I’ve experienced key moments in my life where I would describe it as being “popped out of a bubble.”
The first time was when I moved to the United States from Moscow at almost eight years old. I had to start my life all over again—learning English and adjusting to a whole new culture.
One moment, I was a little Russian girl surrounded by family and friends in a world that was simple, familiar, and safe. The next, I was watching the breaking down of a communist nation through my young eyes and seeing our friends and family spread themselves all around the world.
I started early navigating the unknown while eating Kentucky Fried Chicken and drinking Coca-Cola (we didn't have this in Russia) with my cousins in Kentucky and at the same time learning Hebrew and English (I didn't know I was Jewish until that point.)
That move planted the seeds of resilience and adaptability in me. I quickly became my family’s translator, navigating a new language and culture, wearing pass-me-down clothes, while watching them work minimum-wage jobs despite their college degrees. At the same time, I tried hard to fit in, often hiding my Russian identity. After a year and a half in Kentucky we moved to NJ, and my roots kept shifting as I skipped 4th grade.
Looking back, I see how lonely I felt in my younger years. Sports and art became my saviors, giving me outlets to channel my energy and create a sense of belonging.
The second bubble burst when I was 17 and went on a volleyball trip to Europe—the first time I’d left the country since immigrating. Meeting people from all over the world and immersing myself in different cultures awakened something in me.
For the first time, I felt truly at ease, and I realized that I had been trying so hard to fit into a world that didn’t fully resonate with me. I called it breaking out of the “NJ bubble.”
That trip sparked a lifelong love of travel. Since then, I’ve explored 38+ countries, backpacked solo through places like Europe, New Zealand and Central America, and stood in awe of breathtaking landscapes like Patagonia and Iceland. Travel fed my soul and I needed it to thrive to balance out the hard work I was putting into the NYC nine-to-five grind.
The third bubble that burst was my spiritual awakening in 2018 — which for the first time led me on a healing journey inward and to discover the magic beyond the mundane.
After my awakening, I came to realize that the journey inward was just as rich and fulfilling as any adventure I had experienced outwardly. The same deep yearning for exploration and discovery that I had sought through travel was now calling me to dive within. It became clear to me that the inner landscape is vast, filled with as much wonder and adventure as the external world.
Traveling the world taught me to marvel at the beauty, diversity, and mystery of life. Each new place felt like an invitation to expand my understanding, not just of others, but of myself. I became more adaptable, curious, and open to the unexpected.
There’s a profound synergy between external exploration and internal healing.
When we travel to a new place, we step out of our comfort zone and confront the unknown. It’s a practice of letting go—of routines, expectations, and even parts of our identity that no longer fit. Similarly, the journey inward asks us to let go of old patterns, beliefs, and inherited burdens that no longer serve us. Both journeys require courage, curiosity, and the willingness to be vulnerable.
There are so many tools that have helped me navigate my inner landscape and I want to share three of them here:
1) Astrology 2) Family Constellations 3) Somatic Healing
Tools for Inner Explorations
01 — Astrology
A Map for Inner Exploration
I’ve always felt a deep pull to explore the world, but discovering astrology helped me understand why: my Moon is in the 9th house.
In astrology, the 9th house represents travel, exploration, and the quest for meaning—all themes that resonate deeply with my life. With my Moon in this house, my emotional fulfillment has always been tied to seeking wisdom and understanding through both outer and inner journeys. I’m a lifelong learner.
The 9th house is ruled by Sagittarius—a sign that is said to be adventurous, honest, energetic, curious, and flexible. It’s also a sign of natural explorers with a desire to learn how the world works. I happen to have many planetary placements in the sign of Sag as well. The more I study astrology, the more I see how these placements shape my life and those of others. (Any of you Sag people relate for the quest of adventure?)
The Moon, in astrology, represents our emotional core and our needs—the part of us that craves fulfillment and security. It answers the question: What do I need to feel good?
For me, it helps me recognize that the same energy driving my desire to explore the world (including a quest for knowledge) urges me to explore myself—my emotions, my patterns, my deeper truths.
The Moon is a powerful, unseen force. It operates in the background until we bring awareness to it.
What’s Your Moon Story?
Have you ever explored the placement of your Moon in your natal chart? Your Moon reveals what you need to feel emotionally fulfilled and secure. Take a moment to reflect:
What do you instinctively turn to for comfort?
Are there recurring patterns in your emotional world?
How do you nurture your inner self?
If you know your Moon’s sign and house, what insights does it offer about your unique needs and inner landscape?
In the near future, I’ll share some resources on the moon for those of you who are new to this.
