“With great difficulty, advancing by millimeters each year, I carve a road out of the rock. For millenniums my teeth have wasted and my nails broken to get there, to the other side, to the light and the open air. And now that my hands bleed and my teeth tremble, unsure in a cavity cracked by thirst and dust, I pause and contemplate my work. I have spent the second part of my life breaking the stones, drilling the walls, smashing the doors, removing the obstacles I placed between the light and myself in the first part of my life.”
— Octavio Paz
About Kristen
Photo credit: Branden Glover Photography
Asleep
The first time I read Octavio Paz's quote, it resonated so deeply inside me—soul deep—because it exemplified the shared human experience so many of us navigate. From the outside, it looked like I had a life I should be excited about living. But I wasn’t. I was unhappy, unfulfilled, and haunted by a nagging feeling that something vital was missing… that there was more to life than this. I kept making external changes hoping they would fill that empty space, but they didn’t. All the while, I was disconnecting further from my true self.
Dark Night of the Soul
In late 2019, I experienced a true dark night of the soul. The meaning I had given my life—my achievements, my status, my direction—completely collapsed. It was a dark, confusing, and profoundly devastating space. That reckoning forced a stark realization: I didn’t know who I truly was, and the life I was living was completely out of alignment with something deep in my core. It was the hardest season of my life, but it served as the catalyst to begin doing the real work.
Deconstruction & Reconstruction
Before you can integrate who you are, you have to deconstruct who you were taught to be. I began the necessary, ongoing work of unhooking from performative roles, shedding limiting beliefs, and examining the survival strategies that kept me small. Deconstruction isn't a quick fix—it requires patience, courage, and a willingness to step into the unknown as you begin rebuilding a life anchored in true internal alignment.
The Continuous Journey
Personal growth is not linear, and the work never truly stops. I thought I had it all figured out, only to realize I was still peeling back layers of old identity and playing out old conditioning. But that is the magic of this work: every layer peeled back brings you closer to home. Choosing to stay in the process is challenging, but staying connected to your authentic self makes every step infinitely worth it. Today, through somatic practice, nervous system alignment, and intuitive coaching, I walk alongside others as they navigate their own continuous journey back to themselves.
About
Widening Your Aperture
In photography, an aperture is the opening that controls how much light enters the lens. When the aperture is narrow, your field of view is constricted—you can only focus on a tight, sharp fragment of reality. The wider you open it, the more light floods in, revealing depth, nuance, and possibilities that were sitting in the shadows all along.
When operating in survival mode, perfectionism, or performative roles, your internal aperture naturally constricts. You see life through a narrow lens of shoulds, rigid expectations, and old conditioning.
Widening Your Aperture is the intentional practice of expanding your internal capacity. It is about broadening your nervous system's resilience so you can welcome more light, hold greater complexity, and see yourself with radical clarity.
Through somatic awareness, nature immersion, community connection, and 1:1 coaching, we gently expand that lens together. We shift your perspective from survival to spaciousness—giving you the freedom to step out of narrow societal scripts and illuminate your true, authentic identity.
Mission and Vision
Mission Statement
To guide, support, and walk alongside individuals as they navigate identity reclamation—fostering nervous system regulation, somatic awareness, and deep connection to nature so they can build a life anchored in true internal alignment.
Vision Statement
A world where individuals are empowered to shed performative roles and societal expectations, stepping into authentic self-belonging and living in true congruency of mind, body, and soul.