Author: roxana

I’ve always wondered growing up why I needed to learn French before knowing what my body needs to heal and get stronger everyday. I have always had around me (women) curanderas (South Americans call healers like that). My pediatrician was not only a doctor but also a homeopath, travelling each year in China for summer courses. I have taken up acupuncture in middle school, when I was also experiencing with bioenergy and group hypnosis with a famous Russian healer from Moldavia. I had a box full of crystals and read all there could be from Edgar Cayce and his fellows. Yes, I went to a proper, intensive I might add educational system, but in the same time, I was being exposed by my parents to all sorts of ancient philosophies, cultures and healing practices. For me, this mix was normal. I wanted to go to Medical School, but when I saw how corupt and heartless the system was, I took a step back and changed my direction.

Years passed and I was somehow always close to the unseen, the pseudosciences like the common folks know these systems. Until I rediscovered my healing nature and I embarked in 2013 on a more solid path of body, mind, soul and most of all spirit healing journey. 12 years later, I am a Reiki & Yoga practitioner, Astrologer, Numerologer, and so on.

Nothing is really a path of becoming. It is always a path of remembering.

Just like me, many of you are practising or at least curious towards what’s unseen, what’s inexplicable, what’s magical, the pseudoscience of systems that were created 10.000 years ago (like acupuncture for example) and that are still healing people immensely today. You wouldn’t be here if it weren’t like that. The funny thing for me is that even the most analytical people in my life search for advice in understanding illnesses, blockages, times sprinkled with lots of obstacles. So you see, no matter how much we live in the mind, it’s still the body and higher conscience that are calling us for a deeper understanding of life.

And just like with everything else I learned along the way, today’s subject was never on the list of things we were exposed to while getting through the formal educational system.

We’re currently transitioning some of the most sensitive times in a year. The weeks of late summer. In Traditional Chinese Medicine (one of the most complex, if not the most complex system of healing until today), the year is split not into 4 seasons, but into 5. The late summer hints at slowly changing from the damp and hot fire of the summer into the mushy, rainy, darker times of the autumn. This is not the time to push it even further, but to slowly take the feet off the acceleration and to unwind a bit after the forging of spring and summer. This year, the autumn eclipse season accompanies this energy and takes us on a 3 week journey of clearing out and recharging the spirit, while waiting to step into the darkness of autumn and winter.

Watch out for what’s leaving your life around 7th of September and what’s coming into your life around 20th of September. Start by connecting to this ebb and flow of leaving and receiving on September 1st (when Saturn returns to the karmic energy of Pisces to close any loose ends before returning to Aries in 2026). Anything that leaves your life in September is just preparing you for a lighter, wiser, greater version of yourself and for your life. The trick is to defocus from details and envision a more loving, a more complex path for you to walk on for the next years. The stronger seeds and effects of the Eclipses will be felt for at least 3 to 6 months, but their influence can open a path that is built for the next 18 years. You choose how much of this life you want to breathe into!

This season, Late Summer, or “long summer”, it unfolds between the blazing heat of midsummer and the first crisp winds of autumn. Unlike the bright surge of energy in spring or the extroverted high summer, Late Summer is an inward-turning time, a pause for digestion, assimilation, and centering. It is the season of Earth in the Five Element cycle, and it asks us to come back to the middle, to ground ourselves, to cultivate nourishment that is not just about food but also about emotional and spiritual sustenance. Late Summer resonates with the spleen and stomach, the organs responsible for transforming what we take in—food, drink, but also experiences—into the energy that sustains us. When this system is balanced, we feel supported, stable, able to trust both ourselves and life. When it is imbalanced, we fall into rumination, worry, overthinking, and the kind of mental “digestion” that consumes more energy than it gives. The sweetness associated with this element is the gentle, nourishing sweetness of roots, squash, carrots, and warm soups, foods that calm the stomach and spleen and restore equilibrium. Late Summer is, in this sense, the body’s invitation to slow down after the expansive fire of the previous months, to take stock, to re-establish routines of care, to cultivate stability before the descent into autumn. It is also a season of harvest, both literal and symbolic: the fields offer their abundance, and we, too, are asked to gather what we have grown in ourselves since spring, to digest our experiences, to integrate lessons, and to prepare inner reserves for the colder seasons ahead.

Emotionally, this season teaches us about the transformation of worry into trust, of scattered thought into centred clarity. Just as the earth receives seeds, holds them, and transforms them into nourishment, so too are we asked to hold our own concerns with steadiness, to let them decompose into wisdom.

In qigong practice, movements that massage the spleen and stomach meridians are emphasised during this season, encouraging fluidity in the fascia and grounding the body in stability.

Late Summer is a subtle, liminal, a space of integration.

The fascia is sensitive to such seasonal shifts, responding to humidity, temperature, diet, and the tone of the nervous system. During Late Summer it’s the time when I usually start tending to my body more, in the anticipation of the next year-round cycle. And fascia is something I deeply pay attention to.

