated set.
Immersive lighting.
High off your own primal connection to your body.
Giggling with the gyals.
Conscious community in trickster mode.

7-10pm Zenly Yoga Studio 💣
Link in Bio and more info @shakeoff.hq

ROOTS 2025 RIDDLE (kinda) @rootsfestival_

Beneath each move a woman makes,
She is listening and aligning
To that deeper pulse that prompts
Her sacred ‘inner timing.’

The schedule may say this,
And your workshop plans may say that,
But at the Roots gathering, sometimes the big revelation
Comes to you in one deeply electric chat.

Everywhere you look, you see radiant women -
Their beauty astounding,
And not because they fit one impossible standard,
It’s in their depth, their grace, their grounding.

The embodied woman may have:
Nice pictures, nice lingerie, and plenty of sass,
But that’s not what makes her unapologetically bad-ass.

When you strip it all away,
The thing that makes the real difference
Is her naked relationship with herself at home,
What she values beyond her appearance.

Everywhere you look, you see an embodied woman
Dancing, singing, and screaming, the fun things, yes,
But also - tending to her baby, going home sick,
Showing when she’s exhausted, teary, and vexed.

So...

When I returned home from this magical place,
I was instantly hit with a virus.
All I was craving was sweet and salty food,
Laying in bed, frumpy and tired - had I already lost all my wildness?

But then I remembered what I had learned on those sacred lands,
From the sisters and the trees and the talks.
There is a time to grow, and a time to rest,
And a time to simply - walk the walk.

So with a belly full of zombie chews and cheesy carbonara,
I wistfully remembered the sexy, sultry dance floor,
The way Roots shows me to have reverence for all of it.
The meh, the mess and the perfect inner timing for MORE.

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🍃🤸‍♀️🏕🫦

I watched the new Bob Dylan film yesterday and was struck by how festival gatherings become "cultural flashpoints."

The movie showed Dylan and Joan Baez at Newport Folk Festival in the 1960s, an event that helped raise consciousness about civil rights and anti-war movements. These musicians and organisers shaped history, waking people up to challenge authority and engage with social justice.

I imagined how electric it must have felt to be in that audience at such a pivotal time.

And it reminded me of last year’s Roots Festival.

On Saturday night, @caitlinerica led her signature Strip Her event—where any woman could get on stage and be fully seen and celebrated. Dance, use the pole, or just soak it in.

Looking around at hundreds of women in lingerie, I had this crazy moment—imagining all the generations before us who had been repressed, shamed, and punished for enjoying their bodies. And now—here we were. Laughing, cheering, being unapologetically ourselves—without the male gaze.

I even got up there myself, and something deep within me shifted—fear of other women, fear of judgment, fear of my own body.

But you know what? It felt ancestral—as if we were there not just for ourselves, but for the women before us who never got the chance.

It felt like a cultural flashpoint.

For those hours, that weekend, we were completely safe and uninhibited—not just to dance, but to release rage, alchemize grief, and let the earth hold us in our raw, unfiltered feminine.

I didn’t think I could be that girl—but there I was, totally safe in my body.

And just like Newport, the consciousness-raising at these events doesn’t stop when they end. It spreads. It multiplies. It shifts culture.

We take that body sovereignty home.

We bring our cleared vessel back to our communities.

We lay a new foundation our grandmothers only dreamed of.

I can’t wait for this weekend—the inspiration (and intimidation) of being around so many embodied women. My dear friend Chloe is leading a Sacred Spanking Ritual, a form of devotional energetic bodywork. I'll be her spankee - and I already know it's going to be unforgettable 🐍 @fleur_driver

Sydney gyaldem, see you there! 💌

As a previous sceptic myself, I just want to speak to the person who puts walls up around anything perceived as ~mystical~

Maybe you think you're "too smart" or "too logical" to believe in something as ~silly~ as astrology or human design. I totally get it. Half the things I read about these topics sound suspicious and like they can "tell your fortune". They sound a little too confident in thinking they know who you are based on something arbitrary like your date of birth - rather than the fullness of your unique and complex life experience.

In weaving these tools in to my counselling practice, I'm not here to tell you these things are real or factual. I've come to stop caring exactly how they work, in the same way that I drink water without knowing how Sydney Water functions 🤔

My tone for these sessions is still - at it's heart - totally curious, open and explorative, rather than "here's how it is".

Like - let's just pretend for a second that this was real - does that resonate for you? Do you have examples in your life when you've felt that? Would reflecting on that feel relevant for this challenge? And I truly go with what you're feeling, because YOU are the expert of your life sis🫶🏾

If I had one goal with these sessions, it would be for people to feel at peace with where they currently are in life and feel giddily empowered by what they can tinker with, if they were to trust a bigger picture just a little more.

