We had the good fortune of connecting with Kimberly Bilokreli and we’ve shared our conversation below.
Hi Kimberly, have you ever found yourself in a spot where you had to decide whether to give up or keep going? How did you make the choice?
I use my practices to drop into my heart and connect with my energy and let my body lead the way!
Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I can’t speak to others experiences and how they serve but I can say I’m incredibly passionate about creating a safe and loving space that organically supports healing, awakening, insight, and truth to naturally offer itself up for release or embrace and integration. I have witnessed this gentle approach offers more ease through the growth and transformation journey and witness healing in hundreds if not thousands of people including myself and I am so incredibly proud of that!
How did you get to where you are today professionally?:
Taking care of myself and dedication to KEEP SHOWING UP – trusting my gut and following my heart and using my practices along the way when things were foggy or I felt like I was lacking clarity. Daily devotion to my breath so I can anchor into and lead with the wisdom of my heart!
Was it easy? If not, how did you overcome the challenges?:
Nope! Sought out TRUSTED support. You don’t have to do it alone even if you can, you don’t have too!
What are the lessons you’ve learned along the way?:
Be intentional and be yourself! Get clear and then take action. Slow and steady = long term impact AND I repeat, you do not have to do everything yourself, ask for help, it is so liberating!
What do you want the world to know about you or your brand and story?:
Soma Soul Sanctuary is my second business! I started my first wellness business SOULutions Health & Wellness which I built and operated out of my garage as a certified personal trainer. I offered a wide range of fitness classes and hired other wellness professionals to teach classes as well when my OWN health began to deteriorate greatly for seemingly no reason. After multiple years of trying to seek support from both Western and Eastern medicine professionals, which included a gruelling week of testing at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN, I was left with no other choice than to heavily re-evaluate my approach to healing and my intentional self-care practices. This lead me to some soul searching with a cup of Cacao in the mountains of beautiful British Columbia, Canada under a Full Moon on an October evening. To my complete surprise, I received the message to explore a Cacao & Breathwork Training and the phrase ‘Soma Soul’ was being repeated to me over and over again with me having no clue how the 2 were connected at the time or even what they meant. This was the first time I had ever heard of the word ‘soma’ so naturally I looked it up online and explored different meanings of the word!
One meaning being that Soma refers to Lunar energy, otherwise known as cosmic plasma. I was LOVING all things lunar living and passionately sharing about how our energy is influenced by the moon and holding monthly circles at the time so I thought that was why I channelled the word! But I came to learn that Soma is the also the subtlest form of matter and makes up the essential energy responsible for vitality, health and wellness and that in the body as well! My attention and curiosity continued so I kept seeking and learned that Soma can be found in the pineal gland and within the neurotransmitter serotonin, and it is associated with feelings of bliss, content and I quickly connected that ‘soma’ has a lot of similarities with Cacao too! Soma is also connected to the water element, and has cooling, nurturing and nourishing qualities. It is thought to feed not only the cells and DNA of the body, but also the mind and consciousness. Soma is vital to the creation of the energy. Without it is not possible to maintain Prana also known as life force energy.
Then I came to learn more about SOMAtic processing through studying levels 1 – 5 of Clarity Breathwork facilitator training which was formally known as rebirthing breathwork and webinars with Gabor Maté, Dr. Peter Levine & Dr. Aimie. Somatic refers to relating to the body, especially as distinct from the mind.
Soul is Life Energy!
There is Soul inside every living being, whether visible or invisible; it is not there inside non-living things. Thus, the Soul is the life energy. A body without Soul (once dead) implies that the body has no life, and hence, it is unable to feel happiness or pain. So, wherever there are sensations and emotions, there is knowledge of pain and happiness. Where there is a feeling or growth, it implies that there is Soul or life energy in that body.
I believe that every being, every soul deserves a Sanctuary. The idea of sanctuary being a sacred place of refuge from external noisy world and connection with internal solitude and is always accessible. The best way to ensure that your sanctuary is always accessible is to create it within!!!
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.
Well, I am not particularly a city person even though I live in one! So it is really likely that I would plan to take them to the amazing hidden gems in nature that we have found around the city and explored which would include paddle boarding on the river, hiking at Chief Whitecap or Wild Roots Retreat, going to the Hometown Diner for breakfast cause it has an amazing environment, food and the best donuts made fresh daily, The Berry Barn for late lunch and Golden Pagoda for supper then maybe check out the Prairie Lily River Boat tour or find some live local music then backyard Bonfire with stories and laughs to finish the day!
The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Allison Claire Eaton – she has been my guru and spiritual mentor since I began my journey. I learned so much from her about energy, yoga, meditation, reiki, kirtan and spiritual connection. But above all she showed me unconditional love and how to hold space in that unconditional loving energy for myself and others.
Website: www.somasoulsanctuary.com
Instagram: @somasoulsanctuary
Facebook: @somasoulsanctuary
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@kimberlybilokreli9342
Image Credits
Nevaya Wild MaKayla Nelson