We recently connected with Leah Sonaria and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Leah, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear about how you went about setting up your own practice and if you have any advice for professionals who might be considering starting their own?
My story begins with me trying to figure out how to tell my story. In 2019, I went through a dark night of the soul; an unexpected upheaval that changed my life forever. I had an 11 year relationship go down in flames right after we purchased our first home, and the yoga clothing company I poured everything into for 7 years was failing. I was unhealthy, unhappy and overworked, looking for a way to get myself out of a mess of my own making. Just when I was about to throw in the towel with my business, I had a competitor reach out randomly about going in on a materials purchase together and ended up pitching my business to them. To my surprise, they were interested! Within 3 months, the deal was sealed and I was on a flight to Guatemala leaving my old life behind to live in an alternative movement arts community for a couple months (yes, I literally ran away to join the circus).
That experience blasted me wide open – I discovered many different healing modalities like breathwork, flow arts, dance, embodiment practices, sound healing, hypnotherapy, energy work, earth wisdom, and plant medicines. I had a profound spiritual awakening which shifted my understanding of my life’s purpose and what it meant to be in service. I went on to study and train in many modalities and went on a deep healing journey over the pandemic to work through different woundings and traumas related to my upbringing, specifically as it related to creativity and expression. I began writing a memoir which helped me to process and integrate my experiences.
Through a series of deep initiations and shedding cycles, I eventually uncovered the gift of my voice as a quantum tool to support creatives in freeing themselves from multidimensional blocks preventing them from living their best lives. I discovered the divine feminine mystery teachings and Egyptian alchemy, which led me to become a support guide for women on a journey of reclaiming their power and sacredness through embodiment and ritual. I eventually expanded my practice to include anyone on a journey of self-discovery toward personal mastery. I began offering unique 1:1 sessions working directly with ancient Egyptian alchemical techniques to help support people through pivotal periods of transition to become who they’re meant to be. Now I work in ceremonial and shamanic contexts to help visionaries and luminaries uncover their unique gifts and superpowers.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I have a deep curiosity and fascination with the creative process and how to optimize flow and potential for visionaries and impact-driven entrepreneurs. I’ve discovered that flow is not just a temporary mental state (i.e: getting into the zone) but rather an overarching consciousness stream that can lead us on a completely new life path that is much more aligned with our core nature and deeper purpose.
In order to fully catch this current, there are a series of steps to help de-program old outdated models and thinking, which involves a deep purification process of illumination, inquiry and excavation. The Ancient wisdom lineages and mythological frameworks I work with serve as maps for the journey. They offer a principled approach that sets a foundation for a non-linear intuitive discovery process to occur. The processes I guide people through are founded on embodied intelligence and how energies move and are balanced within the many layers of our being. My role is to simply be the steward and spaceholder to facilitate a safe an intimate exploration of the relational dynamics of self and other across many planes and dimensions. The ones who benefit from this work the most are the ones who are not afraid to go through the dissolution phase of the metamorphosis process and re-write their story.
From a practical perspective, this looks like deep attunement/alignment sessions and energy transmissions intended to leave my clients with a deep sense of trust and self-authority, which changes how they show up in the world, especially through times of transition. They move in a way that is more aligned and in harmony with the natural currents and flows of this planet and are able to build deeper connections with their allies and guides across all planes.
The creativity that flows from this place is pure and uncorrupted, and holds a high frequency that creates magnetism and resonance, thus opening up new income streams and opportunities naturally. Because ideas and innovations are channeled directly from Source, they serve to anchor in novel out-of-the-box solutions and legacy offerings that serve both our personal and collective evolution in profound and unexpected ways.
Training and knowledge matter of course, but beyond that what do you think matters most in terms of succeeding in your field?
One of the most important things about working in the spiritual coaching industry is keeping the ego in check. When you start out in the healing/helping arts, there is an initial excitement and belief that you’re going to save the world. It may be true and you may be super human and have special skills, but what I’ve encountered after spending more time in this world of energy and vibration is that regardless of how adept you become at navigating the subtle realms, it all comes back to how well you can bridge the worlds and stay grounded.
The two tools that I have found to be most effective are discernment and devotion.
Discernment allows you to tend to your energetic boundaries in a way that keeps options open while also bypassing some of the karmic challenges that can arise when the soul is still needing to learn and integrate certain lessons, usually through relationships. This is where it is helpful to work with a trusted guide to check certain blindspots and help make sense of the non-logical sequencing associated with breaking out of the linear mold and venturing into the unknown.
Devotion through daily self care practices and rituals (meditation, breathwork, movement, etc) helps to fortify and temper one’s personal container so that when things feel a bit weird and untethered, there is a pathway back to solid ground. Older spiritual models sought to transcend the physical but in my experience returning to the body is a powerful way to integrate the intensity associated with being on an accelerated path.
We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?
That it’s not just about how wise you are, it’s how you put it into practice. For several years I was doing a lot of research and teaching about embodied creativity. It was lovely to be in the world of study, tutelage and mentorship, but at a certain point, I realized that I wasn’t fully walking the walk. There was a part of me that still was waiting to emerge and be seen. That part of me was my artist self. I still hadn’t published that novel. I still hadn’t released that album. I still hadn’t done that performance. So many creative projects were still sitting on the backburner. I realized that it had to do with my upbringing and having a strict mother with high expectations, which led to perfectionism and never feeling good enough.
So over the past year, I’ve reorganized my priorities and redirected my energy towards developing myself as a musician and creative writer. I realized that the only way to make sense and be at peace with all the crazy things happening to me was to make art out of it. And as soon as embarked on this journey, the Universe has been conspiring in my favour every step of the way. It’s sent me ideal collaborators, soul family and timeline collapsing resources to get me there faster. By staying devoted to my creative practices, I know that the creations themselves will serve to immortalize my essence and continue to make an impact well beyond my years.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.flowpriestess.com
- Instagram: @flowpriestess
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/groups/flowtemplecollective
- Other: www.vimeo.com/flowpriestess
Image Credits
Sonya Reznitsky, Meredith Rose, Karim Moneer, Emma Golka