Today we’d like to introduce you to Kami Lerma.
Hi Kami, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
My mother likes to tell me that I’ve been a caregiver all my life. She’s full of stories about how, as a young child, I would nurse my family’s cuts, scrapes, and colds to the point that they would hide their ailments from me out of fear that I would suffocate them in my efforts to make them feel better. I am happy to say that the caregiver in me has greatly matured since those days. Ever-present, this part of me has and continues to inform the choices and decisions that I make in my life both personally and professionally.
I studied physical therapy in college and worked for over twenty years in the field, primarily in the area of pediatrics. A large part of that role was guiding and supporting parents and caregivers as they created environments and experiences where their children could thrive. I was able to observe and be a part of growth, change, and transformation. I was also able to see the common barriers and roadblocks that slowed or halted progress. Out of that experience grew my desire to better understand the interconnectedness of our life structures of body, mind, and spirit and how the relationship between them impacts our wellness and well-being.
In 2018, I completed the Integrative Health & Well-Being Coach Training program at Duke Integrative Medicine. I then established Wheelwork Wellness, my coaching business, and began to focus on wellness and well-being from this new perspective. As a National Board-Certified Health and Wellness Coach, my work still focuses on creating environments and experiences where those I work with can thrive, but the way that I do that is just a little different these days.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The hardest part about these transitions in my career has been making choices and decisions that took me away from people and places that I greatly enjoyed. However, sometimes, we have to let go of great things and allow ourselves to learn from new experiences and connections.
Thanks – so, what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I am known as a transformational wellness coach. I find myself working with individuals, couples and families, community groups, and even businesses who are striving to find a sense of clarity and direction that will help them live a more vibrant existence. You might find me working with clients privately, in person, or virtually, but I also facilitate group coaching and experiential workshop sessions and am sought out to provide consulting services and speaking engagements.
In all of those circumstances, my intention is support the creation of environments and rich, potent experiences that allow clients to discover and connect with their deep sense of self and ultimately begin to express and integrate this wisdom in their everyday life. This is the foundational work for living a more vibrant existence. What the process looks like varies for everyone I work with, which is exciting and refreshing and allows our interactions to be more organic.
I love to work in that space where science and spirituality meet, so much of my work integrates evidence-based, trauma, and polyvagal-informed body science, energy psychology, and traditional coaching methodologies with contemplative practices. This combination makes space for authentic body, mind, spirit connection as we consider and address each area of a client’s life with the understanding that they are all interconnected. This work can be challenging, but taking time to lean into playful, creative practices ultimately balances things out.
Over this past year-and-a-half, I have also been working as Director of Mind-Body Programming at The Well, a Cincinnati-based non-profit with a national reach. At The Well, our programs combine best practices in arts and wellness and are designed in partnership with those they serve. We partner with schools, after-school programs, agencies, other non-profits, artists, and more. True Body Project is a trauma-informed program designed to support people of all ages, all backgrounds, and all genders as they learn to befriend their bodies and connect with their minds on their journey through the human experience. The My True SELF (Social-Emotional Learning Fun) curriculum takes mindfulness and mind-body practices to another level in support of student and adult well-being at a whole-student, whole-school, whole-community level.
These two positions allow me to serve in my role as caregiver in two very distinct ways, but at the root is holding space for others to heal, grow, and step into a place where they can move through the world shining the way that only they can shine.
What would you say has been one of the most important lessons you’ve learned?
Everyone’s path is different, but we can learn from one another and support one another. The best way we can do that is by creating a firm foundation for ourselves — in body, mind, and spirit — so then we can move through the world with wisdom, resilience, and a greater capacity to contribute to the collective whole.
Contact Info:
- Website: wheelworkwellness.com , thewell.world
- Instagram: wheelwork_wellness
Image Credits
Deogracias Lerma
The Well
