My work and my own path has been shaped and formed by both ancestral/indigenous and western lineages of understanding hurt and the path to healing. The work of healing is as old as the mind-body-spirit wounds. There are many manifestations of healing - some which have been standardized and validated (like the lineages of mental health care) and those which are essential and ancestral which may not always be shaped by the same set of standards - but are equally valid and valuable. This is why I call the work that I do a kind of mixed-method medicine - a way of healing that has been shaped by more than one stream of wisdom. My own work and process is deeply informed by my own Andean Indigenous ancestral roots and by the mystical lineages of spiritual-emotional practice that have shaped my work over the last 20 years.

I am a practitioner in the lineage of the Q'ero Paqos - healers of Incan ancestry that carry generations of wisdom, nestled in the mountains around Cusco, Peru. My primary teacher is Maestro Alejandro Apaza from the Apaza family of Paqos in the Q'ero tribe, and the last living Chumpi (healing stones) Master. Within the tradition of the Q'eros I am known as a Nusta Paqo after completing the three initiations in the tradition. 

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I am honored by the wisdom of nature - most especially the wisdom of the Mountain Apus (sacred spirits) particularly in the Andes of my birthplace in and around Bogota, Colombia. I am constantly learning more from engagement with nature and its healing wisdom as well as being informed by teachers as they come to me through my own learning process. My role is as as elder, mother, manifestor and simultaneously an eternal student - ready and willing to learn at the feet of those that carry wisdom I have not yet learned. In a place between I think those like myself are called to be both elder and student - both in a place of wisdom and learning, and maybe, the best of our intuition knows we always live in that place.

Along with the wisdom of nature, the elements, and ancestral wisdom study, I have engaged the study of herbal medicine, within the Paqo and Curanderismx lineages as well as via learnings through BIPOC herbal collectives including the Atabey Medicine BIPOC Apprenticeship the Hood Herbalism program. You can learn more about connecting with my healing + ancestral practice work here. 

Other places of learning have included NYU School of Clinical Social Work where I received my initial training in trauma care through a western lens - which led to my 15+ years as an LCSW (licensed clinical social worker) and trauma therapist, as well as Sivananda Yoga Teacher Training. Also, during my time with the Department of Veterans Affairs (and after) I built programming for trauma engaging the practices of meditation and movement, creative and expressive arts, and Equine-Facilitated Healing. 

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I was trained with Ancient Song in Community-Based Full Spectrum Doula care and offer this work through my Doula + Birthwork project AYNI Roots + Ritual Doula Care learn more about that here. 

Through all these lenses of wisdom and healing, I offer individual, community and organizational guidance and consultation at the intersections of healing, spirituality, and activism - prioritizing BIPOC/QTBIPOC centering space-creation.​ Learn more about my consulting + public speaking work here. 

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I have also written three books centering around the work of trauma, healing and journeying: Sacred Wounds: A Path to Healing from Spiritual Trauma, Mending Broken: A Personal Journey Through the Stages of Trauma + Recovery, and Going Naked: The Camino de Santiago & Life as Pilgrimage. ​

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I am currently nestled in the Lenape and Mohican land of Northern New Jersey and building healing community space through my collaborative healing community space - the AYNI Healing Collective - in the Sugar Hill Neighborhood of Harlem (in collaboration with The Kota Alliance) which was historically Wappinger, Munsee Lenape, and Wiechquaesgeck peoples. 

I work the best I can to enjoy slower time on my tiny patio with my grandma-age Chihuaha-MinPin Mix, Faith, under the slowly setting sun while I work on improving my stilted Spanish and baby-step my way into learning Quechua. I spend time, when I can, refreshing mind, body and spirit in the breathless air of high mountains and floating in the waters of lakes, rivers and oceans. 

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(for some more formal CV info see below)