“Did anyone say fascia, what is this?” – what I usually hear from some of my friends nowadays. Let’s dive deeper then.

Fascia – the scientific introduction

According to the anatomical descriptions, fascia is a continuous web-like network of connective tissue that envelops and interconnects all muscles, bones, nerves, blood vessels, and organs in the body. It basically permeates the entire body. For decades, anatomy textbooks treated fascia as a mere packaging material, an inert membrane to be scraped away in dissections.

Fascia is probably the most under-researched system of the human body. By modern science. Not by ancient systems of healing. Those were BUILT on the healing of fascia. From yogic traditions and understanding, to TCM, the mental, emotional and body illnesses were all controlled by the fascia, seen in the fascia, released through the fascia. Everything you see now in the modern medicine is just a more superficial, many times temporary protocol of treatment, not of healing.

Modern research, however, has “rediscovered” fascia as a dynamic organ system, crucial for structural support, sensory communication, and even overall health and wellbeing.

Modern science, welcome to our table! We’ve been expecting you!

In fact, fascia is now sometimes termed our “hidden organ” or the “Cinderella” of body tissues. Scientists have found fascia to be richly innervated and full of blood vessels and receptors, suggesting it acts as a body-wide “watchman” monitoring whole-body health.

Beyond its anatomical role, fascia has captured interest across many disciplines. Holistic healers and somatic therapists propose that fascia holds emotional tension or trauma, contributing to mind-body health. Movement experts in yoga and sports science highlight fascia’s role in flexibility and injury prevention. Osteopathic medicine and manual therapy traditions have long focused on fascia as key to treating disease.

It comes in several forms and layers:

• Superficial fascia: the loose, fibrous layer just beneath the skin. It contains fat and water, provides insulation, and allows the skin to move freely over underlying tissues.
• Deep fascia: the dense, strong tissue sheaths that surround and infuse muscles, bones, nerves, and blood vessels. Deep fascia organises muscles into compartments and enables smooth muscular movements by reducing friction.
• Visceral fascia: the connective tissue that suspends and encases the internal organs within their cavities, helping maintain organ position and providing a supportive wrapping.

All these layers are continuous with each other, forming a 3D matrix of support throughout the body. In embryological development, fascia emerges early as an “endless web” in which other organs develop.

Far from being passive stuffing, fascia is now understood to have many active roles in the body’s physiology and biomechanics:

• Structural support & force transmission: fascia envelops every muscle and connects to every bone, forming a tensional network that maintains posture and coordinates movement. Studies show that up to 30–50% of a muscle’s force may travel through fascial connections rather than directly via tendons. This helps explain phenomena like a tight calf affecting the back, or why stretching the hamstrings can increase mobility in the spine. Fascia also contributes to elastic recoil (like a spring storing and releasing energy) and overall mechanical stability.
• Sensory organ: fascia is richly innervated with nerve endings and sensory receptors, making it an important sensory organ in its own right. Estimates suggest the fascial system houses around 250 million nerve endings, with some regions having 9:1 ratio of sensory to motor nerves. In fact, fascia contains more sensory nerves than the skin or muscles, about 25% more nerve endings than skin and 10 times more than the muscle tissue. These nerves include mechanoreceptors and proprioceptors, which help the body sense movement and position (proprioception) as well as internal sensations (interoception). Given this density of innervation, researchers have argued fascia could be considered our richest sensory organ, vital for body awareness and pain perception.
• Fluid circulation and immunity: the fascial network plays a key part in the body’s fluid systems. Fascial planes facilitate lymphatic drainage and venous return, helping move immune cells and blood back toward the heart. The loose connective tissue within fascia (especially superficial fascia) is a primary site of edema and inflammation. The extracellular matrix of fascia can absorb tremendous amounts of water (up to 1000 times its weight), which allows it to swell with fluid during inflammation and then recede. Because of this intimate link with the immune system, chronic fascial dysfunction or inflammation can contribute to systemic inflammatory cascades. Proper fascial movement (through exercise or manual therapy) can enhance lymphatic flow and immune function, whereas restrictions may impair these processes.
• Endocrine and neural signaling: fascial tissues are studded with hormone and neurotransmitter receptors. Research indicates fascia can bind and respond to hormones like adrenaline, insulin, estrogen, and more. It also aids in distributing neurotransmitters such as serotonin, dopamine, GABA, and acetylcholine across tissue planes. In essence, fascia forms an interconnecting medium through which chemical messengers travel.
• Protective and organ support: fascia provides a protective sheath around nerves, blood vessels, and organs. The deep fascia and related structures (like periosteum around bones, pericardium around the heart, and organ capsules) help absorb shocks and prevent excessive movement that could damage delicate structures. Visceral fascial attachments keep organs in proper alignment and transmit mechanical forces – for instance, during breathing, fascial connections help the diaphragm’s motion massage the abdominal organs. When fascia is healthy and flexible, organs glide smoothly; when it’s tight, organ function or circulation can be affected (as some osteopaths assert in cases like visceral adhesions).

