Find a Cacao Facilitator

We are building a directory of cacao facilitators who hold a certificate of completion in our 10-week training course and who have committed to uphold the values behind Soul Lift Cacao.

These practitioners have demonstrated a thorough understanding and competence in creating ethical, consent-based, and trauma-informed containers for modern transformational experiences with cacao.

Dozens of people have taken our 10-week course in either the live or self-guided format. But our Practitioner Program (where certificate holders get a listing here plus other support) is still very new.

So check back regularly to see facilitators who are hosting cacao experiences online and/or in-person.

ANDREA BAKACS - Portland, OR

Andrea (she/her) is a producer and photo editor by trade who began working with cacao two years ago, during an accelerated immersion into what is a lifelong healing journey. She found that the subtle healing energy of cacao prompted her to offer this medicine through contemporary ritual, and now uses cacao to help gently guide others onto their own unique paths of healing. Completing training and certification as a Cacao-Powered Facilitator taught Andrea to safely guide transformational experiences in an ethical and responsible way, through her neurodivergent and trauma-informed lens. She has traveled to Guatemala visiting several farms and collectives to learn more about the history and art of cacao, while participating in traditional Mayan ceremonies, which expanded her relationship and respect to the land, people, and culture that bring us this sacred plant medicine. Cacao allows Andrea to move from living in a rapid fire, external deadline driven, high stress, and disconnected work environment and career, to one that is slower, introspective, intentional, and based on the power of connection. Connection to ourselves, connection to each other, connection to the world, and connection to that which is greater than us. Andrea offers both group and one-on-one journeys.

BRANDI DOYLE - Waynesville, NC

Brandi has dedicated her life to serving others. After high school she answered the call to service and entered the military serving as a combat medic in the Army. After a tour in Afghanistan where she earned a Combat Action Badge she returned home and was left to make meaning of her deeply profound experiences in a war zone.

After years of feeling let down by traditional western medicine as a patient and nurse practitioner, she began a healing journey through holistic approaches. Her journey ultimately led her into empowering others on their healing journeys through various modalities including astrology, energetic medicine, sacred cacao ceremonies, breath-work and coaching.

She is also currently enrolled in a 200 hour yoga teacher training. Brandi is an empathic and intuitive healer on a mission to guide others to discovering their own infinite potentials!

CARAH ELIZABETH - Phoenix, AZ

Carah Elizabeth is a clinically trained psychotherapist with 15+ years of experience supporting individuals in finding wholeness within themselves through her private practice. Since leaving the mental health field Carah has incorporated her training as a Registered Yoga Teacher, with certifications in Yoga Nidra & Yin; Reiki Master Attunement & Somatic Experiencing with her clinical skills to create Body Wisdom Coaching. Carah believes that wounding occurs at the spiritual level and only able to be accessed through a whole body healing experience which begins with the body feeling safe & secure. This holistic approach supports individuals to awaken awareness in their bodies; alchemize past thoughts, beliefs & experiences that created wounding into high vibrational intentions & sensory experiences of actualized desires so they can ascend with intention into an abundantly aligned life.  Since being introduced to SoulLift Cacao Carah has seen the personal benefits of this nurturing plant medicine through her journey with complex grief. Cacao Powered Facilitator certificate has allowed her to deepen her relationship with cacao and add this medicine into her work with individuals to guide them deeper home to themselves. 

MICHELLE HICKMAN, MS - Greenville, OH

In her art and wellness studio, Sense of Healing, Michelle Hickman unites several modalities in an intuitive flow to support self healing and expansion of consciousness. As an intuitive guide and mixed-media artist, Michelle realizes that energetic pathways are a part of all life!

ALLISON HUDSON - Vancouver, WA

Allison Hudson is a holistic wellness practitioner in the Portland metro area (but the magic happens everywhere). Her work encompasses:

• Didgeridoo sound therapy
• Cacao ritual facilitation
• Meditation instruction

All of Allison's practices are rooted in the principles of nature and non-duality. She offers simple, practical rituals to help you connect with your ever-present wholeness — so you can live more fully and freely in your own realized truth.

