Why Collective Healing Is Essential In Moments of Global Crisis

Written By Ali Montoya

Episode 5

In this episode, host Danielle Begg sits down with Rola Kalafawi, a trauma informed yoga teacher originally from Gaza, whose work supports refugee women, including many newly arrived refugees from Gaza, as they navigate displacement, grief, and the complexities of starting again. 

Rola shares her remarkable journey from a demanding career at the United Nations to discovering the grounding and nervous system nourishment of yoga after facing significant health challenges. What began as a personal search for healing became a calling to offer embodied support to women living through trauma. 

Rola discusses: 

  • The turning point that led her to step away from her fast paced United Nations career and embrace movement, fitness, and eventually yoga as a form of self repair 

  • Why yoga became her anchor, helping her slow down, soften, and reconnect after years of chronic stress

  • Her approach to trauma informed teaching, and how she builds spaces where refugee women can feel safe in the full spectrum of their emotions: grief, anger, gratitude, joy, despair, guilt, and everything in between 

  • The power of community and collective healing, especially for women confronting the ongoing trauma of displacement and the weight of what is happening back home

  • What it means to show up imperfectly and still be held, seen, and supported, and how that in itself can be profoundly healing 

With compassion and clarity, Rola highlights that safety isn't created by perfect conditions; it's created by presence, choice, and the courage to come together. She reminds us that healing doesn't happen in isolation; it happens in community, breath by breath.

 

Tune in to Discover

  • How embodied practices help regulate the nervous system during times of acute stress

  • What trauma informed yoga looks and feels like for women with lived experience of conflict and displacement

  • Why collective healing is essential in moments of global and personal crisis 

  • How practitioners and facilitators can create safer spaces for everyone

Ali Montoya

Ali Montoya is the brand strategist behind Amari Creative, a branding studio that specializes in building strategic brands and websites for ambitious entrepreneurs by pairing engaging copy with striking design. Since starting Amari Creative in 2016, Ali has worked with over 500 small businesses and solopreneurs to help them go from a mere idea to a full-blown brand.

On top of running her agency, Ali is also the Co-Founder of The Studio Co. where she helps brand and website designers build, grow, and scale their studios, all while designing a life they love.

Based in sunny Colorado with her husband and goldendoodle pup, Ali is an adventure lover, wellness enthusiast, and creative visionary.

http://www.amaricreative.com
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