About


Hello! I’m Ruchika (Roo-Cheee-Kah).

My passion is to support and guide people who are committed to their inner growth to flourish in themselves, in their value/gifts, and in their being. 

 

Let the beauty we love be what we do. (2)

I am a licensed psychotherapist and a spiritual mentor. 


For many years, I worked with children and adults with tremendously challenging lives and circumstances. What I discovered was that resilience in people was inherent within them, often covered up under layers and layers of what their environments reflected back to them.

The part of them that was resilient lay untapped. I saw the work as tapping into the inherent beauty and flowering of each person I worked with.

At the same time, through a couple of decades of my own personal inner work, diving deeply into my own psycho-spiritual work, and being with my father in his process of prolonged illness and death, I tuned in to an even deeper understanding.

When the ego isn’t fully built (in the case of working with children with trauma) or when illness breaks up layers of ego, there is a beauty and preciousness that shines through. While many people struggle with death, for me time with my father was like going for the “honey” — a delicious experience of being in his presence, of tuning into my own soul and his soul.


water-rocks-stream-leaves-largeExperiences of heavy trauma or a terminal illness shatter our egos to support the shining through of our true selves. There are other ways to tap into ourselves so fully such as through practices of meditation, mindful movement and inner inquiry.

In the case of my father, the more his illness progressed, the more I was tuned in to how powerful and capable my father was on the soul level. In those final months, I truly felt connected with my father on his journey of play, joy, expansion, and unconditional love. What made this possible for me was my commitment to my spiritual practices and the support of the teachings that were unfolding experientially with the support of my own presence. 

Being with children with trauma, or someone ready to say yes to their inner transformation, or being with someone in transition can be so similar. My work is to connect with the person beyond the ego, in the hidden realms and deep inner silence and grounded in the body.

“You do not have to be good. You do not have to walk on your knees For a hundred miles through the desert, repenting. You only have to let the soft animal of your body love what it loves” – Mary Oliver


Coming back into ourselves, into our being, into Love is a journey. Sometimes it isn’t so easy. I have personally been walking on this path. I understand the bumps on the journey back to ourselves and how tricky our egos can be even on the path of growth and transformation, especially when we leave out the wounded parts of us back where they were originally wounded. And, we delve into this journey from a place of deep love, whether or not we acknowledge or see the love. It is this love that bring us back home and it is Love that we need to flourish in our lives. 

 

My Journey: 

I am a licensed psychotherapist (MFT 51409) and have been working with people for more than 15 years. I received my Master’s Degree at the California Institute of Integral Studies University in San Francisco with focuses on counseling/psychology from an integral/holistic perspective. Other aspects to my psychotherapy and personal experience and education include:

  • Individual and Family Work
  • Life Coaching integrating all aspects of one’s life
  • 1.5 year training in Trauma Transformed Organization Culture
  • Trainer to support improved organization culture and health
  • Clinical Supervisor of therapists 
  • Psychological/Spiritual Training with Faisal Muqaddam and in Diamond Logos for over 12 years
  • 2 year advanced depth child psychotherapy certificate
  • Regular yoga, meditation, inquiry practices for over 20 years

To find out more about working with me, click here.