SWIHA Blog

Like many SWIHA students, Kristin Apodaca’s path to SWIHA was full of trials and tribulations. Nearly seven years ago, Kristin and her family moved to Arizona for her husband’s new job, leaving her family and old life behind in Boca Raton, Florida. On the outside, she had it all: a loving husband, four beautiful and healthy children, a large home and many friend -- and yet, as Kristin revealed, she felt like she had no idea who she was as a person. Seven years of being a stay-at-home-mom took their toll on her.She spent that time feeling very resentful towards her husband for having to work such long hours, taking him away from their family and herself. All of these factors led her to a breaking point. “I had lost my identity,” confessed Kristin. After briefly using anti-depressants to help cope with her anxiety and depression, she knew there had to be a more holistic route available.

Jennifer Csajko was so miserable at her job and she needed a little ‘divine intervention’. She didn't know what she wanted to do with her life. “I started learning about the Law of Attraction and I attracted SWIHA (Southwest Institute of Healing Arts) into my life. My yoga teacher liked the SWIHA Facebook page and when I clicked on it, I knew that this was what I was meant to do. I had to be a part of the program. That was in October and by January I had quit my job and was enrolled. Best decision I ever made!”

During her time at SWIHA, Jennifer said that the most valuable thing she learned was to be her authentic self, to find her voice and share it with the world. "I learned that everyone has a unique gift to share.”

Jennifer enrolled in the Holistic Wellness Practitioner Online Program. While she was taking the Life Coaching portion of the program, she discovered that she has always been a life coach. She just didn’t know what that was. “I've always been curious about people and relationships so it was a natural choice for me. As soon as I started taking the coaching classes, I knew I had come ‘home.’ This was for me. This is what I had been waiting for. I am so passionate about helping people and helping them to create better lives, all I wanted to do was be a part of that.”

After graduation she launched her business, Jennifer Csajko-Life Coach for Your Love Life. She has made it her job to help women figure out what they REALLY want in a relationship. “I support them as they take action towards creating the relationship of their dreams and getting the love they want. I help women who are single (and done mingling) or who feel stuck in their relationship move forward. While working with me I help my clients gain clarity and create a plan of action towards getting the relationship they REALLY want.”

Paul Smith is the epitome of a SWIHA #GreatGraduate, displaying the reverent and resilient balance between action and stillness. Paul is a life-long student who has used every ounce of his experience to expand his own personal growth and empower that in others.

He shares that he has found his life purpose through integrating his past experiences and observations: “Human beings have the capacity to be so healthy and so happy. All people can have a very loving connection between family, friends, colleagues and teammates. I have been observing and studying throughout my entire life so that I could help others. Unfortunately a few tragedies have occurred: my grandfather died of cancer, my high school head football coach died of cancer, my little cousin overdosed on prescription medication and my little brother took his own life. I've observed so many other tragedies and challenges - and numerous disheartening news stories are aired every day.

With each event, my heart was broken and my awareness was opened. I witnessed the harmful effects that conventional medicine and therapies can sometimes have on peoples’ lives so I set out to learn about - and provide - healthier alternative options. I decided to leave everything and embarked on a pilgrimage throughout India and Nepal to study Ayurveda and Buddhism. I returned and graduated from college with a bachelor’s degree in Philosophy, Psychology and Sociology and was determined to keep momentum and learn more. I was looking into becoming a doctor and going to either Naturopathic or Chiropractic school when I discovered SWIHA and decided that it was a much better fit for me personally. It was a great choice!”

Keta Baker is a true #GreatGraduate and the testimony of her journey is as divinely guided as she is. Keta’s story begins with her questioning the universe, “One Saturday afternoon in 2012, my sister brought me to this Italian restaurant in Phoenix. We pulled up to the restaurant and out of my mouth came the words, ‘This is a nice place to have my life coaching business housed in.’ This was followed by me looking up and saying, ‘What?’ . . . ‘What life coaching business?’” What Keta Baker didn’t fully understand at the time was that she was getting ‘downloads’ from Spirit.

Humbly, Keta explains, “I began to get these downloads of a whole business plan and what I was to do to help others as a Life Coach. I didn’t have anything to write on, so as soon as I got inside of the restaurant, I grabbed several napkins to record what I knew was God’s plan for my life. That evening I Googled what a Life Coach was and began searching for schools where I could learn to become a Life Coach. I prayed for direction for the path the Divine placed me on. A few days went by and after diligently listening and looking, SWIHA, Southwest Institute of Healing Arts, came up.”

Keta quickly called the next day to schedule a tour of the SWIHA campus in Tempe, Arizona.

Prior to registering at SWIHA, Jessica Ireland was, in her own words, “barely existing.”

“I lacked a post-secondary education, and the 15 years I worked in the finance industry meant nothing while I was applying for employment during the recession. I was struggling to put food on the table and keep a roof over my head, while spiraling further and further into a state of depression.”