I really take my time with preparing these, so I only offer a handful a month, and not on short notice. If you don't see a time available on my website, feel free to DM me as I may be able to arrange a different hour! They're designed to be done once per year for you to really slowly integrate the insights💭

It can be a really cute birthday gift for yourself, or for a time in the year when you anticipate wanting a little cosmic boost! The perfect time for it - is when you're ready (not necessarily in January where we think we have to figure it all out).

If your intrigue in the mystery comes and taps you on the shoulder in 2025, you know where to find me! Xx

(Deep thanks to @georgiamorelli - an incredible astrologer herself!)

On ~2024 ~

If there's one thing I know,
It's the consistent presence of mystery -
Flittering between the plans my mind creates
And re-routing history.

The past year in this business,
I allowed something to be put to rest -
With no actual idea what new life would replace it
But a committment to tend to it's nest. 🪹

As it turns out,
this answer wasn't to be found alone,
But in the arms and nods of sisters
Who were willing to breathe into the unknown.

Each circle we gathered in,
We softened into a deeper understanding
That together we not only witness the sorrows -
But hold space for what is expanding.

I bow my head in deep thanks,
To the collaborators at roots, zenly and ember
Who also hold this vision
For the old ways our ancestors remember

Sometimes the world is changed,
By laws, politicians and powers that be
And other times all it takes
Is the right setting, right company, and a cup of tea

Surely we have spent enough time struggling in isolation,
reaching the end of our tether
And it has made me wonder,
What's the point in all this, if we can't get there together?

So zooming out beyond the limiting terms of "business"
Ultimately its feels like we are all discovering our unique contribution
To what the earth desperately needs now
And what role we could play in a revolution

It is my hope that I can guide you,
in the direction that your quiet inner self already signed up for
Whether it's an innovative gathering idea or your cosmic blueprint,
Or a creative instinct you can no longer ignore

I long to see a return to the village
In whatever way that looks for each
As long as you bring intention and willingness
your community is always in reach

So while I have given up
Trying to predict where the mystery will go next
Until she taps me on the shoulder I'll be here:
sitting in circle, writing riddles, and being continually perplexed ... 🤔🐢🛝

(Photos from:
my neighbourhood walks 🌳
@rootsfestival_ ⚕️
@zenlysydney 🧘‍♀️
a mystical women's circle in the Daintree ✈️
a mother's blessing communal altar 👩‍🍼 @ember.collaborative taken by 📸 @hi_chilaa and featuring dear friends 🫧
and some evidence of business meetings for 1 😁🙈)

Ok, something about this poster didn't sit right with me...!

My memory cast back to a moment during the second lockdown - me weeping alone in my bathtub.

Why?

I was mourning the fact that Woodford Folk Festival @woodfordfolkfestival was cancelled for the second year, and how all the hugs, joy, lightness, connection and magic that always happens there would simply dissolve into the nothingness of an empty festival ground.

It's been three years since that bathtub moment, and the festival has been candidly vulnerable and open about how challenging it has been to build it all back up and cover costs.

The resilience of the sector, and the unwavering committment to dusting themselves off after each challenge is astounding to me. All in the name of providing a vibrant, inclusive, wholesome, creative utopia built by diverse dreamers over 30 years.

As this "gift giving" season rolls around- I've been taking a moment to consider what I truly value and what I want to uphold with my purchases.

Do I want a world with more meaningless household trinkets? Or more enriching experiences? B-grade netflix shows on the couch scrolling your phone again (and again) or the fully immersive cinema journey?

And ultimately - do I want to support faceless, profit-driven companies or artists who create music that reflect back our inner most sensitivities and transport us to another universe?

While I can't attend Woodford this year, I heard their call loud and clear. It's time to get back out and trust the life-affirming experiences of live performance and the oneness that is generated within them, experiencing the pure sense of aliveness and wonder in those seats together.

After spending two years inside, aching for these experiences and not being able to enjoy them, I can't even put a price on what these moments give me now 💓💓

If you've read this far, I hope you can cultivate an end of year experience that connects you to your sense of home, for where you're at, and what feels right/true this year around. And not succumb to comparing what you think it "should" look or feel like ☺️

Love love love, Sarah x

One crowd highlight of this beautiful festival, which should give you an idea of the space that is created, was the Saturday night catwalk.

They had people dress up in all kinds of wonderful weird wacky costumes and walk down a runway, with judges and everything. It was reminding me of a school camp talent night which just draws everyone together.

Anyway, at the very last minute there was a final entrant. 7 year old Grace, in a little pink dress, asked her mum if she could walk down.

As soon as the crowd saw her, we erupted in glee and celebration (somehow even bigger than what we were already giving!!!) And she just took herself down that red carpet, soaking up the love. When she got to the end, she did this sweet, playful, main character energy wave around to everyone and we lost it even more. Screaming and clapping and cheering til our throats were raw.

In Grace, I felt that I saw the innocence of a young girl who was not yet affected by conditioning. Of body standards, of competing with other women, of hiding ourselves and afraid to be "too much" or "not enough".

