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Sahar | Somatic Practitioner

@saharpaz

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Helping you leave survival mode & expand your capacity for life.
☀️Certified Somatic Practitioner
🎓Graduate Researcher
✍️ Author of Find Your Voice

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For years, I studied communication, patient advocacy, and healing through lived experience.

Today, I’m honored to share that I’ve been accepted into a Master of Science program in Consciousness, Spirituality, and Transpersonal Psychology.

One of the teachings I often return to in somatic work is to pay attention to synchronization. The moments when life seems to align, opportunities appear, and the next step reveals itself before you’ve fully planned it.

I’ve come to believe that a regulated nervous system acts like an antenna. When we’re not consumed by survival, fear, or hypervigilance, we can hear ourselves more clearly. We can hear each other more clearly. And for many of us, we can hear something greater than ourselves.

This next chapter will allow me to bring research into the work we do at House of Paz, exploring the intersection of nervous system regulation, trauma, chronic illness, consciousness, and healing—especially for communities of color that have historically been underrepresented in this field.

The mission remains the same: helping people move from survival mode to a life that feels safe enough to fully live.

The difference is that now we’ll be contributing to the research, too. 🤍

#HouseOfPaz #NervousSystemRegulation #TraumaHealing #TranspersonalPsychology #ChronicIllnessHealing by @saharpaz

For two years, Mexico meant treatment.

This time, it means celebration.

As I watched old videos of myself saying “Day 1,” “Day 2,” and “Day 3” of treatment, I realized how much has changed.

One of the biggest lessons from this journey is that the body heals best when it feels safe. A regulated nervous system helps create homeostasis—a state of balance where the body can shift out of constant stress and back into the functions it was designed for: repair, recovery, digestion, immunity, and healing. We can’t heal well when we’re always bracing for the next threat.

Healing wasn’t just about the protocols, appointments, or medications. It was also about learning how to come out of survival mode, regulate my nervous system, and create enough safety in my body to receive life again.

Today, I’m here celebrating my mom. And that feels like a miracle worth honoring.

#NervousSystemRegulation #CancerRecovery #HealingJourney #SomaticHealing #HouseOfPaz by @saharpaz

The Art of Being Alive | Part 3: The Freedom to Play

Turns out, I am NOT a natural at pottery. 😂

On my 48th birthday in Cappadocia, our group visited @chez_galip Chez Galip, where we met the legendary pottery artist known as Einstein.

When it was time for someone to try the pottery wheel, my travel companions unanimously volunteered the birthday girl. Thanks, guys! 😂

And I was absolutely terrible. But I laughed the ENTIRE time.

I wasn’t trying to master anything. I was simply playing, enjoying the experience, and allowing myself to receive all the love and encouragement around me.

Here’s the nervous system lesson:

Through somatic movement, I’ve learned that our bodies don’t just benefit from discipline and effort. Curiosity, pleasure, and play are powerful ways to learn, connect, and experience joy.

Not everything needs to be productive. Sometimes laughter IS the accomplishment.

A huge thank you to my wonderful travel crew for making my birthday so memorable, and to Chez Galip for the experience!

I also left with a whole new appreciation for the patience and artistry pottery requires. Which means I have to shout out my childhood friend @ceramicsbyrana , who creates beautiful pottery. My respect for your talent has officially skyrocketed!

Here’s to being beginners, making messes, and remembering how to PLAY.

#TheArtOfBeingAlive #HouseOfPaz #NervousSystemRegulation #cappadocia by @saharpaz

The Art of Being Alive | Part 2: The Ritual of Beauty

One thing I’ve noticed working with women at House of Paz is that nervous system regulation isn’t just about learning to manage stress. It’s also about creating more room for beauty, pleasure, connection, and joy.

So many of my clients have spent decades achieving, caregiving, surviving, and putting everyone else’s needs before their own.

💜🦄Somewhere along the way, beauty became a luxury. Pleasure became something to earn. And joy became something to experience only after everything else was done.

But here’s what I remind them: Your nervous system doesn’t just need relief from stress. You also deserve experiences that help you feel safe, connected, and fully alive.

And that doesn’t require expensive vacations or extravagant purchases.

It can be as simple as drinking tea from your favorite cup, buying yourself flowers, lighting a candle at dinner, or taking the scenic route home.

These small rituals invite us to slow down, savor, and reconnect with ourselves.

