top of page
Meet Nicole

Even though I managed to climb the corporate ladder and work at the best billion dollar streaming media companies in the world, I never felt truly accomplished or "successful" since I was pushing through one burnout cycle after another. 

Nicole_Torres-7_edited.jpg

HOW I GOT HERE

Like many healers, therapists, and coaches - going through my own struggles, and eventually overcoming them, was what lit a fire in me to become a transformational self-worth coach. I wanted to help other women, avoid or heal from, what I went through while working in corporate tech.

On 

Through my 13 year career, I landed my "dream jobs" at the top billion dollar media and streaming companies. 

In my first few years working in tech, everthing looked great from the outside. On paper - I was educated, young but with experience, I was hitting all my goals, and I continued to move up in my career.  

 

On the inside... well let's just say I was a hot mess - I was exhausted, feeling angry, frustrated, and misunderstood.  

 

I was internalizing your standard 1st gen. trauma, perpetuated through systemic oppression and nepotism, manifesting as imposter phenomenon, and I had an "on again/off again" relationship with burnout: overwhelm, anxiety, shame, depression. NBD.

 

I was raised to believe that if I worked HARDER I would succeed. I would be seen, appreciated, and eventually rewarded. At least that's what my papi told me.  

But once I got inside, it wasn't what I expected. I was usually 1 of 2 women in an office...and almost always the only Latina. 

 

I tried to shrug off race and gender micro-aggressions at work as misunderstandings on my part:

"Did they just say that? I must have misunderstood them..." They always assured me they "were just joking!"  

Top all that off with a fun case of perfectionism and FREEZING when confronted with conflict, my confidence started to plummet. 
 

As smart as I was, I was totally unaware that my unresolved trauma was not letting me perform at my best! I had NO IDEA how to regulate my nervous system and I literally did not feel safe at times 

I was still operating from a place of SURVIVAL and since I didn't feel safe a lot of time, my body was naturally doing what it knew how to do. Survive: Fight, Flee, Freeze, and Fawn.

 

Back then, I was young and I could handle the stress my body was under, but I was 100% in a burnout cycle.

 

I was trying to manage the insane pace, deadlines, and workload.

My body never felt like it got good rest.

Some days my ADHD brain would just stop processing the tidal wave of data and I felt like a machine shutting down.

 

Back then, it wasn't "cool" to share that you were neurodivergant or on the spectrum.

#MeToo hadn't happened yet and no one gave a crap about "rights" in the corporate world of entertainment. Saying something meant you didn't get called back for more work.

 

This kind of work environment taught me how to ignore my body, it's needs, and my intuition.

This went on for about 10 YEARS. I suppressed my needs and worked over time, many times unpaid, to "make it" in my career. 

 

Even though I managed to climb the corporate ladder and work at the best billion dollar streaming media companies in the world, I never felt truly accomplished or "successful" since I was pushing through one burnout cycle after another.  Success didn't feel good.  

It wasn't until I realized that no one was going to save me or tell me how to do life "right". I just knew I needed a change and I couldn't keep doing the same things, living the same way. 

 

I finally asked for help and hired my first coach, Maxine of @bluestarguidance. Her specialty was helping creatives leave abusive and toxic work situations to follow their true passions. 

It was the best money I've ever spent.... Was I scared? Did I put it on a payment plan? YES.

 

#noregrets 

MY PASSION

Understanding and healing my trauma has completely transformed my life.

For this reason I give a whole lot of fu@ks about supporting Women of Color, who face the same challenges I personally grappled with for many years. I've recently put a lot of focus on helping 1st gen women of color because of the nuanced relationship they have with work and belonging. 

For you astro queens, here's a fun fact. Pluto and Saturn are sitting pretty in my 5th house...  I think back to the amount of times I was dragged by love, men, and men in positions of power. That coupled with my determination to find love that is safe and unlearn my survival patterns has continuously (at times been forced) shown me that I need to shed old ways of being - release outdated beliefs, and be painfully reborn again and again - better and better each time. I regret none of it. 

 

With all those "wisdom" making experiences made bright by my "silver lining" optimism - I had a lot of lived experience under my belt. Then at some point I realized I was the "go to" friend for advice on relationships. I truly enjoyed listening, helping, (colluding with) and nurturing my friends out of their own dark night of the soul and into the light. I wondered... "what would it be like if I just explored the possibility of empowering womxn... as a career!?"

 

I've always been rebellious at heart. So deciding to start over in my late 30s and scrapping my "formal" education, along with about $80K+ of education, felt like a big fu@!k you to the patriarchy and very on brand. (Gemini Rising).

 

So why not!? It'll be fun they said... 

 

After lots of exploring.. more money investing in my education...planning and saving, I moved through A LOT of fear and self-doubt and quit my job anyway! I left a 13 year career in Film/TV animation to pursue this path full time.

 

In February 2021 I joined millions of folx in the Great Resignation and fled for my sanity. I even traded my bungalow in East LA for a proper home in the San Bernardino mountains, nestled in fog and cedar wood trees. I COMMITTED!

 

It’s a literal dream come true to now work FULL TIME as a guide and mentor for young womxn struggling to find the balance between their ambition, their body's capacity, and what feels truly aligned

If my story resonates or you can see a way out of your experience by connecting with mine, I invite you to connect!

