September 17, 2023 • 53 mins
Join Wesley Hamilton and Toyia Mays, co-founder of The Laya Center, as we discuss our personal healing stories and holistic health benefits. Toya shares how her past shaped her and the safe healing space she's created at the Layla Center.
In these challenging times, we touch upon the impact of significant events like the COVID-19 pandemic and George Floyd's incident, especially on Black and Brown communities. We also explore the Laya Center's cool cryotherapy chamber and how it helps overall well-being. Plus, we discuss how emotional pains from our past might show up as physical pains now.
We also talk about the magic of nature in healing. The Laya Center isn't just a place to get better; it's a place to grow in mind, body, and spirit. Toyia shares the wonders of things like herbal teas in keeping us healthy. One key takeaway? Starting your healing journey helps you take control of your life.
Listen, get inspired, and join us on this healing journey!
- Guest: Toyia Mays, Co-founder of Laya Center
- Topics Covered:
- Personal healing stories
- Advantages of holistic health
- Societal influences from events like COVID-19 and George Floyd's incident
- The innovative cryotherapy chamber at the Laya Center
- The connection between physical and emotional pain.
- Connect with Toya:
- Feedback & Questions: Your feedback matters to us! Please share your comments and pose your questions via our email.
Stay Connected: For the latest updates, follow us on our podcast Instagram
Thank you for tuning in, and see you in the next episode!
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:04):
In a world where success often steals the
limelight, the stories thattruly inspire, that truly matter
, are left behind in the shadows.
I'm your host, Wesley Hamilton.
Welcome to the Out of theShadows podcast.
Speaker 3 (00:23):
A human and a plant has the same cellular structure.
That's why it can heal you likeit does.
It's a part of you.
It's not separate from you, Yowhat's up everybody.
Speaker 1 (00:43):
This is Wesley Hamilton.
Welcome to Out of the Shadows.
I'm here with owner andco-founder of the Layla Center,
ms Toya Mays.
It's an honor Ms Mays is anartist, an herbalist, a crystal
therapist and a wellnessprofessional Honestly just
honored to have thisconversation kind of structured
(01:05):
around holistic healing todayand just learning more about
something that is pretty amazingand profound and is literally
making changes in the KansasCity Missouri area and, from
what I see, about to be globalwhen it comes to products and
things.
I'm just going to add that too.
Welcome, ms Mays.
How are you?
Speaker 3 (01:27):
I'm doing well.
How are you?
Speaker 1 (01:29):
I'm doing good, I'm feeling good, I'm feeling great
actually, and just honored to beable to chat with you today.
Speaker 3 (01:38):
Me too, absolutely All right.
Speaker 1 (01:40):
So, you know, I have this thing where, of course,
like I started this show Out ofthe Shadows because, looking at
my life and some of the successthat I've made, I've realized
that, you know, when it comes toour stories, certain platforms
will allow certain pieces to beshared in a light, but then
there are other pieces of ourstories that are hidden in the
(02:01):
shadows, and I believe, at leastfor a person like me that's
passionate about my work, thatwe have this passion to make
sure that we plant seeds incommunities that we're from, and
normally that's where theshadows are left, right Like
that's where the individuals areleft when it comes to our
stories, and so I'm just honoredto be able to share that.
(02:24):
So, first and foremost, like Ihave these icebreakers that I
like to do so as an artist, as awellness professional, can you
share with us some type ofartwork or creative project that
you're particularly proud of,and how does it connect to your
passion for healing?
Speaker 3 (02:43):
Yeah, actually I did obviously the interior design
for the Leia Center and theintention behind a lot of it was
to connect people to Indigenousrooms, to connect people to
nature, to make them feel likethey're enveloped in this
natural setting, even thoughthey're in the middle of the
(03:05):
city.
So I'm super proud of thethings that people say when they
come in there and they connectwith these communities and they
allow it to kind of transcendtheir minds to where they need
to be to start that healingjourney.
Speaker 1 (03:20):
Oh, I love that.
I love that and at least againI'm gonna hold myself
accountable.
I need to roll on into the LeiaCenter and see the new one.
Okay, Just for people to know,I definitely have.
You know, took some time andwent into the old location, so,
but the new location looksbeautiful, it's very welcoming
and it does seem like it takespeople to a different place when
(03:43):
they go in there.
So what necessarily inspire youto venture into the world of
holistic healing and create theLeia Center?
Speaker 3 (03:52):
It was a personal journey to start.
My husband played in the NFLfor eight years.
He took massive amount ofpainkillers I mean they have
them available like candy, youknow, injections and it's all to
stay on the field so that theyhave a job.
But I think around 28 or 29years old, just a routine check,
(04:16):
he went to the doctor.
They told him his liver andkidney function was that of like
a 50 year old smoker and it wasbecause of all the painkillers
and all the other I meanobviously be this body up
because he uses it as a weapon.
But the painkillers broke downthat lining of the stomach and
kind of broke down somefunctions.
So I just felt like it was myjob to go and see what
(04:41):
alternative measures we couldtake, what lifestyle changes we
can make, what I could studybecause I'm a person that
researches things that couldhelp him reverse some of these
effects and kind of slow downthat aging process of his body.
Speaker 1 (04:54):
Wow, oh, that's a lot .
You know, I know you just madeit sound good real quick, but it
was a mouthful.
But when I think about, youknow medicine and of course you
know as we talk about holistichealing, you know you're taking
an approach different than mostpeople when it comes to healing
(05:17):
or ways that you feel like youknow you can get pain relief or
any type of mental relief,emotional relief, like most
people do go out for themedicine and for me, as a person
, have had personal experiencebehind it.
I just know what you're talkingabout.
(05:37):
You know I acquired my spinalcord injury and I remember just
being on 14 medications.
I had a medic medication foreverything that now, at least
again personally, food hasbecome the way to help me and
you know outdoors and activityhas become the way to actually
(05:57):
be more of an effective healerthan the medicine that I was
taking.
I wrote a blog years ago thatwas like it wasn't depression,
it was the medicine, and I thinka lot of people don't
understand that.
But when you look at my lifenow, you see somebody living
free and that's because I'm noton any medicine.
And if I had, if I was onmedicine, I definitely know that
I wouldn't be driven andmotivated and clear minded as I
(06:21):
am today.
You know, before we get moreinto like the in depth work that
you're doing, I think it'simportant to kind of share a
little bit of like your personalbackground.
You know, how did you come upto become an artist?
How did you really get invested?
I mean, I know, like theholistic human went into like
the process of you know beingmarried and your husband being
(06:42):
in a field player, but outsideof that, like that upbringing,
like that story of why is it soimportant for you to really be
who you are, like that identity,where did this identity come
from?
Speaker 3 (06:55):
So, hmm, first that was a little double whammy.