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Fascia is dynamic and adaptable. Fascia remodels itself along lines of tension and in response to habitual posture, movement, or lack thereof. It continually lays down new collagen or reabsorbs fibers, and its consistency (more gel-like or more fibrous) changes with factors like hydration, physical activity, and even stress hormones. For example, sustained poor posture or repetitive motions can lead fascia to thicken and stiffen in specific patterns, whereas stretching and varied movement keep it supple. Ageing tends to make fascia less hydrated and more fibrotic (stiffer), which contributes to the reduced flexibility seen in older adults.

Because fascia interconnects virtually everything in the body, fascial health has wide-ranging impacts on our physical well-being. Imbalances or injuries in fascia can manifest as pain or dysfunction in seemingly unrelated areas, due to the continuous pull of the fascial network (sometimes called “fascial chains” or myofascial meridians).

Fascial health is integral to musculoskeletal health.

Movement modalities like yoga, Pilates, qi gong and tai chi have long emphasised whole-body integration, concepts now supported by fascial science. Yoga in particular is often cited as a practice that trains the fascial network as much as the muscles. When you stretch in yoga, you are elongating continuous fascial lines that run through multiple muscle groups.

Dr. Robert Schleip, a prominent fascia researcher, describes yoga as a “shearing practice” for fascia. Unlike movements that isolate joints, yoga poses create multi-directional pulls on the fascial web, encouraging layers of fascia to glide (shear) over each other. This shearing maintains the slide and glide properties of fascia, preventing adhesions.

There is also a growing concept of “fascial fitness.” This involves training the elastic rebound of fascia through spring-like movements (small jumps, bouncing, rhythmic motions) and dynamic stretching. The idea is to improve the fascia’s ability to store and release energy (like a rubber band), which is important in athletics for efficient movement.

One of the most intriguing and controversial areas of fascia exploration is its connection to our emotions, stress, and even trauma. Holistic practitioners have long observed that emotional stress can manifest as physical tension, and modern researchers are starting to investigate how fascia might mediate this mind-body link.

Many massage therapists, osteopaths, and bodyworkers report phenomena where a client, upon receiving myofascial release, unexpectedly experiences an emotional outpouring or recalls a past trauma. This has led to the popular idea that “fascia holds memories” or emotions. An editorial in the Journal of Bodywork & Movement Therapies notes that countless clinicians have witnessed patients suddenly access old memories or emotions when fascial restrictions are released.

As with everything I learn, practice and write about, this so happened to me. I am a monthly goer to my osteopath and the results on my body elasticity, soreness, relaxation and emotional floor are incredible! Because memories are strongly held in the fascia.

When we undergo emotional trauma or chronic stress, the body often responds with a physical tightening: shoulders hunch, jaw clenches, pelvic floor contracts, etc. Fascia, being everywhere, is involved in this response. Some researchers suggest that unprocessed emotional trauma can lead to chronically elevated fascial tension, which in turn perpetuates a state of stress in the body.

A fascinating study in 2021 (published in Cognitive Therapy and Research) provided some of the first direct evidence of a connection between fascial tissue state and psychological conditions. Researchers examined patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) and found that depressed patients had measurably different fascia compared to healthy controls – specifically, significantly higher fascial stiffness and reduced elasticity in certain areas. In a follow-up experiment, they had one group of depressed patients perform a single session of self-myofascial release (SMR) with foam rollers, while another group did a placebo activity. Remarkably, the depression patients who did the fascial release showed immediate psychological improvements: they had a reduced negative memory bias and reported more positive affect, relative to the control group.

One mechanism for the emotion-fascia connection is the autonomic nervous system (ANS). Fascia is richly innervated by autonomic nerve fibers. Under chronic emotional stress, elevated sympathetic activity could lead to prolonged fascial contraction and micro-spasms. When fascia is released and the body can physically “let go,” it sends safety signals to the nervous system, potentially switching off the fight-or-flight loop.

Long before fascia became a hot topic in research labs, it held a revered place in certain healthcare traditions – notably osteopathic medicine and various forms of manual therapy.

Andrew Taylor Still, the founder of osteopathic medicine, was arguably one of the earliest Western physicians to truly appreciate fascia. In the late 1800s, Dr. Still wrote extensively about the importance of fascia in health and disease. Two of his oft-quoted statements:

• “Fascia is the place to look for the cause of disease and the place to consult and begin the action of remedies in all diseases.”
• “The fascia is… a foundation on which to stand. By its action we live and by its failure we shrink or swell and die. The soul of man with all the streams of pure, living water seems to dwell in the fascia of his body.”

Fascia connects to every bodily process: blood flow, nerve function, immunity, etc. If fascia was disturbed (through injury, poor posture, etc.), it could disrupt those processes and lead to disease.