We looked on with total pride and happiness for what she could experience here. Imagine if she kept coming back, seeing examples of all kinds of women, feeling that it was all possible and that she would be supported to do her thing from the loving eyes of sisters older than her. That she was perfect just as she was.

THIIIISSSS is community. This is the healing power of togetherness. This was intentional gathering at its most true, real and magical ✨️

Sustaining Sisterhood: How To Run A Women's Circle
Ember Collaborative || Acacia Forum || Sunday 3pm

Who is it for?
Women who feel called to create intentional spaces of ritual and connection!!!

What will you experience?
Guidance, practical steps and a space to discover your OWN WAY of crafting a women's circle. Workshop teaching, small group discussion and a mini panel from women who I've been journeying with and learning alongside through our women's circle.

Learn the difference between group therapy vs a sharing circle, how to embody your unique flavour of community leadership and what your ancestors have to do with your inspiration 🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽

My intention?
That you leave feeling excited, inspired, equipped and connected to your INNER MAGIC to run a circle your community is waiting for!!!!

I wish I could share even just a fraction of what I have experienced with my dear 6 sisters who form the women's circle that we share together. We have been meeting monthly for nearly 2 years, and have created our own kind of village of reciprocity that started with a simple gathering but expanded into something that none of us had ever experienced before. We are currently sharing in the joy of two members giving birth to their first children and now seeing how the circle can evolve to adapt to what this new chapter asks of all of us in our Sisterhood. Just one small snippet example of how our relationships are ever- deepening through the circle.

To maintain the sacredness of our journey together - I won't share our stories but I HOPE that I can convey, through this workshop, my passion for slow and steady intentional community building. The nourishment it brings, the safety it creates and the sense of intimate witnessing through life's twists and turns that is far greater than what one single friend can hold.

If you are coming along to Ember @ember.collaborative I hope to see you there! And if this is something that interests you - check out my offering "The Initiation" on my website 😊😊

My wish is that as many women as possible come back to remembering old ways of gathering, while walking forward together in our modern lives 🌸✨️

I've been watching this flower taking it's time to bloom over the past week. After all the other ones had popped and were looking so vibrant (and dare I say, perfect) this one opened slowly, quietly and in an unusual direction.

The other flowers were so impressive, and did exactly what they were "supposed" to do, but my eye kept being drawn back to the wonky and interesting unfolding of this one.

I had the seedling for my own business back in 2019, and after observing, learning, trying, "failing", persevering, despairing, grinding, allowing, embracing and enjoying myself during those 5 years - being inspired by so many women who have laid down their own path before me (in particular @thedailyrest and @sacred.weaver ) who encouraged me to keep finding my OWN way, at my OWN pace - I'm finding a true sense of arrival in what I have to offer now. And it feels: AMAZING yet peaceful 🌄

My updated website is now live (!!!) and while that milestone could be a big moment of celebration, if I peel back the curtain what I'm truly commemorating is this:

🌸 it's okay to not be for everyone
🌸 no matter how "embarrassed" you may feel about it, things just take the time they take
🌸 true wealth is in the depth and discovery of the relationships nurtured, not the "sales"
🌸 time spent underground is not "nothing", it's how you form your stability
🌸 you can never regret honouring the things you are naturally drawn to, they are all breadcrumbs that (years later) form a whole bakery you didn't even know you were building 😅🥐

You can see everyttthiìinnnnnggg up now in the ~linktree~

(now I really feel like a professional instagram girl!)

I look forward to guiding anyone who feels like they need encouragement on their wonky, unusual, sideways blossoming - whether that be in your personal life, creative life or community ideas 💡 💓 at long last: WE RE-OPENING SIS!

WHY ASTROLOGY GETS A BAD RAP

I told my (grounded, self-aware) hairdresser about the Cosmic Session and it led us to unpacking the pros and cons of seeing a psychic vs a therapist.

We've both had experiences leaving a ~spiritual guidance ~ session feeling uninspired, unsure, and that the message was too vague.

I've also had sessions where the reader will share all of their astrology mumbo jumbo, but fail to explain what that would all mean for ME in my REAL LIFE. Like, what is a mid heaven and how does it relate to my original question I came in for???

But here's the biggest irritation, that I'm sure many of my anti-astrology friends would agree with:

CRINGE ➡️ using astrology to evade * personal accountability* for your behaviour and choices.

No. No no no no!

This is NOT why we use these tools my loveeeee!

Your astrology chart isn't an open cheque book to act however you want because your "moon is in leo".

Learning about your personal astrology chart is a chance for YOU to get to know yourself better. It's a way for you to see yourself, flaws and all, and figure out how you're gonna navigate this world with what you've got.