So I'll first say I'm fromChicago inner city, southside
project.
Okay, so I don't come from thisat all, and that was another
motivating factor.
To be available in this way forpeople that look like us is
(07:19):
because, even when I was goingout and researching these things
for my husband just not toolong ago, there's not like this
one place that provides what weprovide, or even provide space
for people that looks like thatlook like us, to venture into
the alternative Right.
But at the same time, I canalways feel, I have always felt
(07:41):
like I was just a differentperson that can see things and
feel things, and like I'vealways been the type of person
that people come up to and in 10minutes, I know your life story
and I'm able to absorb thatenergy and I'm able to be
sensitive to different thingsthat people are going through,
(08:02):
you know, and be there for them.
So it I felt like there wasalways a healer inside of me,
even though I didn't have thetools or the knowledge to
understand what it was then andapply it earlier than I did.
Speaker 1 (08:19):
Oh, that's good.
I think you know it's more andmore people starting to learn is
it's never outside of you, hasalways been inside of you,
you've always been a healer, andyou know.
So, thinking about, like evengrowing up and I love what you
said like you know, thisidentity that you have now
(08:41):
wasn't something that you knowit was going to happen where you
came from or have been athought process.
Of course, we hear more andmore about the lack of
representation and things, butyou know the lack of
representation and actuallyholistic killing, the amount of
trauma that black communitiesface right.
So, like, thinking about that,because I think you know your
(09:03):
background put emphasis on whyyou understood the importance of
your work and so, with yourwork and making sure that you
know black and brown faces areable to see this and learn about
it, like, what steps do youtake to really get this
knowledge out to the communitiesthat didn't know about
(09:23):
something that has existed forhundreds of thousands of years?
Speaker 3 (09:27):
Yeah, I mean, besides the the normal social media and
posting things, they kind ofresonate with people on a
spiritual level.
What we've been doing here forthe past couple years is going
into the community by way oforganizations that are already
(09:48):
infiltrated into the community,the inner city, the under
represented people and creatingthese partnerships where we're
the trusted wellness people forthose organizations.
So, for instance, right now wehave a partnership with Uzazi
(10:09):
Village where we're acting asthe mental health expansion
wellness department for thewomen that they have coming in
pre and post-medal.
Speaker 1 (10:23):
Oh I like that, I like that because, yeah, it's so
important to get involved inthe community outside of just
setting up some type of platformor business and saying, hey,
come and adore, right.
So I think, like that approachis very important because you
(10:43):
wanna reach people organicallyand not make them feel forced to
come in.
At least I know that's how I do.
It is how do I try to educateyou or come into places where
people are serving and I canserve you freely with this
knowledge and allow you toactually come and be authentic
when you come in to be servedthrough our work.
Speaker 3 (11:07):
Authenticity, natural , providing space for these
people.
I mean, we toyed with the ideaearly on that we would come over
to Uzazi Village, kind of intheir neighborhood, but then you
think about it, and when doblack women feel like they
should be in these types ofspaces?
(11:29):
So no, bring them over here,let them see what it feels like
to be in this type of space andbe nurtured and cared for the
way that they probably didn'tthink they could ever be.
Speaker 1 (11:44):
I love that.
I think it's not emphasizedenough on the resources that are
out there, but the mentalcapacity of how these
communities, these people withblack and brown community,
coming from black and browncommunities, feel about going
into spaces where they weren'twelcome or that they feel
uncomfortable, and what type ofmental and emotional health like
(12:08):
trauma does that create?
You know, and I always tellpeople that it's never been an
issue of what's been out there,it's the lack of access to it
and a lack of understanding.
So when you do go into a space,sometimes people's perception
of you is what you areintroduced to.
It's not even the servicethat's provided within a space.
(12:29):
It's already how they viewedyou, that you feel right, like
in LA.
For me, it's like you can feelsome energy quick, and once you
do that, it creates a level ofdistrust.
And I think that when you thinkabout the black communities and
why your work is probably evenmore important, it's because
(12:51):
there's such a distrust when itcomes to pharma and it comes to,
like, the medical side ofthings and we're learning more
and more about it.
We're learning more and moreabout what you know black women
go through when it comes to youknow the medical side, as well
as black men and even, like formyself, black and disabled
(13:12):
individuals, like there's such alevel, right.
So you go back into your work,you go back into the practice of
holistic healing and that'skind of what I'm learning about
now, right, just for anybody toknow, we joke about this before
we got on a call, but I went allthe way to LA to heal.
I went all the way to LA toreally find or gain the
(13:35):
knowledge of the things that youknow, ms Mays and her husband
has actually created in KansasCity and we talked to, like, you
know, why did I go all the wayto LA?
And for me, I guess my answerto that was that I feel more
free out here.
As a black man coming fromKansas City, learning about
healing is hard when there's somany people within that space
(13:56):
that haven't healed, and so,like for me, I wanted to bring
my full, complete self.
That carries a level of empathyand understanding and I think,
like if I had the opportunity tojust get out somewhere to
breathe.
That's just what I did, and nowit's like, now that I
understand it, now it's like, ohman, when I get back home, this
is a space and a stable thatyou know I will feel comfortable
(14:19):
.
I have felt comfortable at, butwith the understanding that
I've gained out here.
Especially LA is definitelymore into holistic things.
I feel like you see people justmeditating when you get to the
beaches.
It's just random, but it's abeautiful thing to see because
you know that even your practiceI can become to understand more
.
Like certain places don't do itas much, right Like, and so
(14:43):
let's talk about that real quick.
Has it been a struggle or achallenge to really connect to
certain communities because ofthe lack of knowledge and
education that's within KansasCity itself?
On holistic healing?
Speaker 3 (14:56):
Absolutely mid-west period.
We've been doing this six and ahalf years, almost seven years,
and we're still in the positionwhere we have to educate as
well as sell.
You need this and this is howmuch it costs, so it's like it's
a little hard to be in aposition where you're educating
(15:17):
people at the same time, but Ifeel like COVID helped open
people's minds to the idea oftaking care of themselves.
That are, if nothing else, andI also feel like COVID kind of
opened up this door for us, forpeople to look at us and say, oh
(15:38):
, they are different and this iswhy they're different and this
is why I need them.
So it actually helped us,because people were looking for
and not just their physicalbodies, but their minds too, to
heal.
Speaker 1 (15:54):
You know, covid did a lot for, I think, especially
for the Black and Browncommunities, because I mean, in
that same timeframe it was theGeorge Floyd situation.
So I think we dealt with thetrauma and the grief of seeing
something on TV that way andthen the doors shut on everybody
in a sense like right afterthat, and you had to sit at home
(16:15):
and have to deal with it.
