We had the good fortune of connecting with Kristina Renée Kuzmich Bengala and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kristina Renée, how has your background shaped the person you are today?

I was born on Samhain, Halloween, on the beautiful lands known today as Michigan. I am the oldest of three children, and often spent much time playing and communing with Nature, imagining, speaking to the trees and animals, creating and singing. My upbringing was extremely conservative and like many, I was brought up in an authoritative parenting structure. My father was a pastor and my mother was a domestic engineer, also known as a stay at home mother or parent. We moved often as my dad enjoyed purchasing and renovating homes. Later in life, I found myself traveling and moving a lot, which offered me many amazing opportunities to expand my mind and understanding of the world, and my relationship to myself.

I am uncertain if being raised as a pastors daughter or entering Earth upon Samhain when the spiritual Veil between the worlds is thinnest, or perhaps happenstance of something else, but I have always had a burning desire to understand Truth and the inquiry about the root causes in life. This truth seeking has led me, and has become my great intention for my life and my path of service to the world. It is what guided me to study religion, mysticism, spirituality, meditation, yoga, massage therapy, Buddhism, Earth based practices, trauma informed and recovery education, integrative energy medicine, nutrition, wellness, and so much more. It is also what has supported me in deepening my connection to Nature, which has always been a source of great comfort. As a mother now, my journey to continue to unpack and provide healing for my own upbringing allows me to nurture the seeds within myself and for my son with a compassionate curiosity and willingness to understand the nature of his own being. This is also what I bring forth in my work with my clients in Spiritual Counseling in Depth Hypnosis, Coming to Peace Facilitation and in Yoga, Meditation and Breathwork.

What should our readers know about your business?

There are three things that come to mind when I think my path of service and my business. The first is my innate drive to seek truth. At the heart, Truth is what is in alignment to each person’s own highest good as its sole intent. Truth to know who we really are, to unravel the debris of energies that are not ours and the trauma that may still be residing in our nervous systems, beyond the coping mechanism and defenses, takes courage and a willingness to look at our patterns and shadow. I practice living my life in this way and I bring this into every session with my clients and/or group settings. The second is my own personal and professional understanding of trauma. Through my own personal healing and deep study in trauma, grief and healing, combined with truth seeking, I am able to hold a vast container for my clients and groups. And lastly, as a mother, who has experienced three pregnancy loses before the arrival of my son, I have been given the gift to deepen my healing, delayering and welcoming more parts of myself into my life, as well as restructure into a way of guiding my son with what I call Fierce Compassion Parenting.

I integrate my studies in Buddhist philosophy, yoga, mindfulness, trauma informed and responsive education and therapies, Nature, applied Shamanism, and Transpersonal Psychology which inform my work as a Depth Hypnosis Practitioner, Coming to Peace Facilitator, Guide in Yoga, Breath-work and Meditation, and a Fierce Compassion Mama. I work with a wide range of issues clients present, and curate a compassionate curiosity and collaborative space for my clients. I help people connect, discover and reclaim their own personal power, understand and unravel harmful patterns, and access their own innate abilities of healing to live more freely in the world and in their relationships. I carry a deep wisdom that as we each tend to the body, mind, and spirit with compassion we also expand this awareness to one another and to our earth Mother — as we each embrace how to be in the inner wisdom and compassionate guidance of our human experiences, we become accountable for our thread in the fabric of humanity, weaving our own healing and that of our sisters and brothers for justice, equality and transformation.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.

I enjoy offering ideas for guest when they come into town and they can choose what sounds fun for them. So, I am going to offer some things that myself and my family often do or suggest to guest and as you read, perhaps you too can choose what sound fun for you!

San Diego has profoundly beautiful sunsets and these can be captured in many places. Naturally the beaches will provide a stunning array of constantly shifting colors as the sun drops beyond the water. We have been partial to Cardiff by the Sea sunsets for many years given that is where we first lived when we moved here from Colorado. That said, San Diego also has lovely hikes where one can find themselves upon a peak overlooking a 360 view of the land and the ocean, and that also means the sunset. We live in North County, and with a full schedule, getting to bigger hikes inland isn’t very accessible at this season in parenthood. I often find my way to Calaveras Hills to enjoy a quieter hike or run with our dog Remi. I am slowly starting my mountain biking journey and excited to explore all the beginner and intermediate friendly trails around the city!