 

xoxo Nicole

BOOK A FREE CLARITY SESSION TO GET STARTED

SERVING WOMEN OF COLOR

My approach acknowledges that systemic oppression disproportionately and differentially affects women of color while mainstream coaching and/or spirituality makes it easy to bypass the very real effects of systemic oppression and at times denies these truths "with love and light" or "positive thinking".

 

Knowing this - it became imperative that I create healing containers where women of color can safely and comfortably discuss the nuanced topics that affect them without spiritual bypassing from others or baring the burden to minimize their pain and frustration.

 

Ouroboros Healing provides each member with judgement free empathy, sisterhood, and loving support from myself and their peers - who deeply understand them and their lived experiences.

MY APPROACH

My healing journey allowed me to learn and and train in various healing modalities and principles to help womxn reclaim their self-worth after losing themselves to toxic relationships. This can be a result of generational trauma, abusive work environments or co-workers, one-sided "friendships" or emotionally and physically abusive romantic relationships. Unlearning toxic subconscious programming will unleash your highest potential, heal limiting beliefs, boost your confidence, and improve ALL areas of your life!

I use a holistic healing approach that bridges the world of psychology and energetics. Currently, I'm  working on my certification for Integrative Somatic Trauma Therapy. I gently guid my clients into first connecting with their bodies, trusting what it's saying, and understand the physiological effects that extreme stress and trauma has on the body. I base much of my approach on regulating the nervous system, poly vagal theory, family systems, and internal parts work. I work with both "top down" and "bottom up" approaches to process the energy of any emotions or triggers that may rise up for you.

As we unravel the internal knots, I weave in energy work and assist clients with the energetic release of any stuck energy that they've been carrying from past hurts. What's great about energy healing is that it's non-invasive and many times it doesn't require you to "re-live" trauma the way some talk therapy is structured. There is absolutely a place for talking and processing but when we work on somatic release, the goal it to leave less activated in a session then when you showed up. 

Being trauma informed means that I navigate our relationship gently and meet you where YOU are in your journey. I understand that there is more to changing behavior than just "thinking positively. My role is to hold space for the damage that systemic issues have caused in the lives of my1st gen and WOC clients. When necessary I reflect the fact that these realities can at times stand in the way of their healing - at no fault of their own. I hold the weight of that with them and encourage them to keep going. 

My desire is to be the example for women of color and future generations to normalize healing and self-development. I hold a vision of a future that no longer shames folx for expressing their feelings, being vulnerable, having compassion, or raising children consciously to care for others and the planet. We're not "CRAZY" and there is nothing wrong with us for seeking support and learning new tools to better our life. 

 

Let us create lives that are FULL OF JOY so we can align our hearts desires to this lived reality and we can truly live our ancestors' wildest dreams. 

NICOLE_sunshine.png
harmony happens when our thoughts, actions, and words all align.

But first, we must feel safe.

EDUCATION & INFLUENCES

My deepest love and gratitude to the teachers, healers, witches, and clinicians who came before me

  • December 2023 - Certification in progress - "Integrative Somatic Trauma Therapy" - The Embody Lab 

  • May 2023 - "The Art of Healing in Relationships: Resolving Trauma & Restoring Connection" - With Terry Real and Dr. Diane Poole Heller

  • February 2021- Left career in film/television production to pursue Ouroboros Healing Full Time!

  • July 2020 - Took my 1st private client through the RECLAIMING program!

  • October 2019 - Certified Advanced Akashic Records Reader "Discover Your Soul's Path Through The Akashic Records: Taking Your Life from Ordinary to ExtraOrdinary" - With Helen Vonderheide

  • January 2019 - 2020 - Studied Transpersonal Spiritual Coaching and built out RECLAIMING course in "You Are A Healer" - with Maxine Dillon of @bluestarguidance

  • July 2019 - Certified Emotion Code Practitioner - With Dr. Bradley
     Nelson

  • August 2019 - Certified Akashic Records Reader, "Healing Through The Akashic Records: Using the Power of Your Sacred Wounds to Discover Your Soul's Perfection" At Spirit House Collective with With Helen Vonderheide

  • June 2018 - "The Warrior Within" - with Maxine Dillon of @bluestarguidance 

  • January 2017 - Certified Usui Reiki - Level 1 with @madrejaguar at  Spirit House Collective

BOOK A FREE CLARITY SESSION TO GET STARTED

HEALING IS NOT LINEAR

The Ouroboros [oor-uh-bohr-uh s] is one of the oldest known symbols, tracing back to Egyptian iconography, representing renewal and the cyclical cycle of life, death, and rebirth.

 

When left with nothing to eat, the serpent feeds on its own tail, becoming the "ouroboros.” It can sustain itself and become its own source of nourishment and life. Or it can too quickly consume itself and be the cause of its own destruction.

 

I chose the Ouroboros to reflect a symbolic "choice point.” Ultimately, we all have to make the choice to be our own source of power or to be consumed by our circumstances. We face this choice multiple times in our lifetime because our healing, growth, and evolution is cyclical, not linear.

Screen Shot 2023-02-23 at 11.46.04 AM.png
bottom of page