You had to sit at home and haveto deal with the views of
America and other places aroundthe world of how they felt about
the situation, good or bad.
You had to literally talk toyour children and your family
and have those conversations,because everybody was at home
every day and then we got pulledinto a lot of different spaces
to have these uncomfortableconversations.
(16:37):
So now the world can understandwhat we go through, right.
So I think that it did make asignificant impact for all of us
because we went through so much.
So I think we started to seekthat level of healing and start
to find it.
So I do feel like you guys grewI know that from my work with
disabled, but not really.
(16:57):
I think I just became moreunderstanding to what I wanted
to do too during the pandemicand seeing how much, even on the
healing side, people withdisabilities was to me, I felt
like was the ones that reallyhad to deal with a lot of
barriers, couldn't go to the gymbecause people thought we
(17:19):
wasn't healthy enough.
And I remember starting andcreating my garage gym because
I'm like, oh, but I'm healthy.
So you're telling me that Idon't think that I'm healthy
enough due to how you feel, andso doing that made me start to
educate people more, talk aboutmore mental health, because I
don't think I understood howmuch my mental health was being
(17:42):
bothered and conflicted by whatwas happening.
And then having a platform andbeing a voice for communities,
right Like, and then you haveyour own healing to do, you have
your own situations to do.
So I think it just it didsomething for us all.
So I'm very pleased to hearthat it actually helped you guys
grow.
And it's crazy to think that theMidwest has such a lack of
(18:05):
understanding to healing whenyou can look at that straight
line and see that we are themost violent, from St Louis to
Kansas City to Chicago, rightLike all of these places where
we're literally on this list ofviolent cities and we lack
healing and knowledge to whatthat looks like.
(18:27):
And it's just, it's the state ofmind, right, like everybody
always talk about a certainstate of mind and I always say,
like it's definitely in theMidwest, it's a state of mind it
doesn't matter from here or StLouis or Chicago, it's a state
of mind that we all carry.
And so now let's shift a littlebit and go right into some of
your work.
Outside you have the educationpiece, you guys have the
(18:50):
physical healing piece, and sowhat are things that kind of go
under?
That Like when you bring peoplein and they're just sore and
dealing with pain, like what aresome of the ways that you try
to serve them?
That's kind of different thanwhat they would go to if they
went to like the doctor ortherapy, in a sense.
Speaker 3 (19:08):
You know what Our cryotherapy chamber is, that
number one piece.
If somebody comes in and theyhave pain, information, or even
if they can't sleep at night orget headaches, the cryotherapy
chamber is that instantgratification, like you only
could feel it some differentthan when you walked in.
(19:30):
And so when you feel somethingdifferent, just know we got you.
Speaker 1 (19:34):
After that, I love that you know what, but that's
the big buzzword out there foryou guys.
I think anytime I hear someoneor mention that's the first
thing they bring up.
You know and so like, what arethe overall benefits or some of
the benefits that you could justshare so people can understand
(19:56):
what that is and maybe what'sthe process of it Like?
Because you know cryo likethere, but no one knows it.
Isn't it like cold chamber?
Speaker 3 (20:05):
It's a cold chamber, it's down to negative 154
degrees and people are alwayslike, what?
Like I can go in there.
It's like it's such a shortamount of time three minutes
that yeah, you can go in there.
But the process that happens is, once you go in there, your
body tries to keep you warm,naturally, so it automatically
(20:28):
pulls all of your blood to thecore of your body and speeds up
your metabolism.
So your metabolism is speedingup to try to keep you warm.
And Right at that two minute twoand a half minute mark, you do
reach where your body shiftedinto hypothermia.
But that's when the magichappens, right.
(20:49):
So you're shifting into intohypothermia, but you're only in
there in 30 seconds, a minute orwhatever, and then you come out
.
So when you come out, the bloodthat went to your core we
disperses throughout your wholebody.
So it's like a recalibration,like a reset.
You get blood flow in placesyou probably never had or
(21:10):
haven't had it in a really longtime Brain, head included, and
so it just awakens all of thesense, the systems, and the
central nervous system releasestoxins inflammation, pain,
headaches.
You burn calories because thatmetabolism shot up.
(21:31):
So 800 calories, it's like theicing on a cake.
So we tell people at the end,still mulling it over whether
they want to get in there.
We like 800 calories.
They're like yeah.
(21:52):
Yeah yeah, yeah, yeah.
That's what gets a lot ofpeople.
They're like, yeah, yeah that'sgood to know.
Speaker 1 (22:03):
Like, I highly recommend anybody that wants you
know To heal and go throughthis process.
Speaker 2 (22:09):
I don't want to say like just going into burn 800
calories, but that's what Iwanted to say.
That's what I wanted to say.
Speaker 1 (22:15):
Come on in in a minute and it was 800.
Speaker 3 (22:18):
That's right.
Speaker 1 (22:21):
So I like that because I think you know, at
least for me, I always have anissue with blood flow and things
, and so to learn that processsee, that's that education piece
and that's that piece that alot of people don't understand
that your body needs to resetand there's certain things and
methods to kind of help amplifythat.
(22:43):
I share experience.
I was in Canada last Octoberand I went to a place called the
Scandinavis spot and it was ano technology zone, so put your
phone up, like it, and we werefilming something.
So of course I got to have myphone but they were like like
(23:03):
they had to open up in 30minutes and like, when that 30
minutes hit, you can't havenothing.
We don't care who you are, whatyou're doing, like it's private
and I didn't understand it.
So one of the processes theyput me through was to get into a
hot tub and then they did acold, cold plunge and of course,
(23:24):
like you know, I have to spinethe court injury, so I can't
feel so much below my waist, butI did feel the overall level of
like my breath was kind ofbeing renewed, like my body had
felt like replenished in a lotof ways and I might've been in
that cold water a little longerbecause they helped me get out
(23:45):
of there.
Speaker 2 (23:46):
I feel bad for the guy who had on shorts that had
to go in there.
Just act like it wasn't cold.
Speaker 1 (23:51):
Cause, I don't know, but it was, you know, not so
much of like the same thing, butI understand the similarity
because that was a practice thatthey focused on out there was
to be able to get into one placeand get your body familiar with
this and then jumping intosomething different and then
having your body kind of adjustand adapt to that.
(24:12):
That's the entryway.
You got to get in there, yougot to do the cry it's gonna
change your life.
And then so have you found,when people do that and they get
that overall, that instantgratification as a sense right,
Like, are they more willing toexplore other things that you
guys provide at that point?
Speaker 3 (24:33):
Yeah, it's like an awakening, because even if they
had doubts about anything whenthey came in there, we get them
into that chamber at negative154 and they make it out alive
and they feel better for it thanthey're listening right.
(24:54):
So that's why we start mostpeople off and it does so much
you can.