When it comes to food, our family supports local farmers and cooks a lot at home. San Diego’s weather allows for year round farmers markets everyday of the week. We also have our own garden that my son is learning how to grow and harvest food. We are quite blessed to relish in the fruits of the Earth from the land and local families, and we always bring our visiting guest with us to our weekly farmers market adventures. Focusing on whole clean regenerative foods and sourcing, when it comes to dining in town, we enjoy and will bring our friends to Fish 101, Healthy Creations, Nectarine Grove, and Buona Forchetta in Encinitas, and The Plot and Privateer in Oceanside to name a few. And for dessert, Nectarine Gove and Healthy Creations has amazing gluten free delicacies, along with Gaia Gelato in Carlsbad Village.

Places to visit and things to experience have expanded for us with a kiddo. We recently went to the Safari Park in Escondido with our son and had a wonderful time learning. Balbao park is a fun and beautiful place to visit with family and friends, with many museums and activities to experience. Our family enjoys taking the Coaster down to Old Town, and also taking our son to the museum ships on the water when we are downtown. More local activities might look like enjoying the Botanical Gardens in Encinitas or the Alta Vista Gardens in Vista, hiking, beach play, a full moon stand up paddle on the lagoon, surfing, fishing, skate parks because my son is really into it right now, the Alga Norte Pool and Community Center, and any of the wonderful parks in general.  Something I haven’t yet tried in San Diego is sailing, and have plans to do so within a year.

In addition, there are many wellness studios, yoga centers, float tanks, and even cold plunge and breath-work facilities in this city, along with sound healing offerings. To some visiting these are new alternative methods of healing, and if you are interested in trying something like this, you can find it here in San Diego. Lastly, this city is really wonderful at hosting amazing musicians, plays, dances, orchestras, holiday specialized shows, art exhibits and interactive experiences, and of course there is a Padre’s game, which is a favorite for my partner. Overall, there are so many things to do in San Diego and I am only sharing a few here. Mostly, have fun with who you are with and cherish the memories you are creating together!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?

There are many beloved Souls in this lifetime and other lifetimes that have greatly impacted my journey. Some of them are here on Earth and some have transitioned. At this moment in my life, I would like to pause to recognize the Foundation of the Sacred Stream, where I have dedicated the last four years in deep study and community. The Foundation of the Sacred Stream is a non-profit organization and school for consciousness studies dedicated to bringing the wisdom of ancient spiritual and healing traditions into the awareness of contemporary society. The local and non-local organization offers a core set of workshops, trainings and education in Depth Hypnosis, Applied Shamanism, Applied Buddhist Psychology, Integrated Energy Medicine and Empowered Living.

I first found the Foundation of the Sacred Stream in 2019 when I attended an online course with Isa Gucciardi, founder of the Sacred Stream and creator of Depth Hypnosis, a groundbreaking therapeutic model. I had been offering Spiritual Counseling for many years, combining Integrative Energy Medicine of yoga, meditation, pranayama, Buddhist philosophies, somatic therapy, and inner child work with Transpersonal Psychology practices and education. I had curated a blend of healing unique and impactful, and yet I often found myself to be a lone wolf without a community of colleagues I could lean upon and also refer my clients too if needed. As I began to understand Depth Hypnosis and study with Gucciardi and the Sangha at the Sacred Stream, I knew I had “come home” so to say. It has been a great honor to deepen my own personal and professional practice along side the community. I bow in gratitude for the compassionate path of service the Sacred Stream and Gucciardi are upon, and I rejoice to continue sharing the knowledge and wisdom.

Website: www.kristinarenee.org

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/medialwomvn/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kristina-ren%C3%A9e-kuzmich-bengala-290a2a42

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mindfulnesswithkristina/

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