🩵🦋Romanticizing your life isn’t about escaping reality or pretending everything is perfect.

It’s about refusing to postpone beauty and joy until life becomes easier.

Because nervous system regulation isn’t the destination. Expanding your capacity to experience life is.

And that, my friends, is part of The Art of Being Alive.

What’s one small way you bring beauty into your everyday life?

#TheArtOfBeingAlive #HouseOfPaz #NervousSystemRegulation #RomanticizeYourLife #IntentionalLiving by @saharpaz

The Art of Being Alive | Part 1: Beyond Survival

For so much of my life, I was learning how to survive. How to push through. How to keep going, even when life felt impossibly heavy.

But somewhere along my healing journey, I realized something: I didn’t do all this work just to become better at surviving.

I did it to LIVE.

To experience wonder. To laugh until my stomach hurts. To connect with strangers who become friends. To try new things, explore unfamiliar places, and feel fully present in the moments that make life extraordinary.

That’s what expanding our capacity for life is really about.

Nervous system regulation isn’t the destination. It’s one of the ways we create more room for everything life has to offer.

This trip to Turkey was such a beautiful reminder of that. And it’s inspired a new series I’m calling The Art of Being Alive, where I’ll be sharing reflections on wonder, creativity, connection, freedom, and the beautiful messiness of being human.

Because healing isn’t supposed to become our entire life. It’s supposed to help us live it.

A special thank you to @sefa._uz , truly the BEST guide in Turkey, for making this experience unforgettable!

To Aditi, Prerana, Rosa, Nancy, Janae, Sarah, Allie, Emma, Katie, Adrian, and Lynton — thank you for the laughter, adventures, conversations, and memories. Each of you made this journey more meaningful.

And thank you to @flashpack for bringing us all together and creating the space for such an extraordinary experience.

Here’s to more life. More wonder. More of all of it. ❤️

#TheArtOfBeingAlive #HouseOfPaz #BeyondSurvival #NervousSystemRegulation #FlashPack by @saharpaz

Goodbye, 47.

You were the year everything began to change.

The year the seeds I planted in silence began to bloom. The year the work no one saw, the prayers no one heard, and the courage it took to keep showing up finally began to take root.

Not just in one area of my life, but in so many.

You were the year I began to see that nothing was wasted. Not the detours. Not the heartbreak. Not the waiting. Not even the seasons when I wondered if all my effort was leading anywhere.

Somewhere along the way, I stopped trying to become who I thought I needed to be and started trusting the woman I was becoming.

And what a beautiful thing it is to arrive at this age with less to prove, more to give, and a deeper understanding of what truly matters.

I am proud of the life I’ve built. Even more proud of the life I’m learning to allow.

There is still so much I want to create, experience, discover, and become.

And perhaps the greatest gift of 47 was realizing that I am not running out of time.

In so many ways, I’m just getting started.

Hello, 48. ✨ by @saharpaz

Cancer Tried to Steal My 40s | Part 4 of 4
And Now, I Get to Live.

Before leaving for my scans, I grabbed my bathing suit and a towel.

I didn’t know what the results would be. But somewhere inside me, I knew I wanted to be ready to celebrate.

And when the news came that my scans were clear, I went straight to the pool.

Not to accomplish anything. Not to check something off my list. Just to be in my body, feel the sunshine, move through the water, and experience joy.

For five years, so much of my relationship with my body revolved around fear, treatments, scans, and uncertainty. I spent a lot of time wondering what was happening inside me instead of appreciating everything my body was still allowing me to experience.

And that’s something I’m learning to reclaim.

My body is not just a place where illness happened. It’s also where joy, freedom, pleasure, peace, and possibility live.

As I close this four-part series, I feel an incredible amount of gratitude. But there’s also tenderness for the years I spent surviving, and excitement for the woman I’m still becoming.

I don’t know what the future holds. None of us do.

But I know I don’t want to spend the rest of my life waiting for certainty before I give myself permission to live.

Cancer tried to steal my 40s. It taught me more than I ever imagined, led me closer to my calling, and changed how I understand what it means to be alive.

And now, I’m ready for a new chapter.

One where I don’t just survive in my body. I get to live in it. ❤️

Thank you for being part of this journey.

#CancerSurvivorship #LifeAfterCancer #EmbodiedLiving #HouseOfPaz #ReclaimingMyLife by @saharpaz

Cancer Tried to Steal My 40s | Part 3 of 4

Cancer tried to steal my 40s. And in many ways, it did.

