HI, I’M NICHOLS
Astro-TherapistAstrology, Human Design & Therapeutic Companion
I am devoted to creating and tending safe, sacred spaces - inner sanctuaries including physical spaces as well as the emotional interiors of others. Like an interior designer for your inner world (and your home, too).
My hope is that you feel at home here and at home inside yourself. Think of this space like a cozy living room, where you can slow down from the fast pace of the world, talk to a trusted friend, tend your inner hearth and beautify your “living area.”
I am here to walk alongside you as a compassionate witness and companion.
“We're here for a reason. I believe a bit of the reason is to throw little torches out to lead people through the dark.”
— WHOOPI GOLDBERG
My Journey
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For as long as I can remember, I've had a fascination with understanding the human experience - relationships, the psyche, the soul, the mystery of life (and particularly what happens after death). I've been drawn to books, formal education, trainings and spiritual teachings & practices that help me make meaning of this human experience, exploring big questions like, Who am I? Why am I here? What happens after we die?
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A big part of answering my soul’s calling was embarking on a master's degree in 2015 in mental health counseling with a desire to understand and serve others. It ended up initiating the deepest exploration into my inner wounds. I discovered Internal Family Systems therapy and started the process of making friends with my deep sense of unworthiness. This same time also initiated my spiritual remembering - reconnecting me to the unseen forces that guide and support us. My connection with the Spirit World has helped me cultivate trust, empowerment, and a deeper sense of worthiness.
After graduating, the Universe took me on a different route. Instead of becoming a licensed therapist, I began caring for elders near end-of-life. After experiencing a series of professional and personal deaths, I decided to pursue training as a “death doula.” Also around this time is when astrology and Human Design really entered the picture, helping me notice and honor the inner feelings telling me it was time to leave my job and answer a deeper soul calling.
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I know what it’s like to be against myself - to be my own worst critic (hello sun in Virgo with Moon in Capricorn - if you know, you know).
It’s taken me a while to figure out that healing isn’t about changing who I am, fixing myself, or striving to become some “perfectly” healed version of myself. Instead, I continue remember to be gentle, to really feel my feelings, and particularly let myself be witnessed in my emotions by others (this has been a valuable contradiction for the Virgo & Capricorn parts of me who just want to keep things tidy, self-contained, and hold it together for everyone else).
Through softening my resistance to the parts that have felt not enough, and slowly over time restoring these exiled parts of me back together, I’ve found more peace. I accept there will probably always be parts of me that feel unlovable. Because I will always be perfectly human.
As a tool, astrology helps me contextualize my life experiences by making meaning & seeing the bigger picture.
Astrology can initiate an inner alchemical process.
Through astrology and Human Design, I’ve come to embrace who I am and honor my unique path. These tools help me step out of victim consciousness, see my patterns with compassion, and find meaning in my struggles.
My journey has allowed for the gift and capacity to hold space for others as they alchemize their wounds into light.
“The world needs your unique gifts., don’t leave with them still inside you.”
— UNKNOWN
Professional Bio
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Mental Health Counseling - Master of Arts in Counseling (Wake Forest University)
Human Design - Certified Reader (Dayluna)
End-of-Life - Certified “Sacred Passage”/Death Doula (Conscious Dying Institute)
Kundalini Yoga - Level 1 Certified Instructor (Kundalini Research Institute)
Astrology - Level 1 & 2 of Debra Silverman Astrology
Love notes to my younger self 
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You’re capable of handling them. They really just want your compassion & love and will stop running the show when you bring them back into your heart. Every part matters, especially the most “unlovable” ones. Each is an essential part of the whole. And wholeness includes ALL of it - dark & light.
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Getting rid of parts of yourself or needing to be completely confident or free of insecurity, or even cutting cut out foods or people entirely can be just another form of resistance. On the other hand, even the tiniest ounce of acceptance grants far more peace & expansion.
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There’s a saying that what we resist, persists. Such is the case with unfelt feelings. Lean into the somatic release tools available that help with constructively discharging the energy around your emotions. Usually, the sooner you set aside time and slow down enough to feel, you’ll find the feelings transform more quickly.
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All of our hurts are relational, and there are times when healing requires a loving witness. Don’t be afraid to be messy and let others see and hold you. It creates more intimacy.
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There will be some days or moments that are more challenging and others that are easier. You don’t have to be perfect.
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There is no-thing you can’t heal from.
“It is through our wounds that love comes to Earth.”
— RICHARD RUDD
My archetypal constellation…
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As a Virgo ☀️, a big part of me is a grounded, dirt-devoted Earth enthusiast with an incredible ability to overthink things. The anxious worrier with a way with words who loves to find patterns, bring order to chaos, find meaning in the details, and be of service by as a pragmatic problem-solver.
With Cancer rising, I carry warmth, gentleness, and a deep sensitivity. My heart is wired for connection, protection, emotional safety and caregiving.
My Capricorn🌙 is the part of me that is diligent, responsible and takes life seriously. The part that would rather show up for others, and holds space with steadiness. It’s also the part that wants to commit to building something lasting and meaningful and has the fortitude to do so.
With the combo of Virgo and Cancer and Capricorn, there’s an archetype of the “tireless caregiver” hardwired into me. I find a lot of meaning in showing up for others.. And with 7 planets overall in Earth signs, I’m like an old oak tree who really doesn’t stand a chance of being anything other than deeply grounded.
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“Like magicians in the dark, Vein of Gold people have the ability to go deep and find light in the places where others only find darkness."
They have this ability to understand the challenge and complexity of being human in a way that makes the journey something we can continue on -- something that we can see the value and beauty in. Not afraid to go deep, Vein of Gold people know how to speak to and work with the soul.
People with this archetype have the ability to communicate with the hidden aspects of reality, including denizens of the Otherworld and the deepest part of our psyches. They are here to bring the gift of understanding to the Earth, to be guides on the human journey, and to help others connect to the realm of the soul."
-Asia Suler, Earth Healing Archetypes
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3/5 Emotional Projector
Here to go deep with others and be a guide for a different, slower way of BEING human. Here to really take time to feel into things, to be on an emotional journey and learn what works and what doesn't through getting my hands dirty, a process of trial and error.
“We’re all just walking each other home.”
— RAM DASS
The healing of our world begins within.
I believe astrology is one of many tools or approaches that can help us piece ourselves back together where we’ve been conditioned, taught to fragment and be at war with ourselves. That’s why I see it as a compass - for re-membering inner coherence.
It’s a peace treaty for the inner self.
In re-membering ourselves, the impact ripples out - creating coherence and peace in our outer worlds, our relationships and lives.
In my free time, I’m usually in the garden, making herbal medicine, spending time with friends, singing, eating, dancing, chanting with my harmonium, practicing kundalini yoga, geeking out on the cosmos, resting on the couch, and loving on my amazing cat.