One-Week Intimate Ayahuasca Retreat | Nosara, Costa Rica

Francesca is a naturopathic medical practitioner, holistic nutritionist, and plant medicine facilitator. Growing up in the Midwest, she sparked a desire at a young age to be of service to the world around her as she witnessed a health and spiritual epidemic. She left home at a young age and began traveling the world gaining knowledge in mind-body medicine and spiritual teachings. Her passion is rooted in guiding others through a variety of natural healing practices to help them restore their vitality and true essence. She is committed to helping others rediscover their empowerment through self-healing, compassion-based therapy, and connection to Spirit. Since beginning her work with shamanic healing practices and plant medicine, Francesca has helped hundreds of clients release the imprints of trauma and emotional imbalances they carried with them for years. She supports her clients intimately as they move away from Western medical practices that solely treat disease symptoms and inspires them to find emotional liberation and embodied aliveness through treating the root-causes of their pain, often originating in childhood trauma. Francesca is a trauma-informed practitioner and long-term student of Gabor Maté’s work specializing in early-developmental trauma, somatic healing, and addiction therapy. Francesca’s work is alive with passion and vitality. She believes wholeheartedly that every being on Earth is deserving and capable of emotional freedom and sustainable health, through integrating the parts of ourselves with unwavering compassion. She herself lived a life of addiction and disconnection for years before her first encounter with Ayahuasca, served by beautiful Shipibo maestros that have become her life-long teachers. Her love and reverence for the Shipibo lineage and healers she works besides is felt by her guests. A forever student and explorer of life, Francesca continues her ever-unfolding journey of deepening with plant medicine and working to bridge ancient indigenous practices with the Western world in need of deep collective healing.

Neils’ spiritual practice is primarily informed by the decade he spent living in Peru. During this time, he worked extensively with indigenous shamanic traditions of the Shipibo, Mestizo, and Quechua cultures. He has created, directed, and facilitated many Ayahuasca retreats throughout Latin America and guided thousands of clients through their personal plant medicine journeys.

Those who have worked with Neils are inspired by his deep sensitivity and connection to earth energy and spirit. He embodies an innate gentleness and profound trust in each person’s process and has a unique way of guiding other towards their sacred, heart medicine. He incorporates elements of Somatic Experiencing, IFS, Compassionate Inquiry, and a heart-based, humanistic approach in his work supporting plant medicine. The core of his work is centered around gently guiding clients back to presence, deep acceptance, and trust. At heart, Neils is a traveler and a seeker. He is passionate about honoring indigenous traditions and facilitating the remembrance of ancient wisdom. Neils is deeply committed to his mission to help others reconnect to self, source, reciprocity, and deep liberation.