Zen Odyssey

HI,
I'M CHANDRA ZAS!

HEALTH COACH, MOTHER, PARTNER, MENTOR, AUTHOR.

Why I’m Here Sharing With You..

Living with chronic illness can be a painful and isolating experience. At the age of 2, I was diagnosed with a chronic digestive disorder that resulted in severe eczema and asthma by the age of three. Throughout my childhood, I was on a restrictive diet and dependent on medication. The doctors told me that there was no cure for me, and I would need to take medication for the rest of my life to manage my symptoms.
 
As a teenager, I felt like there was little reason to live. My experience of life was miserable, and I was bloated, overweight, constipated, in pain, foggy-headed, depressed, and fatigued. However, I refused to accept this as my reality and started to question my prognosis and the medications I was taking. Walking out of the doctor’s office, I was determined to live a life without medications, but I had no idea how to achieve that.
 
Throughout my university years, I continued to suffer from depression and anxiety. I decided to dive head-first into personal development, self-help, meditation, yoga, energy healing, dance, therapy, and psychotherapy. I even tried different diets, cleanses, and detoxes. Despite trying everything, I still struggled with my health.
 
After graduating at the top of my class in graphic design, I decided not to pursue a career in a cubicle. Instead, I followed my heart and headed straight for yoga teacher training. Here, I discovered the healing power of yoga and started to make significant changes in my life. I was finally able to find a purpose and a passion that allowed me to connect with myself and others.
 

Through my personal journey, I learned that there is no one-size-fits-all solution when it comes to health. What worked for me may not work for someone else. However, I believe that everyone has the power to take control of their health and make a change in their life.

Health Coach - Chandra Zas
Health Coach

The Journey to Wellness

Gestalt Therapy at the Esalen Institute

After struggling with depression for years, I lived and worked at the Esalen Institute, the birthplace of Gestalt therapy and the Human Potential Movement. During my five years at the institute, I participated in over one hundred workshops that helped me to get in touch with my emotions and gain a deeper understanding of myself. This was the first wave of relief to my depression: learning to feel.

Raw Food and Mindfulness at BodyMind Restoration Retreats

Following my time at the Esalen Institute, I lived and worked at BodyMind Restoration Retreats in Ithaca, NY. Here, I learned about the power of raw food cleansing and the connection between the mind and body. I learned how to watch my mind, I learned about awareness. Learned how to follow my breath.
Through these practices, I learned how to use my mind instead of allowing it to use me.

Ayurveda and Eastern Medicine at the Dhyana Center

My journey then took me to the Dhyana Center in Sebastopol, where I studied and practiced Ayurveda for two years. This was a deep dive into the wisdom of Eastern medicine, which introduced me to a whole new paradigm of understanding health. I learned that holistic health is about understanding the interplay between the physical, mental, and emotional aspects of being human.

Holistic Health and the Wellness Paradigm

My experiences with Gestalt therapy, raw food and mindfulness practices, and Ayurveda have all contributed to my understanding of holistic health and the wellness paradigm. A person is a physical, mental, and emotional being. Understanding the interplay between these parts of what being a human is, is the greatest contributor for a healthy life.

Fast Forward

I learned how to eat to heal my symptoms. I surpassed my own goal of living a high-quality life without any medications and have become a health example to everyone around me.

I recently had a blood test; the nurse told me that I have the healthy blood of a teenager. I live symptom-free, without any medications, by practicing exactly what I teach in my Food and Mood Program.

I’ve traveled the world. Started two successful businesses, and worked in many different industries. Tried all sorts of relationship structures, and explored the insights and magic of multiple different plant medicines. Married the man of my dreams, and birthed my daughter at age 37 who is the healthiest most amazing product of the work I do. I’m symptom, medication, depression, and anxiety free.

I’m a published writer and most importantly I am excited to wake up every day and to live my life. I have no intestinal pain, I have a nourishing relationship with food, and my mind is clear.

Learn to use your mind, and not let it use you”

–  David, Zen Master

I used to be emotionally explosive and dramatic in relationships.

I used to unconsciously believe that I needed to be a people pleaser to be loved and accepted.

I used to live with a scarcity mindset, where nothing ever felt like enough, especially me.

I unconsciously ate all the emotions that I did not know how to feel and process properly.

I was addicted to sugar. I had an overeating problem (binging and anorexia), and I was 50 pounds overweight more than once.

Health Coach

I realized that after I had healed my Self, I was ready to contribute to the world!

I studied under and was certified by my mentor Master Coach Brooke Castillo, an educated psychologist, self-help guru. Studying with Brooke was the puzzle piece that brought my life’s experience together. I now felt equipped to help others make changes in their lives.

I used to think that life coaching was cheesy and lame… until I understood that a life coach helps people CHANGE. Now I think it is the best ‘job’ in the world.

I believe and feel in every bone of my body that coaching is what I am meant to do and I am profoundly grateful to share this revolutionary way of how to master your internal and external experience of life.

What Clients Are Saying...

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