Interestingly, Eastern healing arts also intersect with fascial concepts. In Traditional Chinese Medicine, the flow of Qi (vital energy) through meridians is central. Modern researchers like Helene Langevin have found a likely anatomical correlate: fascial planes seem to align with acupuncture meridians to a high degree. Langevin’s studies found an 80% correspondence between acupuncture points and intermuscular connective tissue planes. Many acupuncture points lie in indentations or clefts between muscles which are filled with fascia.

But as with any healing practice, there are also people who overpromise and underdeliver. So if you want to really experience a good healer, send me a message and we’ll talk.

Here are some ways to tend to your fascia and spirit during Late Summer:

• Gentle, sustained stretching. Fascia responds not to forceful pulling but to slow, steady holds. Think of yin yoga poses held for several minutes, or simple stretches done with patience. In Late Summer, as humidity can make tissues feel heavy or sticky, these long holds allow fluid to move back into the connective web, rehydrating and restoring glide.
• Hydration. Water is medicine for fascia. Drinking small sips throughout the day, adding herbal teas that support the spleen and stomach (such as chamomile, ginger, or licorice root), helps maintain elasticity. Warm, nourishing liquids like soups are now countering the damp heaviness of the season.
• Grounding foods. In TCM, Earth season resonates with the gentle sweetness of roots, and late harvest vegetables. Fascia, too, benefits when digestion is calm and blood sugar stable. Soups, porridges, roasted pumpkins or carrots, all provide not only physical nourishment but a sense of inner stability, anchoring the body’s connective tissue in steadiness.
• Self-myofascial release. Using a soft ball or foam roller, gently rolling the soles of the feet, the calves, or the back can awaken fascia without aggression.
• Movement that spirals. Fascia loves variety and multi-directional motion. Qigong, tai chi, or simply walking in nature with gentle twists of the spine create shearing that keeps fascia supple.
• Breathwork. Worry, the emotion of Earth, is felt as contraction not only in the mind but in the tissue. Deep diaphragmatic breathing, with exhalations longer than inhalations, signals the fascia to release. Lying on the ground with hands on the belly, breathing into the center, allows fascia around the abdomen and diaphragm to soften, supporting both digestion and emotional ease.
• Restorative rituals. Fascia remodels during rest. Sleep, naps, and pauses are the time when the body reorganises, rehydrates, and heals.

To honour the fascia now is to honour the Earth element itself. And perhaps the deeper gift is this: in caring for this subtle fabric, we remember that healing is not always about doing more, but about creating the conditions where body and spirit can digest, assimilate, and move forward whole.

Until next time, remember: your issues are in the tissues. Give yourself a cleaning and tend to your fascial system!

Bare in mind, this is not a scientific edition. This is a 100% heartfelt edition.

As I’m writing this (overdue, I know) healing message, my day was turned upside down by yet another health incident. I’ve been healing my familiar, my cat, for the past 7 months. Going to the doctors regularly, doing extensive blood work, all the possible check-ups one can think of. But also working with healers in reiki and nutrition. Basically, after 7-8 months of constant turmoil, my cat has now a multi-disciplinary team of healers including vets, nutritionists for animals, reiki healers, and yes my own energetic and spiritual work on her daily. She is still not feeling OK. She has crisis episodes, most of the time we don’t know the exact causes. This drives us mad I need to be honest. And yes, I am exhausted more than ever due to this year’s predicaments.

I knew this was coming. Us astrologers know what the frequencies of a day, week, month or year will be particularly important for each of us. My yearly astrology forecast and numerology confirmed everything I am going through now with my familiar cat. I’ve seen this in my charts and in the chart of my cat.

I just did not think of this intensity, twists and turns.

I’ve always been the protector and most of the time saviour (in some ways) for family | familiar animals. Specifically cats. Sometimes I do think the cat distribution system relies heavily on the fact that no matter how low I am in my life, I could never turn my head to animals suffering, abandoned, in pain, in heat or cold or hungry. I know a lot on their healing powers and how to heal them. And I’ve been doing it at an accelerated pace for the past 8 month. The actual energetic cycle we’re in right now needs us to put emphasise on being more intentional with our familiars, be them in our homes or on the streets or shelters.

What the records of history say

I’ve always noticed and experienced a deep intimacy with my cat. One that goes beyond the surface. It’s no mistake, one of the most spiritual encounters of my life. Because I know that our animal companions are part of our soul family.

Across time and cultures, people have believed exactly that. Ancient civilisations revered the animals by their hearth, and modern science is starting to confirm what spiritual traditions long held: our family animals, our fury friends are connected to us in mysterious, profound ways.

Many ancient cultures wove cats and dogs into their spiritual fabric. In Hindu lore, for example, the goddess Shashthi was said to have feline companions who protected children and families. Norse legend tells of the goddess Freyja riding a sky chariot pulled by giant cats – a symbol of supernatural partnership between human and animal. And in ancient Egypt, cats were so revered that priests treated them as living embodiments of Bastet, the cat-headed goddess of home and protection. People would pray to these divine felines for safety and blessings, believing their cats carried the goddess’s protective energy.