If you come in there and say,no, I ain't on the wrong with me
, you still gonna feel betterwhen you get out of the crowd
there, jenner still.
So it's the first thing that werecommend when people are
introduced to what we do.
(25:15):
Okay, okay.
Speaker 1 (25:18):
So all right.
So now we take away a littlebit, let's emphasize and say
that's for the pain side, right,like an entry way to be
awakened to the other thing.
So, like right now I'm goingthrough yoga and meditation
practices out here, but I'mworking more on breath work and
(25:39):
it's a little bit different thanthe actual, like physical
aspect, because I'm not goinginto like positions and things
that we're literally justworking on the breath and ways
that I can breathe differently.
Kind of talk about more of nowthe mental and emotional side of
like the work that you do andthe practices, because, yeah,
you can get into this tank,right, and it awakens you and it
(26:03):
gives you that clarity.
But now that you have thisthought process of healing, you
might find a way to kind of Idon't know, like for me, I
really have my trauma at timesand I go through a lot in a day,
and so what is the practicesthat you guys kind of teach when
it comes to like that mentalhealth, how to find that
(26:24):
everyday clarity?
And then, the same way isemotional, because I see, like
the crystal therapy on here,like I know that you guys do
more organic type of supplementsand things when it comes to
different areas but mentalhealth, like where is that at
with the lay list center andyour work, and like what are
(26:44):
some of the programs or thingsthat you do around that?
Speaker 3 (26:47):
Yeah, so the way that I implement sort of mental
health and those things isthrough spirituality and then
tapping into what did ourancestors do?
How do they connect thesethings?
How does the physicalmanifestation of an imbalance or
(27:07):
pain even connect to achildhood thing that has somehow
created this blockage in acertain body part that
manifested now into somethingthat you physically feel right?
So there are I'm not sure ifyou're familiar with, like the
(27:29):
chakra system.
That's the easiest way I canconnect.
Okay, so root chakra very basicone is connected to and my
practice is connected to fear,those first couple years of life
and the experiences that youhad during that time.
(27:51):
So, and then they will manifestinto things like elimination
issues.
So people who have issues withwe're gonna get real on here
constipation, things like thatcan connect that to the root.
And I mean it's the energycenter, it's the same area and
(28:14):
probably something fearful thathappened, even if it was
ungroundedness.
They moved all the time.
Mom or dad was an alcoholic andsaid they stayed in fear all
the time as a child and thenmoving up.
The sacral is connected tocreativity, but it's also the
women's reproductive system.
The physical manifestation ofan imbalance would be something
(28:36):
like fibroid issues that a lotof women go through but can be
connected energetically tosexual assault, and in energy
session with me we're gonna talkabout some of those things.
Sometimes people open up,sometimes they don't.
Sometimes you can fill theenergy in different centers and
work through blockages that wayand then later they open up.
(28:59):
But it's all about trying toconnect that physical imbalance
and chronic condition withsomething that probably was a
blockage from age three.
Speaker 1 (29:12):
Oh, that was so good.
It's allowing people to thinksometimes, at least for me,
that's what I got from that.
It's like I could be physicallyfeeling some type of pain right
now and the root of it could besomething that I've blocked out
from my past but still is there.
Wow, ooh, you know, they say alot of things bear weight, right
(29:39):
, and sometimes people are outhere every day with a lot of
weight heavy on them, liketearing them down because they
haven't found a way to releaseand they're imbalanced and oh,
that is so I like.
So I'm gonna kind of go back alittle bit.
When you mentioned, like, dowhat your ancestors did, right,
(30:02):
and so I had a conversation lastweek and this is my
transparency, because we weretalking about history and I had
to be honest and say that Idon't know mine, right, and so,
as we were talking aboutancestors and where did I come
(30:23):
from, what's my lineage, and Imean it definitely brought me
into a place of depression for asecond.
I did feel that overwhelmedbecause I mean, for probably a
lot of black people we don'tknow so much outside of, like
our parents' parents, and ifthat's who we were able to meet,
and if you're lucky, you mightknow a little bit more, but for
(30:43):
me I just didn't have that, andso I've been going through some
things to set intentions onlearning more and kind of
opening up that door for myancestors to speak to me so that
I can, because when I look atmy features, there's so much
that I see, but that's notwhat's written down for me.
And when I think about my lifeand I think about the things
(31:07):
that I've been able to overcomeand do, like that, just like you
said earlier, like it's in me,right.
And so if this is in me, thatit has to be something that I'm
tied to.
And I've learned that when weunderstand our history and we
understand where our ancestorscome from, we can also start to
figure out that trauma thatwe've probably been holding on,
(31:30):
especially if it comes fromgenerations, right.
And so I just wanted to put somejust emphasize on that because,
yeah, like, do what yourancestors do, and if you don't
know what they did, it'sprobably time to start to figure
out who they were and gothrough some practices to learn
that, because once you start tolearn your history, you can also
(31:51):
find more clarity into, like,your path and your passion and
what you're destined to do.
So do you know your ancestors?
Have you done the practice tolike go that far, or at least
start to understand that?
Or were you already kind ofbrought into having those ties
Like just curious eggs?
Speaker 3 (32:14):
No, I didn't have those ties.
You know what.
I just feel connection, like Isaid, like it's always been in
me.
Once I had the tools to listen,I just draw to what feels right
and then I'm a little bit of aconspiracy theorist.
But so I don't want to get himmy DNA.
I want to get him my DNA Like Iwas like.
(32:38):
I was like what do you think?
Speaker 2 (32:39):
one I love that.
Speaker 3 (32:46):
I'm a big one, no, but I just feel close to the
practices that I do and I allow,I think, for ancestors to speak
through me in what I do, andthat's to say I mean because for
them it was, you know, therewas no labeling anything, it was
(33:10):
just get up and do what we areused to doing, and so I just
feel like I get up and I do thethings that they did.
Speaker 1 (33:19):
Yeah, yeah, no, I feel the same way.
It definitely comes to my mindthat my routine and the way that
I carry myself every day is theway that was like a routine for
people before me, thegenerations before me, you know,
(33:40):
and I believe that.
So we have so many people thathave watched this and I think
it's just important.
As we talk about these thingsand we talk about healing, a lot
of people are like you know.
Most people do get healing,most people can go to therapy,
but then you think about ourcommunities we come from and
that's not true.
And if you don't know so muchof your history and what you do
(34:04):
realize is that the generationis probably right, before you
didn't go through healing theway that you're trying to seek
it now, you know, and so we arelooking at those individuals
that actually help us probablydon't get a lot of service.
Like I always say, like I'malways, I believe that I'm
helping my mom and my dadactually find a better way of
(34:24):
healing, letting things go,processing and even finding
their passions at this age oflife.
