Carie’s journey to Atma began at 38 years old when she found herself in the throes of an emotional and spiritual crisis while vacationing with her family in Mexico.
Like so many women and mothers; Carie had completely given herself away. First as a wife, then as the mother to a special needs toddler, and lastly, to her infant son whom she held upright throughout the entire night for months on end due to illness. Carie was completely depleted: plagued by anxiety and depression, overwhelmed and controlled by the prison of her own circumstances. She knew in that moment, sobbing and alone in the hotel room that she simply couldn’t continue living this way…something had to change.
She still recalls the exact moment of clarity that transformed her entire life so profoundly that it would go onto ignite a 10 plus year journey that has empowered her to develop the passion project that is Atma Adventures.
“I remember thinking to myself - I am so tired of trying to control my life and others in order to be happy. I’m so tired of trying to be happy but living in negativity. My “aha moment” that night in the hotel room was that only I could do that for myself…no one could help me out of the pain but ME. I wanted peace. I wanted to experience joy in my life no matter the circumstances. No matter the stress, chaos or the mundane. I was going “to figure it out” by the time I turned 40.”
And Carie has spent the last 10 years since that moment devouring every single experience, spiritual teaching, and methodology that she could get her hands on to do just that. It was through Carie’s self-perpetuated education that she began traveling the world to places like India to study under some of the world’s most influential spiritual leaders.
As her life continued to grow in awareness and transform through those experiences, she couldn’t stop thinking about the younger version of herself back in that hotel room on the floor.
“I realized what I knew that moment - that while it is incredible to study with a guru in India and take week-long retreats focusing on big topics like attachment, consciousness and the ego, most women are unable to invest such time into “bowing to thyself” (a Sanskrit mantra she believes in so strongly she even wears it around her finger). Most women are so busy raising babies, or forging career paths, or supporting their friends and families that they simply don’t have the time, energy or resources to invest in some huge spiritual journey to self-awareness. They are too busy doing the work of nurturing others.”
And she realized it was those business owners, mothers, givers that needed those lessons the most. They needed those tools, and those tiny ways to transform their minds from fear to love, from stress to ease, from resistance to acceptance the most. She realized that while there were thousands of yoga retreats and spiritual pilgrimages on the market; there were none that served the needs of the women she felt most lead to walk beside and hold space for….the women who give so much away that they have completed neglected to “bow to thyself” in any way. The “givers” were the women she wanted to reach.
“The ‘self-help’ world can be overwhelming. It is either so extreme and intimidating that it becomes unapproachable or unattainable for most people… or it becomes so trendy, watered down, and new aged that it loses its sacred and authentic value. I wanted to fill that in between space. And Atma is there to do just that.”
And that’s just what her “adventures” are here to do…
To provide women with a restorative, nourishing, and nurturing experience that takes you just far enough out of your comfort zone that you open up, while connecting you to the parts of yourself you have lost (or never discovered).
To allow you to hit the pause on life and have the time away from daily distractions so you have the space for introspection and the letting go of those “things” that no longer serve us.... To realize what areas you want to nurture or give attention to.
To give you new tools and resources to bring home so you are more empowered and better equipped to handle the stress of daily life without pushing any agenda or methodology onto you.
To allow you to reboot and recharge so that you can enter into the same circumstances with a new lens of gratitude and peace.
To connect you to the world outside of yourself, with other women struggling with the same challenges along with local tour guides, cultures, and change-makers who are all working to make the world a better place.
To facilitate meaningful connections where you are encouraged to talk about the “real stuff,” the hard stuff... allowing honest conversations where women can talk about their own needs without fear of being judged. “We are so hard on ourselves and sometimes we just need to hear ‘It’s okay to feel what you feel.” To help you build bonds with a new support system to stand behind you and cheer you on your way.
Carie’s goal is simple - to help women realize they don’t need to change their circumstances in order to live a more joyful life and to offer ways to change the way we looks at things - to change our perspective and how we respond to life’s daily challenges. What she has learned the most is that when you are in the thick of it - it feels like you need to change all the “big things” but the primary cause of unhappiness is never the situation but our thoughts about it.....