If you're using this tool beyond entertainment, astrology can help you find inner confidence, strength and courage to stand tall and live in integrity. It can help you to be a little kinder to yourself, and to relax into your natural essence. In my eyes, it's a quiet, private inner practice ✨️

It's not your get out jail free card for shitty behaviour or victim narratives 😒

So, if you need a bit of star sprinkling confidence from the cosmos, with the reality check of "here's how it plays out on the ground" from a therapist, you know where to find me 😘

Let's Unpack.....one of the biggest decisions of a person's life!!!

On Sept 21, 2-4pm, we will be opening a warm and intimate space for people to make sense of their swirling, and to connect with diverse perspectives on the question of whether or not to have children.

Parenthood...is not mandatory. Some people have always known that this was not the path for them. Some are contemplating a future of being childless/childfree from life circumstances. And for others, the question looms large as they try to assess what they really want for their lives.

It's relatively easy to come up with a pros and cons list for becoming a parent or not. But, this exercise is futile because it is a decision that is so so so deeply personal that only the inner stirrings of your heart can make the call.

So, if you've been itching for a compassionate, non-judgemental space to connect with your inner stirrings - come find us on the bolsters at Zenly yoga! Xx

There's an observation I have about people who are taking the time to tend to their inner world.

They can't be controlled.

Rather than finding a sense of safety from measuring up to the external rules that were conditioned into them, they have been brave enough to zoom far far far out, enough to call out the BS.

Whether it's the BS of their industry, family system, governance structures, sexual shame, externally imposed standards etc. And most of all, their own BS. They carve out the time to reflect, unravel, and get real with themselves.

I have a deep admiration for those people who check in with themselves to see if something ACTUALLY feels true, and resonant, or if it's simply "the way things have always been done". Or "the way they have always handled things".

Inside and outside the therapy room, I feel like I am seeing SO many people liberate themselves from control paradigms. It's inspiring and it's badass, and also if I'm being totally honest - kind of intimidating.

It's really hard to f*** around with people who are THAT internally resourced, self-aware and discerning. They can't be manipulated, they smell the vibes and they don't need your approval. Ooooft!

Not in a harsh and cold way, just in this essence of being unf***withable with a smile and a wink. Generally, they'll encourage you to take up your own radical accountability too.

I know so many of you here who follow this page ARE this and EMBODY this and I guess I just want to say I see you.
Since you started 'doing your work', consider just how much "control-ability" you have personally freed yourself from?! It's worth celebrating, you salty dog 🥳

I love to dream about what our society and culture could be like if everyone could find that inner trust in themselves.

What dynamics would naturally fall away, and what would change for the better?! 💭💭💭

Okay this is the ONLY photo that I seem to have from last year's @ember.collaborative festival (formerly Weird Women). Clearly my phone was at my camp-site the whole time!

What is doesn't depict, is the blossoming network of unique women who all gathered to share their incredible talents - a weekend away from everything to dance, learn, swim, swap stories and howl at the moon !!!!

Weird Women was the first (of only two so far) all-womens festivals that I have been to. And I have to admit, I was SO apprehensive about whether I would "fit in".

My friend and I analysed whether we had to be a "certain kind of person" to attend this thing (yes, despite the name 🤪)

But, with careful reading of the description, it was made very clear that this festival was for ANY woman - so we got out tickets and hoped for the best.

Our fears were instantly dispelled. It was warm, wholesome, thoughtfully put together, safe, kind and showed a deep respect for the land, Aboriginal customs and custodianship, the cycles of a woman's life (they have "wise woman" tickets), creativity, innovative thinking and most importantly; community. There was no "one type" of woman - rather, an underlying message to be your own quirky self. It was a truly memorable weekend that continues to reverberate 🧡

So I am BEYOND thrilled to announce that I will be hosting a workshop at this beautiful oasis for Ember 2024!!!!

"Sustaining Sisterhood: How To Run A Women's Circle'.

Drawing from my years of quietly doing this with friends, I have come up with SUPER practical steps to unlock the intuitive magic of a women's circle!

Huge thanks to the @ember.collaborative team who have been doing this for 7 (!!!!) Years. Their devotion to this collective experience is awe-inspiring. It is a dream to be a part of your program 🙏🏽😍✨️

So - who is coming along this year? And who wants to push past their fears of new things and come along?

See you by the river!

Having a Filipino mum meant that every Sunday morning, there was no sleep in...there was an early rise to church.

I have truly mixed memories of growing up religious...on the one hand there was confusion. I really struggled to concentrate on what was happening in the readings and no one ever explained what the different secret code hand gestures were. It wasn't a path I had chosen for myself and that became annoying in the teenage years.

But, on the other hand, I got to see a glimpse of this wholesome community-in-action. There was so much genuine kindness, care and collective celebration through song that I haven't come across in the same way since.

Like 10 million other Australians, I don't identify with being religious, but many of us have been influenced by organised religion in one way or another. Whether that was escaping it, challenging it, yearning for it or finding a different belief system later in life that resonated with you - its presence or absence still influences every part of our society.

