Client Case Studies

Leah Garcés, CEO of Mercy for Animals

From feeling burdened as a leader to experiencing a “midlife expansion,” feeling deep self-love, activating her inner healer, and channeling her purpose with clarity and confidence. 

When Leah first began working with me privately, she was feeling burdened in her leadership as the CEO of a major animal rights organization and was trying to find a way to stay engaged, feel sustained, and be at peace with her work. 

Her intention working together was to increase her capacity to feel and process emotions in a safe container where she could be fully expressed and welcome her authenticity to shine in all areas of life, especially at work. She also desired to cultivate a sense of gratitude, spaciousness, and peace that was easily accessible throughout her day navigating the stress of leadership.

Before working together, she would roll her eyes at the idea of self-care, but overtime, she began to unravel the story that “self-care is selfish” that she was socialized to believe as a woman in a patriarchal and capitalist society under constant pressure to do more. As time went on, she got to experience the impact of making space for herself, realizing that she was able to be more present, available, and responsive for her team and her family, giving from a place of genuine desire and capacity rather than guilt and expectation.  

Leah began to release the need to do it all and started to honor her sacred no. As a result, she led one of the best board meetings to date, spoke up about needing support, was heard and understood, and is now in the process of bringing on another team member. This helped her realize that she was creating unnecessary stress for herself pretending like she could be superwoman.

When she finally took off the cape and authentically acknowledged her capacity, she discovered she was more supported than she thought! No one actually expected her to figure it all out on her own, that was her story… which means she held the power to change and create a new narrative. Reclaiming her power, she decided she doesn’t have to choose between service and enjoyment, and each sacred no created space for her full body YES. 

Now she REALLY gets that the more you care for yourself, the more you can care for others and embody your higher purpose. So much so that we co-presented at an animal advocacy conference in May 2024 to share the importance of this message in the movement and empower other leaders to love themselves for longevity, passion, and authenticity in their activism.

I can see the ripple effects of Leah's investment in herself so clearly. The new relationship she has with herself has transformed her relationship to others – even her husband commented on how centered she was while navigating an unexpected change that would have previously sent her spiraling. Her organization now has the leadership of someone who is truly excited to be there, resulting in greater presence with colleagues who feel seen and heard. And as the CEO of one of the largest animal rights organizations in the world, this has a massive impact on the movement. 

Just imagine what we could accomplish for collective liberation if our leaders were all feeling this connected to their truth, embodying radical self-care and sacred boundaries for sustainable advocacy – we would be unstoppable! This is my purpose and commitment, to empower change makers to lead with greater ease and joy so that we can co-create the world we feel proud to pass on to the next generation (while also having a lot of fun along the way!). 

Joi James

From feeling dissatisfied and burnt out to quitting her corporate job to prioritize her well-being and pursue her passion! In just six months!

Here's what we implemented working together that helped her get there...

Sacred Rage + Embodied Boundaries
In one of our potent breathwork ceremonies I led her to set down the good girl persona and welcome the fire of sacred rage. This opportunity to express healthy aggression helped illuminate her boundaries and speak up for herself in a predominantly white office where she was feeling overworked and unheard.

Radical Self-Care
After connecting to her inner power and advocating for herself at work, she took a leave of absence and used that month to double down on her holistic health regimen. She developed a home practice for breathwork and meditation, deepened relationships with loved ones, spent more time in nature, meal prepped, and cultivated a consistent pilates practice. And as a result, she learned what spaciousness and ease FEELS like in her body for the first time.

Decolonial Dreaming
After spending most of her life chasing accolades, stepping back from the hurried pace of capitalism to connect to her true desires beyond status and titles was liberating. I guided her through a visualization to connect with her dream life - how she spends her time, the environment, her role in community. She realized what she actually wanted was different than what she'd been socialized to strive after. From this vision, we mapped out a plan to bring it into fruition.

Listen to the video above to learn more about Joi's journey breaking generational patterns of emotional avoidance, alchemizing anger into better boundaries, taking a leave of absence from work to set healthy habits, and ultimately choosing to leave her corporate job to pursue her purpose of supporting Black women’s health.

As she shares, our work together was a roadmap with tangible, personalized practices to bring her dreams into fruition and she “can’t recommend this enough.”

Fast forward to one year later, Joi is a Transformational Leadership & Stress Recovery Coach committed to destigmatizing conversations about mental health in institutional spaces. She also became a certified mat pilates instructor, built out a corporate wellness offering, and continues to practice emotional alchemy to navigate the highs and lows of life and leadership. This is just the beginning of a bright, healthy, fulfilling future for Joi.

Ready to begin your journey? Learn more about private somatic coaching