Meet Celinda De La Fuente

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Celinda De La Fuente a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Celinda, so good to have you with us today. We’ve always been impressed with folks who have a very clear sense of purpose and so maybe we can jump right in and talk about how you found your purpose?

Purpose isn’t found in the light, my friends. Nope…definitely not in the light…it’s forged in the fire. It’s discovered in the spaces of uncertainty, in the land of the lost, where the flames have devoured the illusions we once clung to and called “security.” Most of us do not find our purpose sitting in comfort. I found it in the cracking of the fault lines beneath my feet…when my body began to fail me under the weight of multiple diagnoses, when I walked away from a steady paycheck, when I could no longer afford the roof I prayed under.

It was there — in the ashes of who I thought I was — that something sacred began to grow. The acorn had to crack for the oak to take root. The self I once clung to dissolved, and in its place, Ashes to Phoenix was born — a reflection of my own rebirth, and the work I now share to help others remember their wholeness.

Purpose, for me, was never a single moment of clarity. It was an alchemical process — a slow transmutation of pain into wisdom, fear into faith, survival into service. It’s pressed gold. A diamond under pressure. A butterfly in its chrysalis. It’s an ongoing process.

And if I could offer one truth — not advice, but a remembrance — it’s this: when everything falls apart, don’t run from the fire. Become it. Because what remains after the burning…IS your purpose.

Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?

I love the work I do — so much so that it no longer feels like work. It’s service as joy. I’m blessed to walk beside people as they remember who they are — divine beings having a human experience, radiant souls learning to see their own light again… even when shadows remain. It’s all part of the journey.

Every day, I witness the beauty of transformation — the moment someone begins to see that the pain they carried was never punishment, but initiation. I hold space for those who feel ready to look beneath the scars, to face what was once too heavy to hold, and to find that under it all… there IS still light.

As an Energy Healing Practitioner and Coach, I help others reconnect with their Higher Self — the Infinite Intelligence that lives within everyone and everything. Through my practice, Ashes To Phoenix, I blend ancient and modern healing arts including Reiki, Violet Flame Healing, Metatron Healing, Qigong, Akashic Records Healing, Ancestral Healing, and Soul Contract Clearing, combined with NLP, CBT, Somatic Coaching, Neuroscience and more. Each session is both science and spirit — an alchemical dance of frequency, consciousness, and remembrance. I also offer certification courses in Reiki, Violet Flame Healing, Metatron Healing, and Akashic Records Healing — all accredited by the Complementary Therapists Accredited Association (CTAA). Each class is designed not only to teach technique but to awaken the healer within, guiding students through their own transformation as they learn to serve others.

I work with clients individually and in group settings, offering experiences that support mind, body, and spirit integration. Recently, I launched a monthly Virtual Spiritual Wellness Workshop, a donation-based gathering open to all. Each month, we explore a new theme — from the frequency of abundance to the art of setting energetic boundaries — helping people align their energy with their purpose.

What excites me most is not the work itself, but what it reveals: that healing is never about becoming something new… it’s about remembering that you were never truly broken. You simply needed to clear the muddy waters to see the brilliance that was always there — the light that you are.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

Hmmmm…let’s see…if I could distill my journey into three guiding flames, they would be willingness, openness, and awareness — three qualities that continue to evolve with me every single day.

1. Be Willing.
Be willing to ask for help. Be willing to receive it. Be willing to rest.
We live in a world that worships busyness, a world that confuses exhaustion with success. We’re conditioned to believe that rest is laziness — but rest is sacred. It’s an act of self-compassion, a declaration that your worth is not measured by your productivity. There were times I tried to do it all on my own — out of pride, out of fear, out of the illusion that no one could carry the fire like I could. But not asking for help is far heavier than asking for assistance. People are often willing to help if they know you need it. So give yourself permission to rest, to ask, to breathe. The journey is long — and you cannot rise if you’ve burned yourself out.

2. Be Open.
Be open to changing your definitions — of success, of love, of purpose. The versions we inherited were written by systems built on hierarchy and separation. But the world you’re here to create may not look anything like the one you were taught to survive in. Be open to the plot twist. Be open to the shift in vision. What you think you want now may not be what your soul truly needs later. The path will change — it’s meant to. Let go of rigidity and learn to flow. The river never forces itself to stay straight; it curves where it must, and somehow still reaches the ocean.

3. Be Aware.
Awareness is everything. You don’t have to know everything — awareness itself is the teacher. When you’re aware, you stop fighting the unknown. You start to see that not getting what you wanted might actually be divine redirection. You learn to read the lessons behind the obstacles instead of resenting them. Awareness turns “why me” into “what is this showing me?” And that shift changes everything.
It takes practice — A LOT of practice — to stay conscious in a world that numbs us with noise. But every time you pause, breathe, and reframe, you’re training your mind to see through the eyes of the soul.

So, Be willing. Be open. Be aware.
That’s how you rise — not above life, but through it.

Before we go, any advice you can share with people who are feeling overwhelmed?

Feeling overwhelmed is inevitable — it’s part of being human. Our nervous system can only hold so much, and while yes, it can expand, it’s wise to know your personal threshold. Listen to your body and learn to read the signs and signals of overwhelm before it manifests physically. I’ve learned that honoring my limits is not weakness — it’s wisdom.

One of my favorite practices is something I call “The Day Out of Space-Time.” I block out one full day every month and disappear from the noise. No phone, no emails, no obligations. Sometimes I do absolutely nothing. Sometimes I do everything that brings me joy. The point isn’t productivity — it’s presence. It’s remembering that my worth isn’t measured by how much I can carry, but by how gently I can return to myself.

Find outlets that make your soul exhale. For me, that’s Latin dance — the rhythm, the movement, the laughter shared with strangers who become friends. Dancing pulls me back into my body when my mind starts to spiral. It’s joy in motion, and joy is the antidote to overwhelm.

And when the tools don’t seem to work — because sometimes they don’t — I reach out to my circle. I have three people I know I can call at any hour, and they can do the same with me. They remind me that I’m not alone, that vulnerability isn’t a burden, it’s a bridge.

So when life feels heavy, pause. Move. Rest. Laugh. Reach out.
You don’t have to hold it all — you only have to hold yourself.

Contact Info:

Image Credits

photos by Vic Estrada and Gabriella Tijerina

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