02 — Family Constellations
Exploring Your Inner World on the Outside
While astrology revealed patterns and a sense of alignment with my life’s path, Family Constellations opens the door to deeper truths: some of the challenges we face may be rooted in dynamics far beyond our own personal story.
Family Constellations reveals how the unseen dynamics of our family systems influence our life in ways we don’t realize.
Immigration is a monumental act. It’s not just a physical move; it’s an energetic shift that ripples through generations. When a family leaves their homeland, they carry with them both the dreams that propelled them forward and the grief of what they left behind. As the first generation to grow up in a new country, I inherited that energetic mix of hope and loss without even realizing it.
The first time I participated in a Family Constellations session, the facilitator brought in a representative for Russia. It was like uncovering a hidden part of myself that I had long ignored. Through this process, I saw how much energy it had taken for my family to leave their roots behind, and I felt the weight of their sacrifices in a new way. But I also saw the immense love and support within my family—love that had often been obscured by the challenges of starting over.
This session allowed me to reconcile the pieces of my identity that had felt fragmented. I was able to honor the place I came from and acknowledge the strength it took for my family to create a new life. It also gave me a deeper sense of belonging—not just in the present, but across time and space, connected to the generations that came before me.
How Family Constellations Can Relate to Your Journey
If you’ve ever felt the pull of an unresolved inner story—whether tied to a significant life shift, a sense of displacement, or a loss of belonging—Family Constellations can illuminate the hidden dynamics shaping your experience.
Many of us unconsciously carry the weight of our family’s history: the unspoken grief of migration, the echoes of ancestral trauma, or the dreams passed down through generations. These burdens, while invisible, often influence the choices we make and the barriers we face in stepping fully into our lives.
Family Constellations offers a path inward—a way to uncover and honor these patterns. By bringing awareness to these inherited dynamics, you can create a space for healing, release, and transformation. It’s a powerful way to reclaim your story and align more fully with the life you’re meant to live.
03 — Somatic Healing
Internal Travel Through the Body’s Wisdom
One of the most powerful tools I’ve found on my journey inward is somatic healing. The body holds so much wisdom—it carries the stories, emotions, and experiences of all the parts of us, often unseen or forgotten. Through embodiment practices, we learn to listen to the body, tuning into its sensations, subtle shifts, and deep knowing. It’s like embarking on an internal journey, where the landscape is made of our sensations and inner experiences, offering a map to the parts of us that need attention.
In many ways, internal travel through the body feels just like the external exploration I’ve always been drawn to. Just as traveling the world opens us up to new cultures, landscapes, and perspectives, traveling inward into our bodies invites us to discover uncharted territory, parts of us that we haven’t yet fully explored or understood. When we slow down and listen to what the body is communicating, we access a deeper kind of knowledge, one that goes beyond what we can see or analyze with the mind.
It may show up as tension in a certain area, a feeling of lightness or heaviness, or a sensation that invites us to move or breathe in a particular way. These subtle clues are like signposts guiding us through our own internal terrain. And just like the external world, our inner landscape is rich with layers—memories, emotions, and past experiences—that shape who we are today.
The body often holds unresolved experiences from different parts of us—whether from childhood, family patterns, or life events. Somatic practices help us release what no longer serves us while also honoring the parts of us that need healing or integration. It’s through this deep listening that we begin to reconnect with our bodies and the wisdom they carry, embracing the vast inner world that exists within.
Internal travel through the body isn’t just about healing past wounds—it’s about discovering new dimensions of ourselves and connecting to the vastness of Source Energy that’s all around us by going inwards.
Every sensation, every breath, every movement becomes an opportunity to listen more deeply, to honor the parts of us that are asking to be seen, heard, and integrated. Just like an external journey can lead to profound transformation and understanding, traveling inward through somatic healing offers us the chance to explore and embrace all parts of our being.
"Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail." – Ralph Waldo Emerson
From moving countries and traveling the world, I’ve learned to embrace the unknown, to surrender to uncertainty, and to welcome new experiences with curiosity and awe. I’ve come to understand that those same qualities are required on the journey inward. These are some of the tools that have become my guides in navigating the terrain of my inner world. They have helped me uncover the stories, patterns, and parts of myself that were waiting to be seen, healed, and integrated.
Everytime we discover something new about ourselves, we experience a “popping of the bubble” as we journey into a new perspective of the world.
As you reflect on your own journey—both outward and inward—consider: What uncharted territory within yourself is calling for exploration? What parts of you are waiting to be seen, heard, and understood? Just as the outer world is full of wonders, the inner landscape is rich with opportunities for growth and transformation, always waiting for your attention and care.
As you take the next step on your own journey, may you have the courage to explore, heal, and embrace all parts of yourself. Because, in the end, the most important journey we ever make is the one back to ourselves.
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