Today we’d like to introduce you to Dr. Sofia Costa.
Dr. Sofia, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
My life started in Puerto Rico. Born into a culture filled with beauty, color, great food, music that makes you dance, and a place where family and unity are valued. A culture where the locals are made of heart, strength, and resiliency.
At the age of four, my parents, two sisters and I moved to Texas when my father joined the Air Force as a Flight Surgeon. He served for three years before we transitioned to Harlingen, Tx.
My parents worked as medical physicians while my sisters and I were learning how to adapt to a new culture in South Texas.
To begin with how I started, I must start with my parents because it was their influence that got me to where I am today. Hearing them talk about patient cases staying up late trying to figure out how to help them feel better are what inspired me to want to help people too. But I wanted to do it differently.
Growing up, I witnessed the gap within the medical profession. I saw my parents get frustrated because they couldn’t spend more time with patients and wished things were different. So, I began my journey of wanting to learn anything and everything about the human body, especially after experiencing my own list of injuries and back pain for more than ten years.
I earned my B.S. in Exercise Physiology at Texas A&M University, worked as a Tier 3 Master Trainer at Equinox Fitness in Miami, earned my Doctorate in Physical Therapy in 2012 in California, became a sole practitioner in June 2016, and attended countless continuing education courses on energy medicine, emotional healing, functional medicine, movement, and nutrition.
Wanting to overcome the injuries and pain I experienced helped me act towards gaining back control of my health physically, mentally, and emotionally. Now, it is my mission to support people with their inside-out healing every step of the way.
I currently live a bi-coastal life traveling between Los Angeles and Puerto Rico.
I didn’t get to where I am on my own. As my father always said, “It takes a village.” And because of that, I am grateful for my family and for all who continue to support me along the way. Thank you!
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
I believe life is designed to have bumps on the road. So, yes, there were struggles. My life began as a struggle when I was born with the umbilical cord wrapped around my neck. I entered this world not breathing, and it was my father, who was a Pediatrician at the time, who brought me back to life.
Growing up while learning English in Texas, my sisters and I were bullied and made fun of for wearing glasses and for sounding different because of our Puerto Rican accent. We appeared incompetent and not smart because we had trouble understanding what the other person was saying.
To cope with this, my sisters and I made an agreement only to speak English so that we can fit in. As time passed, we began to forget how to speak Spanish. It was challenging to reconnect with our culture because we didn’t know where we belonged – we were told we weren’t “American-enough” or “Puerto Rican-enough.”
Struggles continued of course, as they are necessary for our growth and the timing of our struggles show up exactly when we are needing to learn a hard lesson or to help someone else in need.
I was rejected into Physical Therapy school four years in a row, and during that time, I was working as a personal trainer at Equinox Fitness in Miami. Four consecutive years rejected -a hard pill to swallow, but I kept going because I knew it was something I needed to pursue. And there was a reason for those rejections. Had I been accepted sooner or went to a different school, I wouldn’t have been there to help save a surfer’s life during my first semester of PT school in California. (http://www.carlsbadistan.com/?p=8661)
But the most recent struggle that took my breath away happened on July 25, 2017. That day forever changed my life when I received the news my cousin died in a bus accident two days after celebrating his 43rd birthday. I remember our last conversation as if it were yesterday. He was helping me plan a retreat on his parents’ 30-acre property in Puerto Rico. A vision I had a month prior before he died. His passing shook our entire family as he was known for being a care-free spirit, lighting anyone up that met him. To top it off, two months later, Hurricane Irma and Maria devastated the entire island of Puerto Rico. So, one can only imagine the trauma experienced, and the heartache felt from it all.
That entire year 2017-2018 felt like I was getting wiped out left and right from life’s challenging moments present themselves. But I’ve learned that it’s in the struggle, in the hardship where we find ourselves – find our strength and true essence of who we are if we choose to face the darkness, embrace it, and transform it into the light.
Remembering where I come from and transforming the struggles into purpose have inspired me to create Sol Luna Luz. In honor of my cousin, the mission is to restore the family’s property and bring it back to life to be a place where one can reignite the light within. https://www.gofundme.com/f/puerto-rico-restoration-project
I’m grateful for all the bumps life has placed on my road. For it’s the bumps that have led me towards growth, adventures, and purpose to help me be the light in this world.
Please tell us more about your work, what you are currently focused on and most proud of.
“What exactly do you do?” is a common question I get asked.
My typical response is, “I am not your typical Doctor of Physical Therapy.”
I challenge you to dig deeper so that you realize there is more to your pain than you think. I create awareness that your body is a relationship, and this pain that you’re feeling is an opportunity for you to make a lifestyle change. I create space for you to be seen and heard during a session and support you after so you’re not alone on this journey of learning the language of your body.
I help you understand the why behind it all. I challenge you to realize that your pain or the funk you’re feeling has a physical, mental, and emotional component to it all. I get to the truth by asking questions about your childhood all the way to the present moment. I ask how you’re feeling because, believe it or not, more than 50% of the pain is trapped emotions.
I incorporate gut health because why would you leave your second brain out of the equation when wanting to get rid of your pain? I challenge your brain and nervous system to be reprogrammed.
I guide you into rewriting your story so that you can begin an inside-out healing experience and unleash the best version of you. I get to the truth and speak the truth; otherwise, it would be a disservice to you not to. I work with people in person and online so that this experience is not limited to just one location.
But it’s not so much what I do, it’s about the experience one gains when we connect. And the experience one gains and feels while helping the body remember how to heal itself is what sets me apart.
What I’m most proud of is choosing to be a sole practitioner in June 2016. Talk about diving into the unknown! This unknown I decided to dive into has further catapulted my growth, which allowed me to step into my power even more so to serve many on a higher level. I’ve learned that my business is a by-product of who I am, so when I choose to grow and evolve, my business grows and evolves too.
My business is currently expanding more online offering a program called Unbecoming Your Pain. Unbecoming Your Pain is a 30-day group program designed to help people overcome back pain and heal from the inside-out.
1-1 coaching is also available for people ready to dig deeper with their inside-out healing.
I will also be leading retreats soon.
If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
I wouldn’t want to start over. Everything in my life happened for a reason and in Divine Timing. Grateful for what I have and for what’s to come!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.drsofiacosta.com
- Email: [email protected]
- GoFundMe: https://www.gofundme.com/f/puerto-rico-restoration-project
- Instagram: @drsofiacosta
Image Credit:
Annah Rose (Brand strategist, photographer) Emy Dosett (surf and underwater photographer), Joshua Church, Michael Viscione, Isaac Perez
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