Today we’d like to introduce you to Natalie Gleason.
Hi Natalie, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I’m a somatic practitioner and holistic wellness coach, and the founder of Enrooted Life, a practice devoted to helping people reconnect with their bodies, shed what no longer serves them, and step into the lives they were meant to live.
My path to starting this practice and helping others transform their lives didn’t happen overnight, and it certainly wasn’t easy. But those experiences shaped who I am and allow me to show up for others in a way I never could have without first moving through many hard lessons myself. So here’s some of that story.
For much of my life, I lived almost entirely in my mind. It was the safe place I retreated to as a child when I felt like I had nowhere else to go. And in many ways, my intellect served me well. I hold two Master’s degrees, spent much of my career in academia, and got to travel extensively for research.
But this life of the mind also came with a cost — chronic stress, perfectionism, and a body that rarely felt safe or at ease after years of being ignored. On the outside, everything looked great. It appeared as though I was “winning” at life. But on the inside, I was just trying to hold it all together. I felt like I was living someone else’s life, disconnected and lost.
And then in 2017, everything came crashing down. My father was diagnosed with terminal cancer, I filed for divorce, and I made the difficult decision to leave the Ph.D. program I was enrolled in at UC Berkeley, stepping away from the world of academia I had been part of for over a decade.
My life had become unsustainable, built on performance, “shoulds,” people-pleasing, and the constant pursuit of external validation in exchange for a sense of acceptance. I realized I was living a life shaped by the expectations of others, not by my own desires. Somewhere along the way, I had lost myself, or perhaps I had never fully found myself to begin with.
That period forced me to slow down, look inward, and ask a deeper question: what would it truly mean to rebuild my life from the inside out, based on what I wanted rather than what anyone else expected of me?
The answer came gradually, and it began with my body. For some time, I had been struggling with severe gut issues, anxiety, and a deep sense of disconnection, and the events of 2017 only intensified those challenges. It took a few years, but I slowly began paying attention to what my body was asking of me. I shifted to a plant-based diet, spent more time in nature, and discovered somatic, or body-based, practices that helped regulate my nervous system and restore a sense of safety, aliveness, and connection that I had been missing for a long time.
Through that process — and with the support of some incredible practitioners — my life began to change. I healed my gut, learned to regulate my nervous system, and started releasing layers of trauma and chronic stress that had been stored there for years. As I reconnected with my body, new possibilities for my life started to emerge, ones rooted in what I truly wanted, rather than what others expected of me. For the first time, it felt like I was reclaiming my life and stepping into it as my own.
As part of this healing journey, I enrolled in a Master’s program in Clinical Mental Health Counseling with the intention of becoming a licensed therapist. While talk therapy can be incredibly valuable, I realized the healing work I felt called to do needed to involve the body in a much deeper way. I also wanted to focus more on the present—creating new experiences of safety and possibility that could open the door to a different future for the clients I work with.
That insight led me to pursue a broader range of trainings. I’m currently completing the three-year Somatic Experiencing Practitioner program along with a year-long ICF-accredited coaching program to become a Mastery Method Coach. I hold certifications in plant-based nutrition, psychosomatic practice, nature-based meditation, and conscious leadership.
Enrooted Life grew out of this personal and professional journey. Today I guide people through a process of reconnecting with their bodies — working with the root causes of stress, trauma, and dis-ease in the body — and rediscovering a deeper sense of vitality, authenticity, and connection with life. My work is about helping people not only feel safer and more regulated in their bodies, but to live with purpose, joy, and ease. It’s about helping them come home to themselves and the life they were meant to live.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
The journey to starting Enrooted Life has definitely not been smooth, and in many ways, that’s been a crucial part of the work itself. I had been envisioning this practice for years, but life had other plans: other projects, travel, moving states, even diving into a third Master’s program in Clinical Mental Health Counseling before realizing that path wasn’t the right fit for the kind of healing I wanted to offer.