Dogs, too, have walked beside us not just in body but in spirit. Across mythologies, dogs appear as guardians and guides. Greek mythology speaks of Cerberus, the mighty three-headed hound, guarding the boundary between life and death. In ancient India, Yama – god of death – was said to have four-eyed dogs watching over the departed souls. Even Egyptian lore gave dogs a sacred role: the jackal-headed Anubis was entrusted to guide souls safely to the afterlife.

Many Native American tribes similarly viewed their dogs as spiritual guides and family members, including them in healing ceremonies and even burying them alongside humans so they could accompany and protect their owners in the next world. In fact, archeologists have found that ancient Egyptians mummified cats with fine linens and buried them with bowls of milk, while Celtic warriors were laid to rest with their loyal hounds at their side. Our ancestors clearly believed the bond with a beloved animal transcended death.

Ancient people lived much closer to their animals day to day. Cats weren’t only mousers; they were seen as mystical guardians of the home, keeping not just rodents but evil spirits at bay in some traditions. Dogs guarded the village by night and the soul by day. In China, dogs symbolised loyalty (even becoming one of the zodiac animals) and certain breeds like the Pekingese were kept by emperors as almost sacred companions. In Japan, cats were cherished as good luck – the famous Maneki-neko figurine of a cat with a raised paw is believed to beckon prosperity and ward off misfortune. Folklore from around the world, from Celtic to Middle Eastern, often attributed to household animals a sixth sense for unseen energies, a protective intuition that humans lacked.

It’s as if humanity collectively understood that these creatures by our side were special bridges between the physical and the spiritual realms of life.

Fast forward to today and how I think about soul companions

Spiritual thinkers often say there are no coincidences. Perhaps it’s no accident that the perfect animal came into your life at the perfect time. Many mystical traditions and New Age philosophies talk about “soul contracts” between humans and their animal companions. At first, the term might sound strange, but it speaks to that instant recognition you feel when you lock eyes with a cat or dog, who then becomes your family. You might even feel, “I’ve met you before, haven’t I?”

Our family animals are by no mistake here. My experience, knowledge and guidance is that they are the soul contracts that are here to:

• fulfil a contract we already decided upon when we were still in spirit and not matter
• mirror us in all our good or bad
• open our heart chakra and heart field, so that we are capable or more healing and openness with the world around us. Unconditional love is the main reason why they are here, and in your life. And from that bond of total trust and commitment, one can go out in the world and maybe…trust it more.
• remind us of family bonds we lost along the way (some of them reincarnate with souls of members of our family)
• and yes, heal our energetic field from all impurities and diseases. Cats in particular are doing it more efficient, as their own magnetic field can transmute the bad energy into nothingness. Dogs don’t usually have the same process of transmutation and they can easily get sick if you are living imbalanced. I believe, just like many others, that our fury friends often take on aspects of our pain as a way to help us.

My cat came to me on a January evening, 10 years ago, exactly 1 month after my dad passed away. I remember that moment like it was yesterday. The shock of loosing both friends in a horrific incident in October and my father 1 month and a half later was something I was denying into over working. Until it caught up with me one January evening. I abruptly decided to search on a Cat Adoption Facebook Group where I found the most sensitive ad: she, a 2.5 year old tortie, always admired, never adopted. I HAD TO KNOW HER. This is how our story started. 10 years later…she’s seen it all. My laughter, my success, my tears, my diseases, my everything. Everyone came and left. She stayed for the long run. As a spiritual professional, having a familiar is part of the job. I have no doubts she found me and I found her in the most painful, transformative moment of my life with a meaning, a purpose that goes way beyond the confines of a regular, simple life.

Our familiars, our home and family animals are a window to our souls and a doorway to our spiritual evolution and destiny. If we let them into our life and allow them to teach us unconditional, pure love, maybe we, as humanity will still stand a chance.

Beyond the spiritual and anecdotal, a fascinating thing is happening: science is catching up with what pet lovers and mystics have felt all along. Researchers in recent years have been studying the pet-owner relationship with new eyes – and they’re finding evidence that your pet really does mirror you, emotionally and even physically. It’s both eerie and affirming to see it confirmed in data.

For instance, one groundbreaking study in Sweden measured stress hormone levels in dog owners and their dogs over many months. The result? They were synchronised. Owners with consistently high cortisol (the stress hormone) had dogs with high cortisol; calmer owners had dogs with low levels. The scientists concluded that dogs truly mirror their owner’s long-term stress, and notably, it’s the dogs taking on the owner’s emotions, not usually the other way around. In a similar vein, a 2024 study found that if an owner’s heart rate jumps (say from stress or anxiety), their dog’s heart rate soon changes to match that pattern. The researchers described this as emotional contagion: the dog is literally catching your mood and reacting in kind. Cats, those famously independent creatures, are not immune to our influence either. Research published in 2019 looked at over 3,000 cats and their owners, examining personalities, behaviors, and health. The findings were eye-opening: owners and cats mirrored each other’s wellbeing and behavior to a remarkable degree. An anxious, neurotic owner was far more likely to have a cat that was overweight, anxious, or dealing with stress-related illnesses and even behavioural problems like aggression. In contrast, more relaxed, extroverted owners tended to have sociable, healthier cats. The lead author of the study noted that our personality and emotional management trickle down to our pets: “Cats may not always find living as our pets easy, and it’s important that we are aware of how our behaviour may be impacting them”.

