hi friends! monica is a dear colleague and friend who curates extraordinary, aligned spiritual experiences planetwide. she kindly sent this out to her list at head + heart about a healing here at the dreaming otter. I’m a fan of women sharing firsthand experiences – kind thanks to monica, and to you for arriving. in her words:
‘one year ago, I booked a private ceremony with an intuitive guide from san francisco named anna dorian – an experience unlike anything I’d had before. during that spirit-guided journey, I was shown what needed to shift in order to reorient my life toward my truest, most joyful path.
in some of the more challenging moments of 2025, I found myself returning again and again to what came through in that ceremony, especially the (persistent!) guidance to take a personal retreat.
it took me a year to actually listen. and now, today, I’m back from ten days away on my own – writing this on my first day home.
I really needed time away and alone to put down the stories and energy of 2025, and to come back to my true resonance, to be energetically sovereign, no matter who I’m around or what is happening globally.
I think this is universally true: when we give ourselves enough space, time, connection, and quality support, we thrive. but many of us have blocks about receiving deep support or taking the space we really need. example: when I told people I’d be away for 10 days to re-charge, I got responses like, I would have such mom guilt if I did that. how are you doing that? what will you do while you’re there? so, you’re taking work with you, right?
no, I wasn’t taking work and no, I don’t feel mom guilt.
my personal retreat was a regrouping. I did some breathwork, meditation, prayer, and in perfect full-circle vibes, booked myself a second private spirit-guided ceremony with anna for guidance around this year ahead.
what came through was extraordinary. anna showed me what’s coming – and why.
when I brought head + heart into the journey, which I’m in the midst of expanding more globally while staying rooted in integrity and genuine curation, she shared a vision that gave me shivers. she described head + heart as one of the bodhisattvas of our time (her words) – here to help usher in higher consciousness, and to support seekers and practitioners in reconnecting with, and living from, their light.
what gave me shivers is that what she described is the same vision I first received back in 2016. it feels as though it’s now ready to fully become what it was always meant to be. the ceremony itself also included an energetic healing that felt like a deep purification – helping me somatically release old fears and patterns I’d been carrying. I received so much clarity from this one session, and it felt important to share it with any of you who may be standing at your own crossroads, or who simply want to begin this year held in deeper support. anna offers private sessions and a longer magical mentorship.
returning today to my family and my work, I’ve been sitting with all the insights that came through during my time away, and what I keep coming back to is this: we need deep support in order to truly thrive. whether that support comes through a private session, a group ceremony, or being part of an inner circle of some kind, being held in this way helps us plug back into our true nature. it helps us remember our limitlessness – and that we are far more together than alone, despite all the noise that tells us otherwise.
I have a feeling this will be a theme for our year ahead!
grateful you’re here,
monica
