Daily Inspiration: Meet Celina Jacques

Today we’d like to introduce you to Celina Jacques.

Hi Celina, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I am a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, Board Certified Art Therapist, Artist, and apprentice in Mexican ancestral healing practices. I have been working in the mental health field for just over 20 years and started out using art for healing in residential and in-patient psychiatric facilities, specializing in working with adults and children overcoming severe mental illness, trauma, anxiety, and depression. I continued in the non-profit sector for many years where I was fortunate to be part of some amazing teams. In 2014, I began to learn about the ancient healing practice of Curanderismo (traditional Mexican spiritual healing). My creative, spiritual, and academic paths have converged to support an approach to healing that pulls knowledge from ancestral practices and contemporary psychology to reclaim ancient wisdom in new ways. I offer the community and individual healing work focused on the intersection of creativity, psychology, and ancient wisdom. I collaborate with local nonprofits and community organizations to provide workshops and talking circles that decolonize mental health programming through art, spirituality, and Latine culture. My work specializes in Susto (soul loss) and intergenerational trauma with a concentration in trauma-informed care, Transpersonal Psychology, Art therapy, and Mindfulness. As an artist, my art engages our humanity to create palpable expressions of inner worlds and facilitates soul searching that brings to light subconscious material.

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
While working in community mental health, the work itself was very fulfilling, but the demands of the job were stressful and exhausting. It took me years to realize that the stress was wearing on my own mental and physical health. This realization was a catalyst in my life. I left agency work and decided I would no longer do anything that didn’t bring me joy. It became my mission to combine my passion for helping others with the practice of taking care of myself at all costs, putting healing, wellness, and joy before any other expectations. I started on this mission because it was the only way I could sustainably live my passion and survive. My work and my personal healing are inextricably intertwined. As I deepened my own inner healing and growth, I learned how to show up professionally as my authentic self. This shift opened up space for the opportunity to witness and guide others on their own journey of healing to become their true authentic selves.

Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
My focus is on helping my community by holding space for decolonizing mental health through creativity and ritual. I hold one on one sessions, wellness retreats in SoCal and Mexico and also offers an online wellness membership program. I don’t work with insurance companies because I want to work with people not for corporations. Mental healthcare is not accessible to many POC due to cost and overloaded systems. I’m excited to share about a new project that began as a response to quarantine. I am sharing live art therapy workshops, guided meditations, and writing about mental health information and tips through a monthly membership. The goals to provide access to information and self-help for personal growth AND to help create a community fund for people who aren’t able to afford therapy. This project is an answer to what I am feeling is a call to do more for the community. All I have to give is my heart- through my work and my time. This model makes it sustainable for me and accessible to many more people, especially those who can’t afford full-fee private therapy. I really think it’s a great example of community care in practice. Everyone involved receives support in a way that is meaningful and helps create community healing.

Let’s talk about our city – what do you love? What do you not love?
What I like best about LA is the variety of communities, cultures, and opportunities to be with the land. I love that I can hike, go the beach, the desert, or the snow any weekend of the year. I love being a regular at local restaurants and feeling connected in the amazing art, healing, and spiritual communities here.

Pricing:

• Membership Program $5-$25

Contact Info:

• Website: celinajacques.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/celina.jacques
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/celinajacquesartandtherapy
• Other: https://www.patreon.com/celinajacques

Image Credits
Leslie M. Harper Photography