Even veterinarians are taking note. Some have begun to wonder if certain baffling chronic illnesses in pets might be linked to the emotional environment at home. While pets obviously share our physical environment (hence why they can get the same diseases we do, like obesity, diabetes, even cancers, often due to shared lifestyle and pollutants), there’s also an emotional environment we create. A happy household can literally produce a healthier pet. A chronically stressful home, full of shouting or anxiety, might manifest in a dog’s nervous behaviour or a cat’s inappropriate urination or over-grooming (common stress responses in felines). Long-term studies show that dogs and owners even share synchronised changes in heart rhythms and stress responses during challenging situations.

What I can advise you in relation to your familiar

1. Start being more intentional about your own energy. Your dog or cat should not carry your entire field of negative waste for you. Do your own cleaning. Your energy matters, and your friend animals are absorbing it constantly. The next time you notice your pet acting “off,” it’s worth asking could they be reflecting something in me? Our animals are so attuned to us that they often show us what we cannot see in ourselves.
2. And it goes both ways. When you take care of your mental health, manage your stress, heal your traumas, find your joy, you’re not the only one who thrives. Your cat or dog will likely sleep easier, play more, and possibly even live longer, because they’re deeply connected to your emotional state. It’s a beautiful form of biofeedback: they push us to heal ourselves not out of obligation to self, but out of love for them. After all, you’d do anything to keep your beloved pet happy and healthy. If that means finally addressing your work anxiety or learning to meditate so the household is calmer, so be it.
3. Sometimes when our cat or dog gets sick, it might be a wake-up call for us to change something important in our life. Unfortunately I see a lot of owners totally blind to this fact. And they wake up too late, when less things can be done to alleviate the faith of the little one. And they loose him or her. If there is one thing I am most desperate or upset about it that most of us don’t consider healing protocols and maintenance for our cats and dogs. We only wait until it’s out of the doctor’s hands. Give yourself permission to bring your familiar to an energy worker, at least once in a while. I hope you understand they need more than shelter, food, water or toys. They need energy maintenance, just like you need the same.
4. Try to work with various doctors, read, explore various protocols and nutrition systems. Unfortunately not all doctors understand healing and are mainly operating on legalised protocols. Your familiar might be, just like mine, more sensitive or more attuned to your soul. This means you need to balance this with being more informed, getting the right doctors on board and having regular check-ups to elevate the energy of your companion. Remember, your cat or dog may be a free spirit in many ways, but in the human world they depend on you like a child. Part of your role as their guardian is learning to listen with more than your ears. Pay attention to subtle changes: your cat’s slight withdrawal could signal she’s feeling your stress; your dog’s sudden clinginess might mean he senses your sadness. Become an observer of their baseline behaviour and energy, so you can spot when something is off in either of you.
5. Practice energy check-ins, bu yourself or with a guide or healer. Set aside quiet time to just be present with your pet. Notice their body language and mood. Are they tense, restless, moody? Take a breath and notice your own state in that moment. Very often, you’ll find you are feeling much the same. In those moments, a calming ritual (soft music, gentle petting, or even some Reiki if you’re inclined) can help both of you release negativity. You are a two-way conduit of energy; be mindful of what flows between you. You can also use other spiritual protocols if you like, mantras, working with a priest, it is important for you to be a practitioner in that field and to believe in it.
6. Consult an astrologer if you know the dates of birth for your familiar. The astrologer might give you a perspective on what is the soul mission of the cat or dog and how it relates to your own.
7. As much as possible, try to donate, assist other animals, as you will gain more spiritual gold which will be distributed to the energy of your own at-home-fury-friend.

This is no individual healing journey. Once you are the protector and soul contract of a cat or dog, you are requested to be more intentional with your life. Because it is a healing journey you walk on together. Your life paths, however different outwardly, are intertwined for a purpose.

As I am writing these lines…I am remembering the words of an ex friend who in the middle of an argument with me, he told me that (and I quote): “I have a 5 year plan with training my body and this is my priority, not us”. Back then I laughed, oh this dude is exaggerating so much, he doesn’t know how to live in the now. But come to think of it, especially after experiencing a massive body healing journey since 2022, he was kind of…right.

I look at me now. After so much effort put into healing my body for the past 3 years, I still have days in which I forget to sleep as much as I need, to eat or drink the food I deserve. To use the optimisation devices I invested in. To move my body through walking, yoga, etc. I forget. I don’t prioritise myself enough.

The mornings that start with body care lead to my best, my most creative and most productive working days. No exception.