I always talk about the lightthat I saw in my grandmother's
eyes as I started to reallybecome who I'm supposed to be
and that even was something thatreally spoke to me of, like man
.
All right, yeah, it was thatenergy.
(34:46):
I feel energy, I'm tied tothings and, as you mentioned,
like if ancestors speaking toyou, I think that's, yeah, I
think that's why I live life theway I do.
I'm in LA.
I learned in my journey offinding ancestry that I had
history in LA.
My grandparents were out in LA.
I learned that maybe about ayear ago, and so I always
(35:09):
wondered why I was drawn hereonce I came out here in 2016.
And so that has literally hadme intrigued here to figure out
what roots do I have here?
Because I do find peace here,and that's just rare, coming
from Kansas City and not reallyever living somewhere else.
Right, like, I was a product ofmy environment for a long time
and now I'm in an environmentthat I feel like I belong in or
(35:32):
that I find some peace here, andwhy?
Right, so that's good, and Ilove that.
We had that talk about that.
So now, emotional health, right, like, of course, we have all
of these things.
And maybe speaking moreemphasizing on women too I know
that you do a lot of work withwomen and trying to educate.
(35:52):
When it comes to the feminineside, I have a friend that kind
of did some practices with likesteam or something.
I don't know what that wholepractice was.
Speaker 3 (36:01):
Only steam.
I think you knew the word, yeah.
Speaker 2 (36:09):
I try to steer away from things I don't have a lot
of knowledge about.
You know, like it wasinteresting, but I'm like, oh,
you did what with what.
And then it came with a littleegg, like I don't know, like,
but I don't know.
Speaker 1 (36:24):
Like so what is that?
Is that more of like acleansing practice that you guys
do when it comes to women?
I think that a lot of.
If there's women watching this,I think it's important for them
to hear that part.
At least, for me, I thought itwas important.
Speaker 3 (36:38):
Yeah, we've been doing it from the start too,
ever since we opened, doingthose Yoni's themes, and I think
that, for women, we're a lotdisconnected from, like, true
sexuality and like, of course,we do the acts of sex and we
(36:59):
procreate in all of those things.
But, like, what does creatingmean?
And how do you connect to thesacral energy center and how do
you feel your divine feminism?
And through that practice which, again, our ancestors did for
multiple reasons, some of whichwas healing after having a baby
(37:21):
or even tightening, and then theother one is fertility.
So we have all these differentherb blends that help you to
connect through, I feel like,through nature, the herbs, they
kind of take care of you, theplants take care of you, so
they're choosing.
Like, which experience do Iwant?
But all in all, it's connectingto sacred feminism, knowing
(37:45):
that you're doing something foryourself in that way and doing
the practices that our ancestorsdid for many, many years ago.
It's reconnecting in that way.
Speaker 1 (37:56):
That's good.
I just you know, if we talkabout like all the work that you
guys do, cause it is a holisticI don't want to get it wrong
but like it's definitely acenter around a lot of different
holistic practices and just,yeah, I want people to know that
it's not just about going inand getting a cryo, getting in a
cryo tank.
If you're a woman and you knowyou have certain things that are
(38:21):
making you distant or even wantto learn more about yourself,
this is a place that you can goand I just learned that from a
friend that went there and theirexcitement of what they got
from it and their journey oftheir own healing.
So I think that, yeah, womennew women need to know that it's
(38:42):
a service for everybody,especially when it gets to that
level, cause you don't have alot of people that talk about
that.
We normally just hear about thedisconnect when it comes to
fertility and, like you said,like sexual abuse or something
like.
You always hear about thosethings, but you never hear about
someone taking ownership backinto that.
And what does that practicelooks like?
(39:03):
And you know this is what outof the shadows is is that most
people are going to the wrongperson to be served in the right
way.
And there are, you know, placeslike the Layla Center and
individuals like Ms Mays righthere that are literally
educating you, not just givingyou something, but educating you
on a way to do this you knowforever and actually take care
(39:26):
of yourself more.
So, when it comes to, like youknow, that education piece, what
is the most important thingthat you want people to take
away?
Speaker 3 (39:35):
I think it's that you can really use nature to take
care of yourself, to reversesome effects of medications, of
physical manifestation, ofblockages, and that it's a full
body connection thing.
It's not like I have pain in myelbow so I'm going to the elbow
(39:56):
doctor.
It's what's going on in mywhole body, you know at the same
time, and what's going on in mymind and what am I consuming on
a nutritional level, on anenergetic level, on a mental
level, like what people arearound, what am I watching, what
(40:19):
am I listening to all of thethings?
So it's about connecting backto nature, getting your feet on
the ground and understandingthat your whole body needs that
full holistic Health journey.
Speaker 1 (40:37):
No, I like that.
I like that Nature, nature.
I think a lot of people strayaway from understanding that the
things that we need most,things that we can get in, the
value that we can get from life,is literally going outside your
door, you know, soaking up sun,getting into fresh water if you
can, grounding yourself in theground and the soil, getting
(41:00):
your feet just to touch thegrass, like the connections,
learning more about the foods,allowing you know how food can
become medicine, what foods canhelp with inflammation.
I know if anyone's watched someof these episodes, I say with
tea.
I didn't start drinking teatill maybe last July, on a
consistent basis.
At first it was just coffee andI wasn't even a coffee fan
(41:23):
until I got into likeentrepreneurship, right.
But then it was like, oh, I getcoffee, coffee.
And then after a while I waslike but I don't have the energy
, or maybe my body is dealingwith, you know, inflammation and
coffee's not going to help that.
But there can be a herbal teathat can actually give me some
benefits.
You know, how can I be morenatural with my energy?
(41:44):
Well, it's probably going tocome from something that's more
natural, you know, and so beingable to emphasize that.
You know, nature can reallycure us.
All is important.
And I went when I was in Canada,like I got to meet some of the
first nations out there and theytook me in a forest, we did a
forest walk and they literallytaught me all the different
plants and trees that theycreate everything, and that was
(42:07):
the way that they did healingfrom plants, like lichen and
like all of it was like.
And then I learned about thecedar tree and like all the
things that were made out ofthat.
Like I learned.
It was just so many things thatI learned that, you know,
frankly, I felt like I shouldjust have a garden with all of
these things around me so that Icould be like, oh, this is
(42:28):
going to help with wounds, oh,this is going to help with this,
oh, this is going to help withthat.
Because what I found is some ofthe products that we get in
medicine have the natural thingsin it, additionally with
chemicals.
Right, like I've learned thattoo.
Like people know what's goingto actually cure you, but they
add some things on top of it tomake sure that you come back
(42:51):
Right, like, and so, before weeven like in everything, it's
like that part, right, like sothat part of plants and medicine
and nature and what it does.