I was 41 when this journey began. Five years of scans, treatments, uncertainty, and learning to live with the fear of what might come next.

But somewhere along the way, cancer became one of my greatest teachers.

It taught me that while I couldn’t always control what was happening inside my body, I could change how I cared for myself through it.

I learned to regulate my nervous system. To meditate. To listen to my body instead of constantly fearing it. To find moments of peace even when my circumstances were anything but peaceful.

And perhaps the greatest gift was that it connected me more deeply to my calling.

That’s why I created House of Paz.

A space dedicated to helping people move beyond survival mode and expand their capacity for peace, presence, resilience, and joy through somatic practices, storytelling, and meaningful experiences.

Because I know what it’s like to spend years surviving and forget what it feels like to truly live.

If you’re navigating cancer, facing a difficult diagnosis, or living with the fear of what might happen next, please don’t lose hope.

Work with your medical team. Support your nervous system alongside your treatment. Make space for your mind, body, and spirit.

You don’t have to wait for life to become certain to experience moments of peace.

I would never have chosen cancer as my teacher. But I can’t deny what it taught me about my purpose, my body, and the life I want to live.

Cancer may have taken years from my life, but it also awakened something in me that I intend to carry into every year ahead. ❤️

#CancerSurvivorship #HouseOfPaz #NervousSystemRegulation #MindBodyConnection #NeverLoseHope by @saharpaz

Cancer Tried to Steal My 40s | Part 2 of 4

One of the most important things five years of cancer taught me is the value of having people on your medical team whom you genuinely trust.

When you’re navigating a diagnosis, there’s so much that feels outside your control. Finding practitioners who listen, respect your concerns, and make you feel like an active participant in your care can make all the difference.

I’m also incredibly grateful to have access to an independent imaging center where I can take a more proactive role in my health.

Because advocacy isn’t just about asking questions. It’s about knowing you have choices, understanding your options, and building relationships with people who see you as more than a diagnosis.

And there’s something else I’ve learned: Feeling safe and supported matters, especially when you’re navigating uncertainty.

You deserve a medical team that cares for the whole person, not just the disease.

If you’re navigating your own health journey, I hope you remember that your voice belongs in every conversation about your care. ❤️

#CancerSurvivorship #PatientAdvocacy #CancerJourney #WholePersonCare #ReclaimingMyLife by @saharpaz

Cancer Tried to Steal My 40s | Part 1 of 4

Getting good news never gets old. ❤️

After five years of navigating cancer, countless scans, appointments, and moments of uncertainty, I can tell you that hearing the words “your scans are clear” hits differently every single time.

There’s a kind of relief that’s hard to explain unless you’ve lived with the uncertainty of what the next scan might reveal.

And while I’m celebrating this news, I’m also reflecting on everything these five years have taught me about my body, my nervous system, hope, and what it really means to live.

Over the next four videos, I’m sharing pieces of that journey. Not just the challenges, but the wisdom, the gratitude, and the life I’m reclaiming.

Because surviving and living are not always the same thing. And I’m ready for more living. ❤️

#CancerSurvivorship #CancerJourney #NervousSystemRegulation #LifeAfterCancer #ReclaimingMyLife by @saharpaz

MediTEAtion with Sahar is this weekend! It is so fun y’all. Hope you can make it…

Saturday October 10
11am-12:30pm

Sign up here:
https://www.houseofpaz.org/events/mediteation-1 by @saharpaz

Ahhh, October. 💗 When suddenly EVERYTHING turns pink… including brands selling products with ingredients I wouldn’t personally put on my body or in my home. 😬

Pink ribbon? Cute.
Knowing what’s actually IN the product? Cuter.

One resource that made this whole process so much easier for me was EWG’s Healthy Living (@ewgverified ) app. I could scan products while shopping, look up ingredients, check information about my water, and make more informed choices about what I use in my home and on my body.

Because reducing unnecessary exposure to potentially harmful chemicals doesn’t have to mean throwing away everything you own and moving into the woods. 😂

Scan. Learn. Swap when you can. Keep it simple.

And during Breast Cancer Awareness Month, I’d love to see a little more attention on prevention and environmental exposures alongside all that pink. 💗

#BreastCancerAwareness #Pinktober #EWGHealthyLiving #LowToxLiving #HouseOfPaz by @saharpaz