Around me, as well, I see so many cases in which the body is not the vessel for the soul to exist and live happily, but the means we use and abuse with caffeine, smoking, drinking, sleep deprivation or stress, doom scrolling first thing in the morning. The level at which we “professionals” tend to our bodies and nervous system is beyond modest, right into lame.

So why is this happening, especially in the age of information and instant availability?

We plan our careers, our finances, our vacations. But very few of us have a plan for the one thing that makes all of it possible: our body. The temple that carries our joys, sorrows, regrets, wins, mournings, orgasms, that carries it all.

As we step into a hyper-digital, AI-assisted, overstimulated, longevity-obsessed era, one truth becomes more urgent: we can’t transcend what we haven’t yet inhabited.

No app, no retreat, no meditation cushion, no biohacking device can replace the work of truly living inside your body, connecting with is, being aware of what it needs. Of what she needs. Call me a traditionalist, but we are not living in trans-humanism. Yet.

I don’t see a disembodied future for us.

In 2022, 1.8 billion adults were physically inactive, that’s 31.3% of the global population. The World Health Organization warned that if this continued, more than one-third of the world’s adults will be under-active by 2030.

We’re living longer, but not better.

By 2030, one in six people globally will be over 60. But most of these added years are projected to be lived in poor health, with frailty, inflammation, metabolic collapse, and preventable diseases like Type 2 diabetes or cardiovascular issues.

The World Economic Forum projects that chronic illness could cost the global economy $47 trillion by 2030.

All while wellness culture sells us affirmations, green juices, and spa days and retreats.

Imagine envisioning your next ten years. Your career, finances, maybe even a dream home or partner or family. But have you planned for the future of your body?

It’s tempting to believe enlightenment or technology alone can carry us forward. But I believe the physical body demands its due. No amount of mental zen or digital wizardry will exempt us from the consequences of neglecting our flesh-and-bone selves.

Yet, within all the scary statistics are seeds of hope. Many countries and communities are waking up to the need for change. Public health initiatives, legislations, programs, from promoting daily movement to improving nutrition, are gaining ground. On the horizon are new tools from advanced medications to personalised wellness tech, that could help us turn the tide as a species.

My big question is: will we actually use them wisely, in tandem with healthier habits?

It’s tempting to seek shortcuts for well-being. Even for me, using health-tech is easier than pranayama or yoga. But can we fix everything by calling in medical technology to fix everything?

The truth is, while mental and spiritual practices are valuable, they cannot replace physical health fundamentals. Think of it this way: you can have the sharpest mind or the smartest AI coach, but if your body is run-down, sleep-deprived, and poorly nourished, those advantages are drastically blunted.

Modern wellness culture sometimes falls into the trap of emphasising mind over matter, encouraging us to find inner calm while ignoring the body’s cries. But the science on this is crystal clear: the mind-body connection is non-negotiable. For example, regular exercise produces neuro-chemical changes akin to an antidepressant drug, boosting mood and resilience. Conversely, even the deepest meditation can’t compensate for chronic sleep deprivation when it comes to mental health. As Harvard doctors put it, no amount of mindfulness can erase the effects of a failing physical state. Or in the words of a World Health Organization report, “individual interventions without addressing basic physical needs show limited long-term success”.

I see affluent individuals with access to top healthcare still falling ill from lifestyle-related issues. You can hire a personal chef, but if you’re too stressed to digest properly or skipping workouts or in bad relationships, you’ll still pay the price. At the extreme, think of those who pour fortunes into age-defying tech, from blood transfusions to nootropics, yet ignore basic habits. As longevity expert Dr. Peter Attia says, exercise is the most potent longevity “drug” we have, far more impactful than any supplement or breakthrough on the market. His research found that regular exercisers live up to a decade longer than sedentary people on average. No AI or bank account can grant you an extra 10 healthy years if you haven’t done the literal leg work.

The bottom line is there is no escaping the physical. Our bodies are the foundation – the hardware that our mind’s software runs on. Treat it poorly, and even the best “life hacks” or tech devices will glitch. Treat it well, and everything else becomes easier. It’s a humbling lesson we’re collectively learning as technology races ahead: our ancient bodies still obey the laws of biology, and not Silicon Valley.

What about building a conversation around health-span, not only life span?

It’s not necessarily about adding years to life, but good life to years. Some futurists even suggest that by 2045 we might measure age by the vitality of our cells and years we feel truly alive, rather than birthday candles. In practical terms, that means prioritising daily habits that keep us energetic and resilient at every age.

1.What might a future of robust health look like, and how can you ride that wave? For one, muscle is making a comeback. No longer seen as merely a cosmetic “fitness” concern, muscle mass is now understood as critical for metabolic health, mobility, and even brain aging. Doctors are calling muscle an “organ” in its own right – one that can determine how well you weather old age. By 2030, more people in their 50s, 60s, and beyond lifting weights. A growing movement encourages viewing strength training like a retirement savings plan for your body.

