Carrie Eckert
Founder & Somatic Practitioner at Avocado to Zen

After a decade as a pharmaceutical sales rep and then a freelance graphic designer, Carrie had a health crisis in 2012 that changed the trajectory of her career path. Though different doctors and therapists were able to address some of her mysterious symptoms, none could pinpoint the root cause of her faltering health.

Since that time, she has been on a steady journey to improve her health. She first met and consulted with experts in everything from nutrition to the immune system, and what she learned led to some very positive lifestyle changes. However, she found that the functional medicine approach wasn't enough.

In 2014, she began working toward a Master's degree in Nutrition & Integrative Health and soon discovered the power of neuroplasticity, the brain's ability to rewire itself. The mind-hacking tools she implemented played a significant role in her journey back to health and wholeness. She then received a Master's degree in Health & Wellness Coaching, emphasizing Mind-Body Healing. She has trained with industry-leading professionals, including best-selling author, life coach, and O Magazine columnist, Dr. Martha Beck, limbic system rehab specialist, Annie Hopper, and founder of The School of The Work, Byron Katie. 

Even though she was knee-deep in her investigative journey to get to the root of the health challenges draining her energy, she felt intuitively called to begin leading group events in 2015. These mini-day retreats started in her home with circles of a dozen or so women and included a mix of meditations, group coaching, body movement, creative play, and nutritious lunches.

Over the past decade, Carrie has become a certified TRE (Tension, Stress, and Trauma Release) Provider, Certified Breathwork Facilitator, Spinal Attunement Practitioner, and certified Transformational Breathwork Guide—all somatic modalities rooted in the movement of physical and emotional energy through the body so that deep healing can take place.

In 2020, on the heels of her TRE certification, she dove into leading virtual groups in this trauma release modality twice weekly. Shortly thereafter, sacred cacao appeared on her path, and it was love at first sip. Her love of ceremonial cacao has been the thread that weaves these somatic and nervous system balancing techniques together. The "medicine" has also deepened her alignment with leading groups in ceremonies, circles, and retreats.

Experience

•More than a decade of experience in envisioning and leading group events
•Authored Going with My Gut: How Intuition Healed My Body—and My Life
•Created, launched and implemented her online neuroplasticity course, Free Your Mind
•Certified Wayfinder Coach | Martha Beck (2017)
•Certified TRE® (Tension & Trauma Releasing Exercises) Practitioner (2021)
•Certified Breathwork Facilitator | David Elliott (2022)
•Emotional Release Guide | Neo Emotional Release (2023)
•Certified Spinal Attunement Practitioner | Soma Mystica (2024)

Formal Education

• Master of Arts in Health & Wellness Coaching | Maryland University of Integrative Health (2017)
• Bachelor of Arts in Economics | Davidson College (1997)

Personal

• Enjoys exploring non-humid, cool climates in summer and dreams of spending time in Provence and SoCal
• Avid reader, enjoys watercolor painting and diving into the healing frequencies of her growing collection of sound bowls, and hasn’t completely given up her childhood dream of acting and singing in musicals on stage