Sashi Tozzi is a rapid transformational therapist practitioner, using a specific method of hypnotherapy to help her clients overcome everything from chronic pain, to addiction and depression. Her road to becoming a healer began in 2011 when she became sober.
“I was miserable,” Tozzi said, “sick and tired of my own (expletive), of living inside a vicious cycle that left me feeling helpless, and I thought ‘is this really all there is? Is this all I can be? Is this what life is supposed to be?’ I was pretty certain there was more to life but I didn’t know how to get there. I didn’t know if I could get there.”
When Tozzi began having suicidal thoughts, she knew she needed to do something to change her life.
“I took the first step and started going to AA meetings at the suggestion of a therapist to learn about myself, why I was so self-destructive, and how to turn the ship around,” she said. “One step after another, eight years later, and through so many detours and setbacks, I’m still sober and more at peace than I ever thought I could be.”
Helping others improve
Tozzi’s own journey made her to want to help others understand and deal with their depression and addictions.
“We tend to have a very narrow vision field when we’re stuck in addiction, self-loathing, guilt, shame, depression, and anxiety,” she said, “a voice that likes to tell us ‘our struggles will never end, we’re the only ones in the world who feel this way, and it will never change.
“I’m here to say, ‘Yes, it can change.’ We’re all human, at the end of the day, and pain is pain. We all feel it to varying degrees at different times in life. I hope that my honesty gives everyone hope that, they, too, can improve their lives from wherever they stand, no matter how much pain they’re in right now.”
Tozzi’s approach to all kinds of healing is holistic.
“Understanding that I am a multi-faceted human being is what allowed me to recover all parts of myself,” she said. “Not just my physical health or emotional wellness, but truly my mental, physical, and spiritual vitality have been restored by treating all parts of myself as equally important.”
Willing to learn
Tozzi explores all kinds of therapies and encourages her clients to find the best option for them.
“I’ve used myriad tools, from 12-step, to yoga, to acupuncture, to hypnotherapy, and I always love trying new things to enrich my experience of myself and this world,” she said.
For people beginning their journey of recovery, Tozzi said a strong support network is vital.
“My very first sponsor is still in my life eight years later,” she said. “I consider her my spiritual mentor and I know I can call her anytime and she’ll just listen.”
Opening up with family is just as important, Tozzi said. “My mother has saved my life more times than I can count. If it wasn’t for her, I wouldn’t be.”
Sharing stories of addiction and depression can be difficult, and Tozzi encourages people to talk openly about their experiences, not only because of how it will help them begin their healing, but because it can be comforting to others with similar experiences of depression who feel alone.
“I hope people experience what I share as both a compassionate hug and a jolt of power,” she said. “It’s a process, a lifelong journey, one that I am so privileged to have as well as teach.”