2.We’ll also see precision medicine and personalised wellness become mainstream. The days of one-size-fits-all health advice are few. Wearable devices and DNA tests can tailor diets, exercise routines, and even supplement choices to your individual needs. Within the next ten years, your doctor might routinely check your genetic markers or gut microbiome and say, “Here’s the best fitness plan for your body, here’s how you can prevent disease X.”

3.Longevity science is booming. Researchers like Dr. David Sinclair are exploring ways to slow aging at the cellular level; companies are racing to develop anti-aging drugs, and some forecasters think diseases like type 2 diabetes or certain cancers could be drastically reduced with new therapies by 2035. From lab-grown replacement organs to gene edits that nip diseases in the bud. But even longevity experts emphasise the fundamentals: the logical first step to delay death is to get your metabolic house in order, in plain terms, fix your diet, weight, and exercise before banking on a wonder pill.

The fanciest future medicine will work best on a body that’s maintained well in the first place.

4.Crucially, mental and social well-being are being recognised as part of this whole picture. A healthy body isn’t just muscles and metrics, it’s also being connected and purpose-driven. Over 85 years of the Harvard Grant Study showed that strong relationships are a key predictor of health and happiness as we age. Loneliness and chronic stress actually damage the body, raising inflammation and risk of illness. So “body plan” doesn’t mean pumping iron in isolation; it means designing a life where your physical habits support your mental health, and vice versa. Think of simple things: a daily walk with a friend (exercise + connection), cooking a wholesome meal with family (nutrition + bonding), or a hobby that gets you moving and learning. The 2020s are teaching us that wellness is multi-dimensional. The people thriving in 2035 will likely be those who blend old wisdom and new science, who meditate and lift weights, who use health apps and get good sleep, who pursue success and make time to move their bodies.

Having a “body plan” means being intentional about caring for your physical self, the way you might be intentional about a career path or financial goal. It’s about respect. Your body is the vessel that carries you through every experience, it deserves a thoughtful strategy.

Start with honest reflection: if you project yourself 10 years into the future:

what kind of body do you want to be living in?

One that’s resilient, pain-free, and full of energy? What daily habits would make that vision a reality?

Jot it down, make it concrete.

Maybe it’s as straightforward as committing to 120 minutes of moderate exercise per week, but it’s doable with planning.

Maybe it’s a goal to keep your weight in a range that doesn’t strain your organs.

It could include sleep as a non-negotiable (getting those 7–8 hours knowing it’s nature’s best repair shop for body and brain).

It definitely should include listening to your body’s signals, addressing that back twinge or high blood pressure reading now, not later.

And yes, it can include mindfulness and meditation, but as complements to, not substitutes for, physical care.

Treat your body plan as an adventure. There will be setbacks, but having a plan means you’ll adjust course rather than give up.

Let’s get clear: no amount of mindset work will fix what’s broken metabolically. Meditation is powerful, but it is not a substitute for movement. No breath-work can reverse the collapse of muscle mass due to a sedentary life. No oracle or AI chatbot can sleep for you.

Physical resilience is the substrate of all transformation.

You cannot outsource embodiment

We’ve entered the age of wearables, digital twins, and biomarker tracking. Companies like WHOOP, Oura Ring, and Eight Sleep promise optimised recovery and predictive health alerts. Startups in Silicon Valley are building digital replicas of your organs to simulate disease risk. But even Sinclair, Attia, and Huberman agree on this: the fundamentals come first.

The body is a system. And a body plan is a love plan

This decade will reward those who embody the health content they consume. In this era overload, burnout, loneliness, and outsourced health, those who are in their bodies will lead and yes…survive. You can meditate. You can pray. You can invest in AI coaches. But if your cells are inflamed, your muscles underused, your breath shallow, your body is running your life in background mode. And eventually, it will crash.

Make your future more physical.

Here are some of my “secrets” for optimising my body, these are NON negotiable:

***Acupuncture on a regular basis, monthly

***Gendai Reiki, almost daily self-practice and once in a while sessions with my instructor

***Osteopathy, monthly session, it takes care of the fascia, posture, vagus nerve and health of my digestive system

***Light yoga, 10 min pranayama, walking in nature, daily (you already know I am always practising with my dear Yoga with Adriene)

***Healy Wellness, daily programs

***Optimised diet and intermitent fasting (if you are interested and want more details, contact me in private)

***8, 9 hours of sleep per night, and this is fundamental to my optimising routine

***Blood work once per year, regular health checks at medical professionals when needed

***Herbal (*traditionally Romanian) teas, no coffee but matcha, no gluten

***BioLamp, a couple of times per week

***I am truly worshiping my menstrual cycle. I don’t overwork when I shouldn’t, I create more when I should. I try to work with the energies of the week, the days, especially because I am an astrologer and numerologer.

***Thaico Spa Balinese or Thai massage, almost monthly

***Healing in Bali with my Master Ketut Arsana | yearly visits to his ashram

***Healthy relationships in family, with friends and romantic life, in business.