Today we’d like to introduce you to Gaia Mariani
Hi Gaia, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I grow up in a small town in Italy, I arrived in the States in New York for a master at Columbia University in structural engineering. After that, I worked for 3 years designing skyscrapers in New york, but I was not happy, I was so stressed, I became so uptight and I blamed it on to New York and the job without taking responsability for it. So I eventually moved to LA in 2016 to start a job as construction manager in charge of building skyscrapers.
My level of stress was skyrocketing, I was always on the go, I would overeat as a coping mechanism and in my personal life, I was doing even more because high cortisol create a fomo for everything. This also lead me to jump into a very toxic relationship with an addicted person that emotionally abuse me making me feel responsible for his wellbeing. I was so disconnected from myself, that I developed anal fissures caused by stress. This physical pain is what lead me to try restorative yoga first, then vinysasa yoga when I recover. I grew up doing gymnastic, and yoga remineded me of the discipline and focus I had in gymnastic, brought me back in touch with my body.
In 2020 I felt I had fulfilled my purpouse in my career and I was looking for sometime more. To dive deep within I became a certified yoga teacher, and then covid happened, and as for everyone, it was very hard, especially becuase I was separated from my family that lives in Italy during this unceratain time. I had to face a lot of limiting belief around the concept of home and around of who I was in this “foreign” country, what was my identity. This is when meditation became my safe place and I decided to continue my study in Yoga Therapy.
Thank to meditation and my Yoga Therapy studies, I was able to let go of the toxic relationship and transform grief into self love, which open up the door to meet my now husband.
Yoga therapy open a door into my inner world but at the time, that was just a side passion. As I continue to work in the construction industry, I started to work for a start up general contractor and I got assigned to a bad project within a company with very little figured out, this collide with my new search for purpouse and led me to a terrible burnout, my chronic stress turned into a freeze shutdown response. I would wake up every morning exhausted, go to work pretending to be the tough person on the field site, come home cry, sleep terribly and repeat. Untill I had to reduced my hours as I was unable to get through easy daily task.
At that time, I was teaching one yoga class a week on the side and realized that was the only time I was actually feeling fullfilled. For several months, I went through an internal battle between what my mind wanted, what my heart desired and what my body was asking for. Facing my limiting beliefs, the expectations I put on myself thinking my life ourpouse was to take over my dad’s construction company in Italy, the fear of upsetting my family, the guilt of having 2 masters in 2 different countries and hated my job and the reality, I didn’t want to work in the construction industry anymore.
After a few months of reduced working hours, social isolation and inward work, I made the decision to quit my construction manager job that didn’t serve me and step into the unknown.
I resume right away my yoga therapy study which I interrupted and choose my elective course all around nervous system regulation, stress, anxiety, depression, grief to understand what happened to me and to find out an holistic way to get back on my feet.
I soon find a job as functional therapist at a chiropractor office, which I considered a sign of the universe that I was stepping into a new path that was for me as well as start teaching in a few studios.
For a few years, it has been trial and error on the path I wanted to take. I was still recovering my energy from the burnout and I was figuring out what I wanted to do but something was missing.
Early 2023, I still felt like a had a dark cloud on my head, the chiropractor office where I was working closed because the owner spent all the money in gambling and drugs and once more I was unsure on what to do, building my private clientele? opening my own stusio? Nothing felt right, The only sure thing was planning my wedding for July 2023 in Italy, where I am from, everything else was a quest with no directions, just a lot of confusion. I was stuck in my head.
At that point I finished yoga therapy school and I was also bitter about what yoga is in the Western word and felt lost between how my practice was and the “style” I had to teach.
When in February 2023, my now husband lost his job, we made the decision to take 6 week backpacking honeymoon in Ecuador to then arrive to Italy, in my hometown where we got married. This was a precious time, we spent a lot of time in nature from Galapagos to Amazon forest to hike around vulcanic mountains, I was in my element, excited, connected to mother earth, no wonder my mom called me Gaia.
When we arrive to Italy before the wedding I was so happy and finally back into my heart. The wedding was just everything I could have imagined and on top of that, I did organized all of it, no wedding planner, just Zoom calls, a visit in March to see things in person and that was it. It was a dream, I always dream of a forest wedding and we got married in a green house with plants everywhere, lights coming from the ceiling and an explosion of color in the flower.
But now it is July 2023 and after all these highs, we are back in LA, my husband looking for a job and me, having to figure out, what do I want to do? which direction should I take?
