Hello! I’m Erin.

Never give up. Always get go.

Birth Trauma Story: Mindfulness and somatics have saved my life again and again. At first I knew these practiced offered relief, now I know why. I was born on Feb 1, 1985 through a long labor with a depressed heart rate, the umbilical cord wrapped around my neck and potential sepsis. I stayed in the ICU for weeks after birth and was medicated for months after coming home. As you can imagine, this petrified my parents and affected all of our stress levels. My first imprint of life was struggling to survive and pushing past discomfort to do so.

Mindfulness practices helped me get back in touch with a body I had dissociated with due to the pain, body scans reminded me of all the places I had numbed. Somatics helped me start to reprocess the pain and find safety again. EMDR and birth trauma reprocessing have helped rewire my nervous system for calm instead of chaos, comfort instead of terror. This is a lifelong process, and I have learned through it how to read others’ bodies and facilitate healing experiences.

In my mid-thirties I discovered that I had been struggling with lifelong complications from an inability to clear mold. Practices like breathwork and humming kept my nervous system and mind (somewhat) sane as I realized that most of the placed I have livedmade me sick. I knew I was attracted to environments like saunas and beaches, but my survival brain kept me working and achieving my way out of resting there. I have thoughts on natural healing that I wish I knew a long time ago, like how saunas and binders can clear mold and Gut health IS mental health. Glutathione IVs can wash away the brain fog, and that two people in the same home can be affected completely differently from brith trauma and mold.

The way I process grief from a lifetime of chronic illness and nervous system dysregulation is by educating myself and others, and sharing my story in like-minded communities. I learned about Traditional Chinese Medicine and ran corporate and educational programs for eight years in Beijing, China. I ran trauma- sensitive facilitation trainings for two years in South Africa. I have my 500-hour Yoga and Ayurveda Training from Rishikesh India, Yoga for Anxiety + Depression training from LifeForce Yoga and studied the Wim Hof breathing method in Indonesia.

In 2016 we incubated our company at the University of Virginia (UVA) Venture Lab, as well as received multiple grants to teach and study mindfulness in the US. In 2023 I received a masters in social work (MSW) and certificate in Disability Leadership from VCU in Richmond, Virginia. TMBP works with various programs around the world, including the UVA Contemplative Sciences Center and Mind & Life Institute in Charlottesville.  I have facilitated personalized mindfulness programs for many types of people: teachers, college students, entrepreneurs, change makers, reporters and parents, making me comfortable with the art of code-switching.

Wherever you are is the entry point. 

The Mind Body Project’s mission to is offer smile-infused, science-backed, trauma-sensitive mindfulness and somatics programs for mental health, wellness and healing.

Hello! I’m Kurien.

Kurien Thomas (he/him), digital marketing strategist, podcaster and storytelling guru

Kurien joined The Mind Body Project during his senior year of undergrad at the University of Virginia. In the midst of Covid-19, he helped us bring our offerings online and into hospitals. Kurien jumped into learning everything from small business SEO to resilience research and branding.

Kurien is a master positivity, always willing to jump in and tackle a new subject. Outside of The Mind Body Project, he hosts dating meet-ups and does business analysis in Washington, DC. He is passionate about integrating mental health support with real solutions. Kurien continues to craft our story and image as only a storyteller can do. We don’t know where we would be without him!

Practice mindfulness with me