After receiving a steady stream of rejection letters from potential minimum wage employers, Jessica realized that unless she obtained some form of post-secondary education in an area that was growing throughout North America, she would eventually end up homeless and hungry. Enter SWIHA.

“As soon as I discovered SWIHA, I knew that my search for the school and the education I desired was over. I relocated my 3 dogs and myself from Calgary, Alberta Canada to Phoenix, Arizona and haven’t looked back since.” Jessica shared how SWIHA allowed her to shed the weight of her past, while discovering her dreams and tapping into her infinite potential.

Maria Kalamas opens up to how purposeful her path has been and how her attendance at SWIHA was intended all along. “January of 2010, I was working in a doctor’s office employed as an office manager. The doctor was an MD, yet practicing alternative medicine, specializing in bio-identical hormones. He was helping people heal through proper supplementation, healthy nutrition, bio-identical hormone replacement, Chelation - which is a very effective way to treat heavy-metal poisoning - coaching and outsourcing them to various healing arts therapies, from massage to spiritual coaching and other various holistic practices that he had tried and believed were effective. I soaked in all the information he was giving me because I wanted to help heal people physically, mentally and emotionally,” shared Maria.

Cameo Wilson is one incredible individual who has learned to nurture her own self growth and in doing so found her roots and a deep-seated passion for urban farming and sustainability. What brought her to SWIHA was a self-imposed desire for self-growth, followed by the committed decision to take care of herself.

“By taking care of myself physically and emotionally through eating well and observing my own nutritional intake, I found a love for my own well-being and the ability to share my journey of health with others. I decided to further my education in what I love and pursue Nutritional Coaching as an avenue to serve. Food, eating healthy and wellness all resonated with me so I began searching online for schools that offered programs with these options in coaching. SWIHA was the first one to pop up and instantly I felt like that was the option I wanted to explore.”

Cameo states excitedly with smile in her voice, “It just felt right to me to check it out and it felt like home right away. I came to a Gifts and Graces event (which are held the First Friday of every month) where I received a complimentary Life Coaching session around my career goals.” Instantly, her gut feelings were confirmed and it was obvious that she was destined to be a student walking the very halls she was visiting that First Friday.

Like many SWIHA students’ stories before, the school just happened to find Tami Sharp. She had just moved to Arizona from Maui, Hawaii with her baby girl, so that she could be closer to her mom. Tami recalled the synchronicities that led her to joining SWIHA. “I had no intention on starting school but after a series of universal events, I tripped across SWIHA and within one week’s time found myself enrolled full time going for a degree in Mind-Body Transformational Psychology with Certifications in Life Coaching, Clinical Hypnotherapy and Reiki.”

Before moving to AZ, Tami had spent 10 years on Maui doing a wide range of jobs and businesses. As a professionally trained model and actress, she also had the honor of teaching modeling and acting to teenagers and young adults. It was through these teachings that she really found passion in helping others see their inner beauty, to find their own style and confidence, to believe in themselves and reach for their goals. “I was inspired everyday by these youths. I have helped with a lot of workshops, conferences and public speaking events and am passionate about inspiring others to live their most authentic and fulfilling lives.“

Going into SWIHA, Tami was aware of her intuitive abilities, yet SWIHA really helped her to develop and grow them.

Around SWIHA you hear the word synchronicity used a lot. It seems that either right before people start coming here or after they have arrived they notice a coincidental occurrence of events in their life. There are stories of people daydreaming about a new career and then finding a SWIHA flyer in a parking lot. Also, things like hearing the words synchronicity or aura or manifesting and all of a sudden hearing those words all over the place such as emails, social media and books.

Here is another story about synchronicity and SWIHA. Two weeks ago there was a women’s event that involved journaling and sharing. One of the women shared a story about being afraid of the next step in her journey even though she is also excited and knows it is what she wants. Then she said “I am going to do it afraid.” She is not going to wait for those feelings to go away. She knows deep down that she needs to take that step for her mental, physical, emotional and spiritual health. She is going to do it afraid.

Then at the Spirit of Business Conference here at SWIHA, Aandra Bohlen, a SWIHA graduate, was one of the speakers. She talked about doing things in spite of fear and doubt. She urged everyone to do it scared. She suggested using the hashtag #doitscared.

Courtney Long’s journey to SWIHA was, well, long. Her journey began back in 2002, while she was working as a social worker in Michigan. She was helping adults with Alzheimer’s, dementia, serious mental illnesses, developmental disabilities and traumatic injuries. While she loved to help people, the job was mentally and spiritually exhausting, and never quite felt like her true calling. While in Michigan Courtney starting hearing of this new thing called Life Coaching, yet the timing wasn’t ever quite right to do anything about it.