Could you provide people withsome practices when it comes to
like just some everydaypractices you can do?
That can help you with overallwellness.
Speaker 3 (43:13):
Definitely get now in grounding.
I used to when I was goingthrough little issues, emotional
issues, I literally would layback against the tree for hours
at a time, connecting with everypart of your body, doing a body
scan, especially in nature too,where if your body is on the
(43:35):
ground, the ground will soakthat negativity or pain or
anything out of you, right?
So if you're scanning your body, checking in every step of the
way head, your eyes, your throat, your heart, your stomach and
(43:57):
you're doing this body scan andyou're making note of what you
feel and being present in thatmoment, while connecting to like
whatever it is andacknowledging it, while in
nature allowing the elements tohelp heal you and take away some
(44:17):
of those things, it's a really,really enlightening experience
and it's something thateverybody can do just right out
in your backyard.
So learning what nativemedicinal plants grow right in
your backyard, in the cracks ofthe street, on a downtown busy
(44:40):
road, there could be somemedicine.
So learning what's native andwhat you can go and, year after
year after year, find in yourbackyard to take care of you.
I have a story.
So we had a property in LeighSummit where there was all these
(45:02):
different native plants on theproperty.
But one year my husband brokehis foot and we had Arnica came
out of nowhere.
Arnica came and I know it wasout of nowhere because it was
right outside the front door.
I walked past it for years andone year Arnica grew in our
(45:28):
front yard.
Wow and so they'll find you too.
Speaker 1 (45:33):
There you go, there you go, they'll find you too.
That's how much we should beconnected with this earth,
because it's definitely rootedin everything.
It's its own ecosystem, it hasits own nervous system, like
it's everything, and once youget connected to it, it brings
(45:55):
everything to you.
Speaker 3 (45:57):
You are part of it.
A human and a plant has thesame cellular structure.
That's why it can heal you likeit does.
That's why it takes care of youlike it does.
It's a part of you.
Speaker 1 (46:08):
It's not separate from you that's a word that to
me is healing in itself andagain, the knowledge to
understand.
And so, first of all, you knowwe have a few more minutes, but
I appreciate you like sharingall of this knowledge because it
helps me even know that there'ssomething in my backyard that I
can go and be a part of andit's serving me the same way as
(46:32):
I came out here to get served.
Of course, I want people toknow how they can find you, how
they can learn more about yourservices.
But kind of shifting into justthe supplement, the brand that
you have also created, I kind ofjust wanted you to share a
little bit about that, because,of course, we're going through
(46:53):
all these other practices, butyou know, I figured that you
guys have found a way to getthese natural herbs into some
type of level of supplements toprovide.
I'll let you talk about it, butthat's what I want, like let's
share a little bit about that.
And why do you feel that that'simportant and what's the
passion behind that?
To get it out more.
Speaker 3 (47:14):
So I'll first say that, again, covid forced some
things upon us.
Now, while I'm a trainedherbalist, I've been making
medicine.
We've always incorporated itinto our spa treatments, our
wellness treatments at thecenter.
We didn't have a real lineuntil COVID hit and we couldn't
(47:38):
touch anybody anymore.
We made five products aroundthat time and people will come
and pick up their orders and wehelped a lot of people find
COVID.
So it grew from five productsto about 85 products in three
(47:58):
years Wow.
But the basis of it all isreally nutrient dense, medicinal
herbs, supplements completelyclean and skincare.
We launched skincare last yearand it's all about.
I mean, the skin is the largestorgan on the body, so if you're
(48:20):
going to put something on it,make sure you're still lending
to that healing journey.
We have teas.
We have one of our best sellerspeople really love is our hot
chocolate and we call it SevenKings because it's seven
mushrooms, and the Africanchocolate and it's sweetened
with a low glycemic sweetenercalled Jaggery that even
(48:43):
diabetic skin take and it's good.
Okay, we just keep evolving,adding things to our T-bar menu.
We're doing food and it's allherb infused and it's always a
benefit to it.
It's always nutrient dense andjust helping people take some of
(49:04):
the bad out of there every day.
Speaker 1 (49:07):
Oh, I love that.
Oh, all right.
Speaker 3 (49:10):
I know which.
I need to send you some teasince you're gonna die.
Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2 (49:15):
No, I need it, I need it all.
We're gonna definitely kind oflook at the whole menu and check
it out.
Speaker 1 (49:20):
Yeah, so you know how can people find you.
You know when it comes to theLayla Center, as well as the
supplement brand, and then arethere anything that you would
like to leave people with aswell?
So we'll start with where theycan find you.
Speaker 3 (49:36):
So our wellness center and you know the full
scope brand umbrella is theLayla Center and we're the Layla
Center on Instagram andFacebook and that's our website,
laya Center.
And then our supplement andskincare company is
urbanbrandcom.
You can find us on Instagramand Facebook as well.
Speaker 1 (49:59):
Urban.
You know what I love it, it'surban.
Speaker 3 (50:04):
I mean, I come from, I love it.
It's urban, but it's spelledH-E-R-B-A-N, so urban.
Speaker 1 (50:13):
Ooh, there you go, All right.
So then, what would you want toleave the people you know, any
and everybody?
What's one thing that you wouldwant them to always know about
you?
Your story, rather, if it everbecomes hidden in the shadows.
Speaker 3 (50:36):
Vision and the will to succeed, the goals all those
things.
They happen in the mind first.
And it doesn't matter where youare in the world, it doesn't
matter how you came up.
I came into projects.
We were ducking bullets everysingle day.
We didn't even run in the houseanymore.
(50:56):
It was just part of life, right.
But I've always been this sortof I guess you can say dreamer.
So if you can dream it and youcan see it in your head, that's
where it starts and it'sattainable Any and everything.
Speaker 1 (51:10):
Oh, I love it.
I love it.
Yes, if you can believe it, youcan achieve it Right.
If you believe it's something,it starts up here, you believe
it up here and have faith inyour own vision, same way as Ms
Mays and her husband has donewith the Layla Center and their
work with just really empoweringthese unrepresented communities
(51:32):
that lack the knowledge of howthey can organically heal
themselves and become a betterversion of themselves, actually
become who they already areinside.
Speaker 3 (51:43):
There you go.
Thank you, just a little bit.
Speaker 1 (51:51):
Just a little bit.
So, no, thank you for sharingthis time and allowing everyone
to know your story and yourpassion behind your work, and
I'm just looking forward tobuilding a better relationship
with you guys.
Myself and you know learningand educating, because we can
all learn every day.
Speaker 3 (52:10):
So thank you.
Speaker 1 (52:12):
No problem.
And as we conclude anotherinspiring episode, I want to
remind you that success isn'tjust about the spotlight.