Launching the business has been both exciting and challenging. It has pushed me to confront my own blocks and deepen my commitment to my own inner work. As a coach, you can only truly guide others when you’re willing to walk the path yourself—and that’s a lifelong process. Showing up as a clear, compassionate witness for clients requires continually examining your own patterns, biases, and vulnerabilities. It means doing the work alongside them and embodying the practices you’re inviting others to explore.
At the same time, building Enrooted Life has been incredibly rewarding. I currently work with clients one-on-one, but I’m expanding into group coaching, courses, corporate wellness programs, and in-person workshops and retreats, all with the goal of helping more people reconnect with their bodies, regulate their nervous systems, and live with greater vitality, purpose, and ease. Every challenge along the way has reinforced my belief in the work, and reminded me that transformation, for both myself and my clients, is always worth the effort.
We’ve been impressed with Enrooted Life, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Enrooted Life is a somatic healing and embodied wellness practice dedicated to helping people reconnect with their bodies, their inner wisdom, and their true purpose. We specialize in guiding individuals out of trauma patterns, chronic stress, overwhelm, and burnout, and into a life of greater vitality, clarity, and ease. Our work combines somatic nervous system regulation, trauma-informed practices, mindfulness meditation, and holistic health approaches like plant-forward nutrition and sustainable lifestyle change, creating a truly integrated path to healing.
The name Enrooted Life reflects the philosophy at the heart of our work. “Enrooted” is about going to the root, grounding into your body, your core, your authentic self, so that you can rise with more strength, clarity, and resilience. It’s about connecting to the intelligence of your own body, the wisdom of your gut and intuition, and the intelligence of nature itself. By rooting into what is alive and true within you, you can step fully into your life with presence, purpose, and ease.
What sets Enrooted Life apart is our philosophy: we don’t believe in quick fixes or surface-level solutions. Healing happens at the root, and transformation requires addressing not just the mind, but the body, the nervous system, and the way we inhabit the world. We honor the whole person — body, mind, spirit, and soul — and provide tools that allow clients to feel safe, empowered, and fully alive in their bodies and lives.
I’m most proud of the way our brand reflects this philosophy. Every package we offer is designed to create a space where people can slow down, listen deeply to themselves, and reclaim a sense of grounded aliveness. Our offerings currently include private 1:1 coaching containers, small group programs, and soon, in-person retreats and workshops that integrate somatic work, movement, meditation, and community connection as well as corporate wellness program that support sustainable performance and work life balance.
What I want readers to know is that the Enrooted Life method is not about fixing yourself, it’s about remembering who you already are, clearing the blocks that obscure your vitality, and stepping fully into a life of your choosing. Whether you’re seeking support for stress, anxiety, or trauma, or simply want to deepen your connection to yourself and the world around you, Enrooted Life provides a guided path back to clarity, purpose, and ease, one root at a time.
What quality or characteristic do you feel is most important to your success?
For me, the quality that has been most important is presence — the ability to be fully with myself and with others, no matter what arises. In this work, nothing matters more than being grounded and aware, both as a practitioner and in life. Healing happens in the body and in the nervous system, and to guide someone through that process, I need to show up as a clear, compassionate witness.
Being present also means holding space with courage, curiosity, and unwavering commitment. As a coach, my promise to my clients is to see their wholeness even when they forget it, to encourage them when doubt clouds their path, and to help them step into the life they are capable of, fully alive, fully embodied, and fully themselves. I commit to doing my own inner work so I can hold a clear, compassionate space for them as they do theirs.
Ultimately, success in this work isn’t about perfection; it’s about showing up, staying present, and holding a space where people can see the impossible, embrace their growth, and reconnect to the life that is waiting for them.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.enrootedlife.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/enrootedlife/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/enrootedlife/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/natalie-gleason-213b8155/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@EnrootedLife
Image Credits
FemForce
