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Elisa Shankle believes in healing, so much so that the words are prominently displayed in her Instagram bio.
Image Courtesy of Elisa Shankle/Morgan Johnson
It reads,Healing Is a Lifestyle, and for Shankle, it is.
And ignore the pressure to get it right.
But we all have ups and downs."
Courtesy of Elisa Shankle
First, I want to askhow are you doing?
I feel pretty grounded right now.
I just got back from Vermont, where I was for three weeks.
Courtesy of Elisa Shankle
It feels really good to come back to Brooklyn with a better sense of groundedness.
Which often, in New York, is this toxic grind culture and need to perform.
When you strip that away, youre really forced to look at yourself and reevaluate: Who am I?
Courtesy of Elisa Shankle
What do I do?
How do you make space to do that?
It hasnt been easy.
I think its important for people to know not to feel pressure to get your wellness experience right.
Its not about right, or good, or bad, or anything like that.
Youre perfect just as you are in that everything is information.
A lot of people dont incorporate community.
It can feel really intimidating.
For me, being a Black-owned business is normal.
Being able to provide healing to the collective should be normalized.
So I make a run at really push that notion of like, this is whats supposed to be.
But really, what people have been doing [in the wellness space] has been of lack.
Opening HealHaus was really about providing space for everyone.
We cant do everything alone.
People ask me all the time, What is the first step to healing?
And its such a broad question, because its not one-size-fits-all.
Our entire being has so much information.
And I say thats often the first step to healing: awareness.
So throughmeditationand things like that you’re free to really start to plug in to what feels off.
And then youre able to know and identify that someone else has had that experience too.
And at HealHaus we do that through panel discussions, for instance.
Is there any specific routine or ritual that helps you through your day?
Number one is being in nature.
Its super grounding for me, especially being in New York.
Nature is my safety blanket and my detoxer.
I also will putdoTERRA On Guardessential oil blend in my diffuser to cleanse my space.
Meditating every morning is crucial.
I have my altar space in my living room, where I pray.
I appreciate silence and going inward.
So I always tell folks, explore what that means for you.
You always have the answers inside.
Right now, we have six classes a daythree yoga, three meditation classesseven days a week.
Its amazing to just release the body.
My herbal remedies are super important to my self-care regimen.
Im pretty much almost a daily user ofLilys CBD oiland also nervines.
Its pretty much a combination of things I just said.
Thats a practice I like to do at night before I go to sleep.
How have you been sleeping?
Im actually really good with my sleep.
I dont have issues with sleep, but I will have weird things witheating when Im stressed.
But I have not had issues with sleeping.
How do you mitigate that?
What has your relationship with social media been like these days?
Social media is such the devil.
Its easy to not have boundaries with it.
We have to protect and honor our joy right now.
If you have to mute someone on Instagram, do it.
You really have to choose what you absorb, because its all energy.
If youre absorbing a certain energy all day, its going to throw off your vibration, right?
Thats where I feel the best.
Therapy is super important.
My tribe has been super supportive.
I also look at everything through a spiritual lens.
So thats really, really important for me.
Energy healing is something I recommend that everyone try at some point.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