It's also about the shadows.
It's about the struggles weconquer, the unseen battles we
fight and the silent victorieswe claim.
I'm Wesley Hamilton and you'vebeen listening to Out of the
(52:34):
Shadows, where we illuminate thestories often left untold.
Join me next week as I ventureback into the shadows and bring
another amazing individual intothe light.
Until then, remember, no storyis too small to inspire.
Keep fighting, Keep winning andstay out of the shadows.
In a world where success often steals the
limelight, the stories thattruly inspire, that truly matter
, are left behind in the shadows.
I'm your host, Wesley Hamilton.
Welcome to the Out of theShadows podcast.
Speaker 3 (00:23):
A human and a plant has the same cellular structure.
That's why it can heal you likeit does.
It's a part of you.
It's not separate from you, Yowhat's up everybody.
Speaker 1 (00:43):
This is Wesley Hamilton.
Welcome to Out of the Shadows.
I'm here with owner andco-founder of the Layla Center,
ms Toya Mays.
It's an honor Ms Mays is anartist, an herbalist, a crystal
therapist and a wellnessprofessional Honestly just
honored to have thisconversation kind of structured
(01:05):
around holistic healing todayand just learning more about
something that is pretty amazingand profound and is literally
making changes in the KansasCity Missouri area and, from
what I see, about to be globalwhen it comes to products and
things.
I'm just going to add that too.
Welcome, ms Mays.
How are you?
Speaker 3 (01:27):
I'm doing well.
How are you?
Speaker 1 (01:29):
I'm doing good, I'm feeling good, I'm feeling great
actually, and just honored to beable to chat with you today.
Speaker 3 (01:38):
Me too, absolutely All right.
Speaker 1 (01:40):
So, you know, I have this thing where, of course,
like I started this show Out ofthe Shadows because, looking at
my life and some of the successthat I've made, I've realized
that, you know, when it comes toour stories, certain platforms
will allow certain pieces to beshared in a light, but then
there are other pieces of ourstories that are hidden in the
(02:01):
shadows, and I believe, at leastfor a person like me that's
passionate about my work, thatwe have this passion to make
sure that we plant seeds incommunities that we're from, and
normally that's where theshadows are left, right Like
that's where the individuals areleft when it comes to our
stories, and so I'm just honoredto be able to share that.
(02:24):
So, first and foremost, like Ihave these icebreakers that I
like to do so as an artist, as awellness professional, can you
share with us some type ofartwork or creative project that
you're particularly proud of,and how does it connect to your
passion for healing?
Speaker 3 (02:43):
Yeah, actually I did obviously the interior design
for the Leia Center and theintention behind a lot of it was
to connect people to Indigenousrooms, to connect people to
nature, to make them feel likethey're enveloped in this
natural setting, even thoughthey're in the middle of the
(03:05):
city.
So I'm super proud of thethings that people say when they
come in there and they connectwith these communities and they
allow it to kind of transcendtheir minds to where they need
to be to start that healingjourney.
Speaker 1 (03:20):
Oh, I love that.
I love that and at least againI'm gonna hold myself
accountable.
I need to roll on into the LeiaCenter and see the new one.
Okay, Just for people to know,I definitely have.
You know, took some time andwent into the old location, so,
but the new location looksbeautiful, it's very welcoming
and it does seem like it takespeople to a different place when
(03:43):
they go in there.
So what necessarily inspire youto venture into the world of
holistic healing and create theLeia Center?
Speaker 3 (03:52):
It was a personal journey to start.
My husband played in the NFLfor eight years.
He took massive amount ofpainkillers I mean they have
them available like candy, youknow, injections and it's all to
stay on the field so that theyhave a job.
But I think around 28 or 29years old, just a routine check,
(04:16):
he went to the doctor.
They told him his liver andkidney function was that of like
a 50 year old smoker and it wasbecause of all the painkillers
and all the other I meanobviously be this body up
because he uses it as a weapon.
But the painkillers broke downthat lining of the stomach and
kind of broke down somefunctions.
So I just felt like it was myjob to go and see what
(04:41):
alternative measures we couldtake, what lifestyle changes we
can make, what I could studybecause I'm a person that
researches things that couldhelp him reverse some of these
effects and kind of slow downthat aging process of his body.
Speaker 1 (04:54):
Wow, oh, that's a lot .
You know, I know you just madeit sound good real quick, but it
was a mouthful.
But when I think about, youknow medicine and of course you
know as we talk about holistichealing, you know you're taking
an approach different than mostpeople when it comes to healing
(05:17):
or ways that you feel like youknow you can get pain relief or
any type of mental relief,emotional relief, like most
people do go out for themedicine and for me, as a person
, have had personal experiencebehind it.
I just know what you're talkingabout.
(05:37):
You know I acquired my spinalcord injury and I remember just
being on 14 medications.
I had a medic medication foreverything that now, at least
again personally, food hasbecome the way to help me and
you know outdoors and activityhas become the way to actually
(05:57):
be more of an effective healerthan the medicine that I was
taking.
I wrote a blog years ago thatwas like it wasn't depression,
it was the medicine, and I thinka lot of people don't
understand that.
But when you look at my lifenow, you see somebody living
free and that's because I'm noton any medicine.
And if I had, if I was onmedicine, I definitely know that
I wouldn't be driven andmotivated and clear minded as I
(06:21):
am today.
You know, before we get moreinto like the in depth work that
you're doing, I think it'simportant to kind of share a
little bit of like your personalbackground.
You know, how did you come upto become an artist?
How did you really get invested?
I mean, I know, like theholistic human went into like
the process of you know beingmarried and your husband being
(06:42):
in a field player, but outsideof that, like that upbringing,
like that story of why is it soimportant for you to really be
who you are, like that identity,where did this identity come
from?
Speaker 3 (06:55):
So, hmm, first that was a little double whammy.
So I'll first say I'm fromChicago inner city, southside
project.
Okay, so I don't come from thisat all, and that was another
motivating factor.
To be available in this way forpeople that look like us is
(07:19):
because, even when I was goingout and researching these things
for my husband just not toolong ago, there's not like this
one place that provides what weprovide, or even provide space
for people that looks like thatlook like us, to venture into
the alternative Right.
But at the same time, I canalways feel, I have always felt
(07:41):
like I was just a differentperson that can see things and
feel things, and like I'vealways been the type of person
that people come up to and in 10minutes, I know your life story
and I'm able to absorb thatenergy and I'm able to be
sensitive to different thingsthat people are going through,
(08:02):
you know, and be there for them.
So it I felt like there wasalways a healer inside of me,
even though I didn't have thetools or the knowledge to
understand what it was then andapply it earlier than I did.
Speaker 1 (08:19):
Oh, that's good.