For many there is bitterness, trauma and hurt in relation to their religion - particularly when it comes to sex, sexuality and lifestyle choices.

There are also many out there who feel they have to hide their religious beliefs for fear of being judged, villianised, or not fitting in. Or have been openly mocked for their choices.

I've witnessed the way people's faith (and even their church community) have brought them through really, really hard times. I've also seen thr way that the institutions themselves have created really really hard times for people.

Given that it's a touchy subject to talk about, we thought why not bring it to a circle?

At this months Zenly Circle we will be asking: what was your experience with (or without) religion growing up? How has it impacted you now?

We would love to hear your stories and see you by the (tiny) fire at @zenlystpeters, August 17th 2pm - link in bio! xx

Do you remember the last time your breath was taken away by a beautiful gathering?

Like the heart-burstingly intimate moments at a festival where no photo could ever capture the magic?

Or the tear streaming down your face at a wedding speech that just *hits* ?

Or the way you shyly soak in your loved ones deep affection as they sing happy birthday to you?

What all these moments have in common is intention, heart-centred ritual and togetherness.

I have heard the complaint too many times that we "don't have ritual in our (modern Western/white) society".

And this makes me just think, okay, well are we going to wait for a benevolent ancestor to tap us on the shoulder and give us one? Or are we going to continue to take ideas and rituals from other cultures? Or, are we going to stand up, trust that we have something to offer and create some for ourselves!!!!

These magical moments of full-spirited aliveness don't have to wait until a wedding. They can be created on any given Saturday in your lounge room. The moments are yearning to reach us, to snap us out of our day-to-day existential fatigue even if just for an afternoon.

If you don't know what I mean when I say all this, it's because there are gathering ideas out there that have *never yet* existed, and it takes SOMEONE to trust their vision and STEP UP to create it in reality. Is it you?

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Initiation is a 4-session immersion for those who have a gift for gathering people together and are yearning to create spaces of intentional connection, depth and community.

In this offering, you'll bring your vision to life for a soul-enriching circle, event or celebration that nurtures your energetic gifts and creativity to cultivate the deep belonging that you've always craved.

You will step out with the tools, skills and knowledge to set up your own spaces of modern day ritual that feel real and resonant for you ❤️

@letsunpackthat.co

(Video: Adam, the first person I have guided through the immersion. He is bringing a unique conscious clubbing event to his local yoga studio, drawing upon his love of heart-centred spaces, embodiment and mixing music!!! 🎧)

This is a topic close to Zenly's heart - being a yoga space specifically set up for Neurodiversity and social inclusion. Reflecting on my conversations with Frankie, counselling clients, colleagues and friends here are some questions that come to mind to prompt the July Zenly Circle - Parenting Neurodiverse Kids (or yourself!) 💓

🍵 How do you squeeze in space for your own needs?
👩‍⚕️ How has receiving a diagnosis for your child or yourself influenced your journey?
🚫 What "conventional" parenting ideas have you had to throw out the window?
🫠 What does a good day look like to you, and what is it like on your hardest days?
📚 What resources and support have you been able to access?
🌎 How does neurodiversity make you see and experience the world?
🙉 What misconceptions are you sick of hearing?
🤔 What do you wish others knew about raising a child with autism, ADHD, ADD or Dyscalculia, dyslexia, Dyspraxia or any other type of neurodiversity?

The aim of these circles is to simply come as you are. It's not about sharing your whole life story or needing to have things figured out. It's a chance to sit in the mystery together, chat by the urban camp fire (aka a singular candle hehe🕯) and remember that no matter how isolated you may feel in moments - that there are people out there just like you fighting similar battles. And sometimes that's all it takes to feel a little lighter 💓💓

5 things to know about me/this page!

1. The spirit of this business is all about sparking emotional transformation, moving in a sustainable rhythm and giggling together! May this page be a full spectrum reflection of that ⚡️🪘🤭

2. Ever since I was young, people have always felt safe to share their whole life story and darkest secrets with me. I see this as a deep honour, and I love that the more I shut up and listen (in every sense of the word) the more I can guide intuitively.

3. I have been working quite intensively as a grief and trauma counsellor for 5 years. My formal Social Work training has grounded my practice with professional ethics and values, but I know that the real magic of my work is channeled through the depth of my own unravelling process, and my ability to see the energetics underneath what is being said.

4. I've had some scary things happen that have forced me to grow up very quickly. Horrific car accidents, burying a parent at 26 after a longgg slow decline, intensive intergenerational pain to transmute on my mother line and facing overwhelming grief with no safety net or stable base to call home. I carried a quiet fear and dread through my 20s that my whole world could collapse at any minute - and when it finally did - the things that made the big difference were: a trusted therapist, spiritual/cosmic guidance and strong community.