I started to create more workshops based on my yoga therapy knowledge and my sound healer skills focus on stress, nervous system regulation, how to increase your vitality and on the moon cycles, with the intention to show people what yoga can be, it is not a shape, it is not a competition, it is a state of being.
And still fired up from the joy of organizing the most beautiful wedding I could have dreamt for, I find my way. What if I use my planning and organization skill which made me excell in the construction industry for something I truly love, for something that I know has the power to transform people lives? yes, I decided to organize Mindfulness Retreat.
Retreats that go way beyond the mat, retreat where asana are just one of the elements. Retreats where I can teach people through workshops how to understand and regulate their nervous system with simple tools that they can integrate in their live and where we can work on overcoming limiting beliefs to unlock a fulfilling life.
With a burning passion, I founded “Well & Whole,” a sanctuary where I blend teaching from ancient yogic wisdom and modern science. I help people understand their physiology, as well as their energetic body and their subconscious mind for profound transformation at every level of one’s being.
And to make real changes in our physiology, immersive experiences are the best tool. It all start from our physiology, that influences the mind and the quality of our thoughts, but also our emotions and ultimately how we live life.
Life can become very dark at times, and through my transformative workshops and retreats, I mean to give you a glimpse of how peaceful and full life can be and help you remember that life is a gift and even the darkest moments are oppotunity for growth and self discovery.
We had out first retreat in Joshua Tree in March and my heart was so full by the review of the partecipants. We have our next one coming up in September in Italy.
ANd now I am also working on creating a series of workshop for corporation to teach their employee that there is another way, that stress is a natural response of the body that we can use in our favore without abusing it. When I was living in high stress, I taught that was life. Now, I work for myself, even more hours than before but i have the knowledge to sustain my energy naturally and I discover that live can be truly peaceful and fulfilling no matter how much things there are to do.
I found my way to give it back, helping poeple deal with their to-do-list with more ease and find their own version of the peaceful and full life.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
it has not been but down the line, all the struggled made sense because from pain arise growth.
Moving to New york entirely by myself was not easy.
Moving to LA entirely by myself was not easy.
I had anal fissures cause by stress, it got so bad that I was in pain constantly, in any position and I ended up juicing for 12 days because I was afraid to eat as what comes in goes out. Took 2 months to completely recover
I was in a toxic relationship with an addicted person that made me feel responsible for his health everytime I was trying to leave.
I burnout out, but like seriously shut down, unable to get up in the morning, unable to face any minimal problem, crying every day, totally withdrawl from any social interraction, completely loss of identity
grief, it is part of the human condition, but I grieve home since I left for New York in 2013, the burnout was associated to grieving my old identity, my old me that didn’t exist anymore
We’ve been impressed with Well And Whole, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
I organize retreats focused on regulating the nervous system and overcoming limiting beliefs through holistic techinques (yoga therapy, sound healing, workshop, journaling and other mindfulness activities like silent walking meditation and other that may depend on the location)
I align my retreat with the moon & season cycle becasue I create a journey that combined traditional yogic techniques, modern science and the energetic world.
I also create a line of products that I hand made for to elevate the self care that address both the physical and energetical body.
I want reader to know that our retreats are not just a yoga escape, but they are life changing experience because I craft a journey where every activity is strategically place to create a progressive transformation. With over 11,00 hours fo certifications, I share a meaningful practice that address the physical body with the energetic body and I cross pollinate my training with mentor like Tony Robbins and modern science. I want the reader to know, I share what I practice, I share what helped me and what still help me navigate the crazy world we live in and I empower partecipants with knowledge about their physical and energetic body but also with simple tools that they can easily integrate into their lives.
I want reader to know that our retreat are immersive experience that will kick start their journey. Like a car with a dead battery, you need to jump start to let it run again. Our retreats are a jump start into their physiology, mind and vibrations, but we also give them tools to take home and implement to continue on the new path they unfold.
Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?
I worked for 8 years in the construction industry and my voice used ot be direct, sharp, aggressive and when I finally stepped completely into my purpose as a yoga therapist and sound healer, my voice changed naturally, it is now soft, radiant, soothing.
people assume I have always been like that, but the more sublte my yoga practice became, the more my phsyiology changed
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.wellandwhole.life/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wellandwhole.life/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvH5CfUqVEjDdnYWpj1VkzQ