Allison's approach is inspired by the Earth, the cosmos, and the space between. Under her guidance, you'll have the opportunity to explore these themes and reconnect with your own inner nature and light.

DEANNA JAROMAY-ARRIVAS - Walnut Creek, CA

Deanna Jaromay is a Reiki Master Teacher and Ceremonial Cacao Practitioner whose profound understanding of the complex human experience led her to the world of energetic healing. Trained in various styles of Reiki, sound therapy, Intuition Medicine, and Theta Healing, she offers a diverse range of healing modalities.

Deanna's passion lies in collaborating with clients, particularly those undergoing medical therapies like cancer treatments, to develop personalized routines that boost their vitality. Through her compassionate energy work, Deanna cultivates peace, calm, and balance, and facilitates profound healing experiences for her clients.

Connect with Deanna: Website - Instagram - Facebook - Linkedin

TRACY MACFARLANE - Calgary, Alberta, Canada

Tracy is a Yoga Specialist (with 700+ hours of training), an energy facilitator, and has a passion for teaching meditation. She grew up in small town in Ontario, Canada, and has always felt drawn to follow different paths to see and experience as much she can in this life. She spent many years traveling and living in different countries. Her Chakra Yoga Training really expanded her life perspective about the world and human nature. Health issues have been beautiful teachers, leading her to yoga and meditation, which have been invaluable in helping to stay grounded and connected to intuitive guidance. She loves teaching people how to access the beauty of the present moment, so they can hear their own intuition and find their path. Her mission is to make meditation more accessible and less overwhelming, as it is so invaluable in our modern, fast paced world. Tracy offers online yoga, meditation, and reiki energy sessions. She also records, produces, and sells meditations to help you on your journey.

Connect with Tracy: Website - Instagram - Facebook

PAMELA SWANSON - Miami Shores, FL

Pamela is a trained facilitator through Soul Lift Cacao. She traveled to Guatemala and participated in fire ceremonies on a spiritual journey that peaked her interest in the indigenous cultures and bringing the ancestors and ancient ways back to being. She has studied the Mayan Cho’qi calendar learning the importance of the Energies with Four Pillars, studied with Carl Calleman on the Evolutionary Waves of the Mayan Calendar, and is previously involved in a year-long immersion in Incan Wisdom, Mythological and Cosmovision with Puma (Fredy) Quispe Singona, an Andean Medicine Carrier of the Rainbow Lineage. She has also studied under Puma with Spirit Animals and Practical Animism with Daniel Foor.

Her mission is to bring her knowledge and experiences to help guide you on a path to connecting yourself in a deep open-hearted way, and to pass this love on to others. Pamela is currently holding space online with cacao journeys and will soon be having in-person events.

KK WOOTTON - Los Angeles, CA

After completing undergraduate writing studies at NYU, KK Wootton (she/her) is working toward her masters in psychology. She has studied ceremonial cacao through online coursework with teachers in the United States and Mexico, as well as with Indigenous teachers in Guatemala. Her graduate thesis is focused on working with ceremonial cacao as a sacred medicine in a modern therapeutic context. KK lives in Los Angeles.

LAUREL ZIEMIENSKI - Elm Grove, WI

Laurel is a formally trained Sound Healing Practitioner, Reiki Master Practitioner and is currently studying for her Diploma in Holistic Nutrition, specializing in plant medicine. She has also received training in Shamanic practices. In 2022 she completed Soul Lift Cacao's10 week facilitator training program and joined them on an inspiring tour of cacao collectives in Guatemala, diving deep into the plant medicine's offerings. Through her work Laurel believes that we are all perfect exactly as we are, her goal is to help each person recognize that within themselves by providing a safe container to work through unresolved issues and achieve deep states of relaxation in the present moment. Helping others find their own healed states of bliss by creating a union between mind, body and soul is her intention, utilizing holistic techniques that address the individuals needs. Laurel offers private healing sessions, group sound baths, facilitates cacao journeys and organizes and facilitates retreats. She teaches classes in guided meditation and is an educator and facilitator at the School of Sound and Healing at Angel Light in Elm Grove, Wisconsin.

MORE COMING SOON!