5. Everyone has a story, and mine is no more special than yours...but, the gold I have taken from these experiences, and from beautiful mentors and teachers, sacred plant medicines, astrology and human design, unpacking with friends and clients for thousands of hours, guiding women's circles, holding grief, building community, sitting in the dark unknown and finding the healing unconditional love of my partner, Adam, has led to this business.

It's time now to share my new, refreshed offerings that feel completely unique to me; The Cosmic Session and The Initiation. I am ready to guide from a deep place of peace in my heart.

Whether we ever officially "work together" or not, I am excited that you landed here today, for however long.

Whatever you've got, put the kettle on 🫖

Let's. Unpack. That. 😁

A QUICK GUIDE TO CLEARING THE AIR WITH ENERGETIC INTEGRITY 🙏🏽🙏🏽

1️⃣ What is the underlying dynamic between us?

2️⃣ Where/what is the tension?

3️⃣ What parts feel true to me, (I.e. my experience, judgements of them, triggers) that I can acknowledge for myself now, but leave out of the conversation with them?

4️⃣ What is the intention for sharing this with them? (To be heard, workshop something, apologise, prevent future issues etc.?)

5️⃣ What are the necessary elements to include in this conversation for me to express myself CLEARLY and CONCISELY?

➡️ Now - invite all these aspects into harmony, perhaps even practising in the mirror first, to open up a kind and loving dialogue together 🌸

💡 Stay tuned for more super practical therapy tips that I can help you weave in with your own astrology and human design charts with my signature @letsunpackthat.co Cosmic Session coming soon! 🔮

Expressing ourselves with clarity and integrity (i.e. not being two-faced!) will be essential as we navigate this fun and refreshing new Gemini energy we have coming through now! ♊️

LET'S UNPACK: Digital Overwhelm 🫠🫠🫠
📍 Zenly Yoga, Sat 15th 2-4pm

Whoooooo here has announced that they are deleting instagram?!

Who has waited at a bus stop and RESISTED the temptation to get out their phone, only to pick it up 2 mins later to google something that popped into your head, then start scrolling, go down a rabbit hole and open up a whole other can of worms?!

Who avoids messages from people you love dearly because it's clogging up the conveyor belt in your mind?

Who thinks they would thrive in a simple, land-based lifestyle but also feel uneasy taking a 20 min walk without their phone? 😆

At our next zenly circle we're going to create space to drop into this question:

🌼 How do you actually want to engage with your digital reality? 🌼

As this book by Cal Newport reminded me, it's actually very early days in figuring this out for ourselves.

Sometimes it feels like we've been swept up in the excitement of more connection, more information and more possibilities that we haven't had the chance to take a collective breath and check in with what feels like progress, and what feels like mania/addiction/losing control of our reality.

But. In saying that, there's SO much to be enjoyed in the digital world too! The memes! The profound substack pieces that shift you forever! Connections with people on the other side of the world that you would have never made without instagram!

There's no conclusion to this post... Nor are we looking for the perfect strategy or hack to find the " balance". We are just gonna sit around with hot chocs meditating, connecting and pondering together- and hopefully find some deep treasures of giggly wisdom that we couldn't have found on our own 🥰✨️🔮

As the autumn leaves rustle underfoot, I've been thinking a lot lately (and always) about how we can better hold grief for/with ourselves and our communities.

For one karmic reason or another I have had the task of creating gentle group grieving spaces many many times over, in my personal and professional life. For others and for myself. And what I have learned from all that is this:

Nothing is too heavy or too burdensome when it is shared with a circle.

A group can hold more. A group can hold the structure steady when one person is crumbling to their knees in despair. A group can say "I see you sis" with pure presence and no words.

Sadly, I sense that we are only meeting the truth of grief some of the way, because we don't have the right *spaces* for it to be safely and securely held. So it gets squashed and pressed back down to the tear-blotted pages of a journal, hidden in plain sight in the sunken shoulders of everyone we know.

But. We know. We know it can't just be shared anywhere or with anyone. We can't force it into the grocery store run ins, at parties or birthday barbecues - as they simply do not hold the reverence and frequency that this tenderness requires. But, where on earth do you share it, in a way for it to be truly honoured???

The space must be set and the circle members must be willing to witness and be witnessed. It is a sacred, ancient, and reverent exchange. And we all have more capacity for holding grief than we think. In humble silence and compassionate listening. To meet another person on that level in a group space is deeply precious, yet actually so so simple and achievable for anyone to create.

In the coming weeks and months I am going to share my take on community listening/sharing circles, that I have been carefully cultivating over the years. If you dare to descend into this portal, there is a circle waiting somewhere for you too.

Hidden in plain sight ....

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(Feat. Twisty boi at Camperdown Cemetery 🌳 )

| Action that moves you |

I recently joined my aunty-in-law @najstudio on one of her peace walks. Kathie is an artist, and so when she was stifled with shock and grief at the state of the world last year, she asked herself, how could she strive to be a living embodiment of peace in a time of war and conflict?

