My Story
How does one become a somatic drainage specialist? Well, I felt like I had no other choice. The calling was so loud after I went through my healing process with a positive outcome. I had suffered from decades of chronic constipation, pain in my gut, severe food intolerances, SIBO, mold illness, breast implant illness (BII) with a subsequent enbloc explant procedure, anxiety and depression.
My history of unresolved traumas and a high-toxin lifestyle led me somewhere nobody would envy. I was so afraid of food (and people), my IBS symptoms were out of control, I was addicted to working out, my anxiety was so bad I couldn’t sleep and my PMS/PMDD was out of control.
In 2021 I got so sick that I had to shut down my business, take a year off work, and spend hours/week with my trauma-specialized therapist where I learned to regulate energy and in turn, my metabolic health.
This is when I discovered the power of drainage for healing.
I had done colonics before, many times, but never had much success with them. They hurt and often left me feeling worse than when I went in. Until I met a practitioner who took a different approach to colon hydrotherapy. One rooted in more attunement to the client, offering visceral fascial manipulation - a key aspect of a successful colonic.
This gentle yet effective approach resulted in positive outcomes. My water retention, bloating, chronic constipation, irritability and brain fog started to decrease. I felt inspired and hopeful but wasn’t out of the deep end … yet.
After a year of regular colon hydrotherapy, I began doing traditional Chinese medicine and enzyme-based cleanses that yielded incredible results. The issue really is in the tissue and the cleanses we use to unclog the intestinal lining and liver-gallbladder pathways is like nothing else I’ve seen.
After 2 intestinal cleanses, 2 liver-gallbladder flushes, and one blood and lymph cleanse, my mental health improved drastically. I became so obsessed with how I was feeling and resolving that I decided to become a colon hydrotherapist and integrate it into my holistic practice.
I’m grateful I made that decision every day. In all of my years focusing on functional gut-brain health, I have never seen a modality yield such positive results for my clientele.
I then became certified in manual lymphatic drainage. It was taught to me initially as a means to help people reduce water retention and improve muscle definition. My science brain was more interested in the health benefits of the treatment vs the aesthetics. Once I started learning about the power of lymphatic drainage for brain, sinus, gut, hormonal and immune health, I was sold.
I empowered myself with self-drainage techniques to focus on daily support, using different means to improve my brain fog and long COVID, which I resolved naturally using brain drainage techniques. Improving fluid pressure systems meant I was moving stagnant fluids containing unwanted toxins and pathogens, and improving the health of my tissues. This gave me a strong foundation to really improve my rate of healing. The most important step was regulating my energy in somatic therapy so these other modalities would actually stick. I am a huge advocate for somatic therapy to resolve dysregulated energy that keeps us inflamed and stuck in our healing journeys.
Fascial mobility entered my life way back in my personal training days as a means to avoid injuries and improve recovery. I didn’t know then that my chronically elevated cortisol due to unresolved traumas was keeping my connective tissue full of pro-inflammatory compounds and adhesions. This negatively affected my ability to move fluids freely in my body. Once I learned the connection between lymph and fascia, I created my method to support my body and clients’ bodies in recovery.
It’s simple, by focusing on stress management and improving the health of our tissues, we give our bodies the ability to enter their parasympathetic self-healing state.
Without proper drainage, supplements, medical diets and medications don’t truly have a chance of taking root and helping one heal.
Supporting drainage became the path to healing that was so desperately needed for decades.
I did my Genetics back in 2015 as a way to try to better understand what got me so sick. I still refer back to those results when doing any protocol or trying to understand a physical roadblock I may be experiencing. Understanding my genetics offered me peace, self-forgiveness, and clarity. I got validation that my detox pathways weren’t very supported, lending to my chronic digestive issues, SIBO and BII. I also learned my cognitive health was laced with predispositions to neurodivergence and chronic stress (when not properly managed) and my workouts were way too intense for my constitution. This stress was keeping my body inflamed and sick, and relevant lifestyle changes based on my unique genomics made all the difference in my recovery.
I am a living example of the power of self-regulation and drainage for recovery from tenacious illnesses.
Stop putting out fires and get to the root of your chronic inflammation with me.
Together, let’s focus on drainage for recovery and remember…looking good is just a side effect .)
Cassandra Hope