Christi is a trauma therapist and educator with over 25 years of experience supporting healing in high-stress and community-based settings. She is the co-founder of Holistic Emotional First Aid (HEFA) where she leads trauma-informed retreats that integrate nervous system regulation, somatic practices, mindfulness, and nature-based healing. 

Christi’s personal relationship with water is grounded in rivers rather than surf. A longtime whitewater raft guide, she experiences water as a dynamic teacher—one that demands presence, trust, adaptability, and deep attunement to the body. When not on rivers, she turns to open-ocean swims in Kauai, where the steady rhythm of the water offers regulation, clarity, and restoration.

Christi has been partnering with Groundswell for 5 years, brings practical HEFA skills that help participants build emotional fluency, listen to their nervous systems, and translate the embodied wisdom of time in the water into everyday life.