Kathie made these sandals that imprint in the sand, and once a week she will take people for a silent peace walk. Before walking she reads out a reflection on peace, and the walker is encouraged to quietly contemplate what peace looks like/means to them.

The thing that I love most about this experience (aside from honouring the intention!) is the fact that beach goers may be perplexed as to what these imprints are doing here, and be prompted, like guerilla art, to ponder the concept of peace as well.

There are loud revolutions and there are quiet ones. I believe we need all of them and everything in between.

I wanted to post this leading up to the Sustainable Activism Zenly circle this Saturday, because it's a beautiful example of starting right where you are and taking your own unique action from an authentic, intentional place. And letting your heart guide the next step ✨️ ♥️

Introducing the next Zenly Circle held at 📍@zenlyyoga

🍃 SUSTAINABLE ACTIVISM 🍃
Sat, April 20, 2pm-4.30pm

I have been pondering the combination of these two words after witnessing the grief, paralysis and confusion across the collective lately, but also in general.

🌎 How to hold the pain of the world while still tending to the needs of your inner world?

✨️How to respond to events with energy and passion, beyond the dictation of the news cycle?

📲 How to create outlets for social impact that don't rely on quick self-gratification, but are humble, consistent and effective?

I sure as hell don't have the answers to any of these questions but I am most certainly looking forward to *unpacking* it together to see what we can learn from one another! 🫶🏾

Feel free to DM me any questions, thoughts or comments and please share with anyone you think might find this helpful 💓 For more info on the Zenly circles you can check out the website in the biooooo hunnies !

Ahhhhhhh. That sigh of soul-deep, heart-warming relief that perhaps you're not too weird, or too slow, or not good enough to do the thing you feel REALLY called to do.

That maybe, you need to slow down to speed up. Or perhaps, what you perceive as a string of "failures" was actually just you doing "research". And for some, it was time to stop putting everyone's needs ahead of their own and take the next scary step in their business.

*This* is why I love circle work. All of this wisdom, clarity, soft understanding and beaming encouragement came from the 8 participants of the very first Zenly Circle. The March theme was Self-Employment and it drew in a sweet and cozy group of individuals who were at various stages of 'doing their own thing' out there in the world. Thank you for the deep listening, curiosity and sense of humour that you all brought!

Community sharing circles are a space where no-one is giving advice, or telling each other what to do, but somehow, through opening up and saying what's on your heart, everyone leaves full of inspiration and courage to move a little differently.

The Zenly Circles will be happening once a month, with different topics to draw people together as we unpack the nuances and mysteries of everyday life.

Next circles:
April 20 - Sustainable Activism
May 18 - Dating
June 14 - Digital Overwhelm
July 20 - Neurodivergence in the family
August 17 - Growing Up Religious
September 21 - First Love
October - break
November 16 - Coming out Later in Life
December 21 - Chosen Family

If you have been feeling a gentle tug to do something different with your Saturday, meet interesting people in your local community and deep dive on any of these topics (with the best chai ever, lovingly made by Frankie!! 🍵 🫖) come join us! Xo

"Every woman is a transmission" - Bella @alchemyanderos

Sisterhood. What do we mean by this word? Until recently, it wasn't a concept that was front of mind for me. Intrinsically, I think we understand the importance of uplifting and celebrating women in our lives. But, through various internal and external forces there's something that also drives you (subconsciously) to judge, criticise and compete with other women. Tearing them down instead of seeing each other as divine mirrors to what is unexpressed within us.

When I got the invitation to contribute to an all women's embodiment festival - I was excited (and nervous and shy!) to see how I would respond to the environment. What would get stirred up?

The answer is: anything and everything can come up and it is EXACTLY what you need to see. Inside the women's circles that we ran, we saw the raw underbelly of what was going on under the surface. We held space for what is usually hidden, and it was so, so beautiful. Tears of every flavour, asking to be seen and accepted lovingly.

Within ourselves, we explored the polarities that we carried; the need to grieve, to soften, to step up, to step back, to play, to rest, to reclaim, to rise, to grind, to weep, and to listen deeply.

@rootsfestival_ allowed me to take the time to see the unique flavour that each woman brings to her world; her medicine, her magic, her power. Its not about becoming best friends with every woman on earth, but actively noticing autopilot assumptions/reactions and challenging them on the spot through a soulful conversation or a smile. Replacing competition with admiration and inspiration ✨️

Special deep-hearted thanks to the Grounded and Grown facilitators Bella @alchemyanderos, Chloe @flareinourown and Georgie @revolutionwithin_ for supporting me, reminding me, celebrating my expression and sharing their journeys with me as we created this soft supportive space at the festival.

