With the world in the throes of a global pandemic, it is natural to view this time as one of chaos and uncertainty. However, Hollywood’s foremost spiritual guru believes it can also be a period of introspection, growth and transformation. Cristina Dam is the founder of LA’s two leading holistic wellness centers, Liberate Hollywood and Liberate Emporium, which provide services including spiritual readings, Reiki energy healing, past life regression and bodywork.
Due to the ongoing health crisis and ensuing lockdowns, Dam and her team of practitioners have taken many of their offerings online, hosting guided meditations and breathwork sessions remotely. A licensed hypnotherapist with two master’s degrees in psychology and educational foundations, Dam also helps clients quit destructive habits such as smoking, nail-biting and fear of flying, a service she has continued to provide virtually. Dam tells NEW YOU, “I have a three session guarantee and I’ve never had to give anyone’s money back.”
During an exclusive interview with NEW YOU, Dam shared her insight on how people can learn to look within themselves, achieve happiness and self-fulfillment, and embrace change –– even amid the coronavirus outbreak.
NEW YOU: Most people are really struggling during the COVID-19 pandemic. What impact have you noticed?
Christina Dam: I think that it is two-fold. The effect that it’s had an impact which is perceived by some people as a negative at first. But if people can get beyond that, for the first time in maybe someone’s adult life, people are sitting with more time to themselves. And in that state of isolation, in inward reflection, a lot of shadow stuff has been coming out for people. And even people who would join us for meditations or remote services, they were just having a really hard time grappling with the six stages of grief and going through that and having some level of denial, having a level of shock, a little bit of resistance and even anger. And then people sit in with that and they get to acceptance. I’m noticing that a lot of people are actually realizing who they are and what they really want. Your evenings are spent with you. And if you can utilize this time and this energy to really reevaluate your life and then create a foundation for what you want for your life moving forward, this can be the best time for people in history to reinvent themselves.
NEW YOU: How do you think people can achieve happiness and self-fulfillment during this time?
Christina Dam: For someone to have happiness and self-fulfillment, it’s really about being in alignment with their truth. Most people spend a large portion of their lives, if not their whole lives, not knowing what that truth is. Being distracted. Saying, “I went to this school. I studied this major. I don’t even know why I picked it, but I grabbed this career. I continue to say yes to these, these and these activities. But this isn’t even me.” But they didn’t even get the chance to know themselves. If we backtrack, it’s being in one’s truth. And I think that it’s a lot simpler than people have made it out to be. There’s been a chase and a race and gotta get this, have this, own this. But I think the true happiness for people comes from the simplicity of being in the moment, being present and noticing the beauty of themselves and the things around them.
NEW YOU: What are your tips for people who are feeling overwhelmed by the constantly changing state of current events?
Christina Dam: One of the biggest things is that in any time of uncertainty, especially now, there’s the feeling of loss of control. It’s not knowing. People have to take back control and empowerment in their life. I would highly suggest that people make a schedule, make a little routine for themselves. Let’s start with first analyzing the different areas of their life. Where is it that they’re feeling that dissatisfaction, that loss or that helplessness? And let’s look at those different areas and then let’s say, what can you control right now? It’s not about being overwhelmed with the outside world; that we can’t control. The more we focus on it, the more fear, the more uncertainty and the more helplessness we feel.
But in your daily life and what you do in your 24 hours a day, you can control that. It’s about saying, “What little things can you add to take more control of your health and wellness?” Can you go to YouTube and do a ten minute meditation or sit with yourself for ten minutes a day? Small, simple steps lead to big results.
I also think that one of the biggest things that people can do is declutter their life. This is the perfect time to go through your closets, your cupboards, your home and get rid of anything that doesn’t serve you or that doesn’t make you happy. Start to clear that away because if you have a clear and clean space, a clean bedroom and a clean house, you’re going to have a cleaner inside. The outside is the reflection of your internal self.
NEW YOU: How would you address the fear of change that emerges from this period of introspection and questioning?
Christina Dam: If we can change people’s fear into excitement. Change is the only thing with certainty that is guaranteed. Tomorrow will never be like today and we are always changing. So instead of saying, “I’m super fearful,” how could you change the story to, “I’m curious what this world’s going to be?” Change the narrative to, “I’m curious of what’s going to unfold.” Curiosity forms excitement. “I’m curious what my life is going to look like a year from now. I’m curious what society is going to look like. I’m curious how the systems are going to change form and reform.”
Language is powerful. The way that we say things to ourselves literally changes our state. People don’t want the same thing in life, even though they feel like they do. There’s this craving inside for new. We are in the process of reinventing the world and instead of focusing on it as if it’s all going to be doom and gloom, what if it could be amazing? What if you could come out of this better than you’ve ever been? What if society reforms in a way that is more fair and equal for all? This doesn’t have to be a dreadful time. This is definitely a very hard-pressed, changing time but we collectively and individually are going to decide what it ends up becoming.
For more information about Cristina Dam, Liberate Hollywood and Liberate Emporium, please visit liberateemporium.com and liberatehollywood.com.