Sisterhood is now a very front of mind concept and it emboldens me to be the kind of sister I can be proud of. Uplifting, calling each other forward, celebrating. Every woman is a transmission, treat her as such and watch how your life transforms 😘✨️

🌼 JANUARY 2024 REFLECTIONS 3/3

So..this leads to my current interests for Let's Unpack That:

1) Bringing my fullest, radiant, shining energy to you by doing work that lights ME up the most. Which at the moment is; going DEEP into your secret shadows with playfulness (yes, it is possible), healing family wounds, counselling you through energy management, weaving astrology, human design and numerology year-ahead forecasts to develop your confidence and intuition, and working longer-term.

2) Working with all of you who are *beyond* self-care tips with Sandra but actually want to move into the next stage of your awareness to cultivate and tend to your own personal magic to share with your world. Gone are the days where we are just surviving day-by-day with nothing left to give back. Managing your energy according to your human design type changes how you show up for your nearest and dearest, and also the COLLECTIVE - so the investment in therapy ripples out exponentially beyond yourself. The thought of this fills me with joy and is undeniably uplifting which is how I want YOU to feel in sessions too!!!

3) Community circles and women’s circles that are low-cost, high value. Without actually being therapy, they do so many things that therapy is trying to facilitate; they create connection, reduce isolation, help you process things and allow you to show up as yourself. You connect with other people in your actual residential community, rather than through a screen. You see yourself through others, create empathy and observe your blind spots. It’s re-defining group therapy, no weird paper cup Lipton tea energy, but evolved, connected and inspiring conversations. Collaborations with @groundedandgrown_
And @zenlyyoga to provide this in Sydney are about to unfold!

This is all weaving in the background, and I want to let you in on it because sometimes it's important to show up in your trying era, not just in the shiny polished packaged and ready to go version of my offerings. If you’re about these things, or feel a curiosity, join in the continuing aromatic stewing sesh @letsunpackthat.co and lets simmer and sizzle together ✨️

Love love love love love xo

🌼 JANUARY REFLECTIONS 2/3 🌼

Some observations...

1) I have become bored of how therapy is pitched. Even with the way I have pitched myself. Being ‘seen and heard’, ‘hold space’, ‘gaining clarity’ ‘actionable steps’ blah blah blah …I’m asleep already. Yes that is all true, but where is the FIRE? Where is the Zest?! Where is the ENERGY?! Last year, I experimented with voice note sessions, astrology sessions, pub and outdoor park sessions (yes!) - they were all my attempt to shake therapy out of it’s traditional confines and see how it could be (ethically) re-imagined. More on these experiments later...

2) While the barriers to therapy listed in my previous post still technically exist, I think we have come a long way in a few short years. The aftermath of the global pandemic left no person without a grief experience, and shook a lot of things up that needed shaking. Healing is cool now. Lizzo sings about it. People know their childhood stuff and hold space for their parents. They meditate at school. "Mental health" aka the full spectrum of the human experience is no longer in the shadows.

Honestly I think the barrier now is: exhaustion. Like, 'another thing on my f*king wellness to-do list. Sigh. Will have to get around to that'…(again, where is the energy?!!). I see this in my friends and myself and it's important to admit that for most of us, the demands of modern life are wild.

3) Financially, $250 (for a standard psych session) is a lot to ask for people who are struggling to save, go on holidays and buy the Meredith’s goats cheese. All of these, in my opinion, should come before therapy and so therapy is of course, a luxury good. Or, an investment. Whichever way you look at it, you have to feel really aligned, really motivated and really sure that there is something in therapy that will be absolutely invaluable for you, your life and everyone you care about.

So. These are things that have been stewing for me over the past year, as I slowly give myself the permission to de-tangle from Big Mental Health and have the liberty to innovate my practice.

It's still slow cooking. But the aromas in the house smell like...

...continued in post 3 😘

🌼 JANUARY 2024 REFLECTIONS 1/3 🌼

I love therapy. I know what the limits to it are, and within those limits - I think a lot of hard-earned magic can happen. The idea for Let’s Unpack That came 2.5 years ago because I felt that there were too many barriers; administrative, emotional, and financial to accessing the benefits of therapy.

What I *deeply* desired was to create something zesty, transformative, and practical that met the need of urban millenials racing around town trying to look after themselves while living a vibrant life. I wanted my clients to be able to have an amazingly potent session without spending all their money or needing to commit long-term. I drew in clients who already knew how to ‘do the work’ so I could just be a mirror to something that was going on for them, that they needed to see with a fresh set of objective counsellor’s eyes.

Now. What they don’t tell you about starting a business. Is that you ~think~ you can have it all mapped out. And just like that*, the business starts to map YOU out. Yikes. To show up authentically in this space, and as a therapist, you have to bring your WHOLE self. And. Things simply evolve. With both yourself and the society around you.

A few observations stand out to me: ...continued in post 2

(*please read this in Carrie Bradshaw's voice IYKYK)

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