I think you know it's more andmore people starting to learn is
it's never outside of you, hasalways been inside of you,
you've always been a healer, andyou know.
So, thinking about, like evengrowing up and I love what you
said like you know, thisidentity that you have now
(08:41):
wasn't something that you knowit was going to happen where you
came from or have been athought process.
Of course, we hear more andmore about the lack of
representation and things, butyou know the lack of
representation and actuallyholistic killing, the amount of
trauma that black communitiesface right.
So, like, thinking about that,because I think you know your
(09:03):
background put emphasis on whyyou understood the importance of
your work and so, with yourwork and making sure that you
know black and brown faces areable to see this and learn about
it, like, what steps do youtake to really get this
knowledge out to the communitiesthat didn't know about
(09:23):
something that has existed forhundreds of thousands of years?
Speaker 3 (09:27):
Yeah, I mean, besides the the normal social media and
posting things, they kind ofresonate with people on a
spiritual level.
What we've been doing here forthe past couple years is going
into the community by way oforganizations that are already
(09:48):
infiltrated into the community,the inner city, the under
represented people and creatingthese partnerships where we're
the trusted wellness people forthose organizations.
So, for instance, right now wehave a partnership with Uzazi
(10:09):
Village where we're acting asthe mental health expansion
wellness department for thewomen that they have coming in
pre and post-medal.
Speaker 1 (10:23):
Oh I like that, I like that because, yeah, it's so
important to get involved inthe community outside of just
setting up some type of platformor business and saying, hey,
come and adore, right.
So I think, like that approachis very important because you
(10:43):
wanna reach people organicallyand not make them feel forced to
come in.
At least I know that's how I do.
It is how do I try to educateyou or come into places where
people are serving and I canserve you freely with this
knowledge and allow you toactually come and be authentic
when you come in to be servedthrough our work.
Speaker 3 (11:07):
Authenticity, natural , providing space for these
people.
I mean, we toyed with the ideaearly on that we would come over
to Uzazi Village, kind of intheir neighborhood, but then you
think about it, and when doblack women feel like they
should be in these types ofspaces?
(11:29):
So no, bring them over here,let them see what it feels like
to be in this type of space andbe nurtured and cared for the
way that they probably didn'tthink they could ever be.
Speaker 1 (11:44):
I love that.
I think it's not emphasizedenough on the resources that are
out there, but the mentalcapacity of how these
communities, these people withblack and brown community,
coming from black and browncommunities, feel about going
into spaces where they weren'twelcome or that they feel
uncomfortable, and what type ofmental and emotional health like
(12:08):
trauma does that create?
You know, and I always tellpeople that it's never been an
issue of what's been out there,it's the lack of access to it
and a lack of understanding.
So when you do go into a space,sometimes people's perception
of you is what you areintroduced to.
It's not even the servicethat's provided within a space.
(12:29):
It's already how they viewedyou, that you feel right, like
in LA.
For me, it's like you can feelsome energy quick, and once you
do that, it creates a level ofdistrust.
And I think that when you thinkabout the black communities and
why your work is probably evenmore important, it's because
(12:51):
there's such a distrust when itcomes to pharma and it comes to,
like, the medical side ofthings and we're learning more
and more about it.
We're learning more and moreabout what you know black women
go through when it comes to youknow the medical side, as well
as black men and even, like formyself, black and disabled
(13:12):
individuals, like there's such alevel, right.
So you go back into your work,you go back into the practice of
holistic healing and that'skind of what I'm learning about
now, right, just for anybody toknow, we joke about this before
we got on a call, but I went allthe way to LA to heal.
I went all the way to LA toreally find or gain the
(13:35):
knowledge of the things that youknow, ms Mays and her husband
has actually created in KansasCity and we talked to, like, you
know, why did I go all the wayto LA?
And for me, I guess my answerto that was that I feel more
free out here.
As a black man coming fromKansas City, learning about
healing is hard when there's somany people within that space
(13:56):
that haven't healed, and so,like for me, I wanted to bring
my full, complete self.
That carries a level of empathyand understanding and I think,
like if I had the opportunity tojust get out somewhere to
breathe.
That's just what I did, and nowit's like, now that I
understand it, now it's like, ohman, when I get back home, this
is a space and a stable thatyou know I will feel comfortable
(14:19):
.
I have felt comfortable at, butwith the understanding that
I've gained out here.
Especially LA is definitelymore into holistic things.
I feel like you see people justmeditating when you get to the
beaches.
It's just random, but it's abeautiful thing to see because
you know that even your practiceI can become to understand more
.
Like certain places don't do itas much, right Like, and so
(14:43):
let's talk about that real quick.
Has it been a struggle or achallenge to really connect to
certain communities because ofthe lack of knowledge and
education that's within KansasCity itself?
On holistic healing?
Speaker 3 (14:56):
Absolutely mid-west period.
We've been doing this six and ahalf years, almost seven years,
and we're still in the positionwhere we have to educate as
well as sell.
You need this and this is howmuch it costs, so it's like it's
a little hard to be in aposition where you're educating
(15:17):
people at the same time, but Ifeel like COVID helped open
people's minds to the idea oftaking care of themselves.
That are, if nothing else, andI also feel like COVID kind of
opened up this door for us, forpeople to look at us and say, oh
(15:38):
, they are different and this iswhy they're different and this
is why I need them.
So it actually helped us,because people were looking for
and not just their physicalbodies, but their minds too, to
heal.
Speaker 1 (15:54):
You know, covid did a lot for, I think, especially
for the Black and Browncommunities, because I mean, in
that same timeframe it was theGeorge Floyd situation.
So I think we dealt with thetrauma and the grief of seeing
something on TV that way andthen the doors shut on everybody
in a sense like right afterthat, and you had to sit at home
(16:15):
and have to deal with it.
You had to sit at home and haveto deal with the views of
America and other places aroundthe world of how they felt about
the situation, good or bad.
You had to literally talk toyour children and your family
and have those conversations,because everybody was at home
every day and then we got pulledinto a lot of different spaces
to have these uncomfortableconversations.
(16:37):
So now the world can understandwhat we go through, right.
So I think that it did make asignificant impact for all of us
because we went through so much.
So I think we started to seekthat level of healing and start
to find it.
So I do feel like you guys grewI know that from my work with
disabled, but not really.
(16:57):
I think I just became moreunderstanding to what I wanted
to do too during the pandemicand seeing how much, even on the
healing side, people withdisabilities was to me, I felt
like was the ones that reallyhad to deal with a lot of
barriers, couldn't go to the gymbecause people thought we
(17:19):
wasn't healthy enough.
And I remember starting andcreating my garage gym because
I'm like, oh, but I'm healthy.
So you're telling me that Idon't think that I'm healthy
enough due to how you feel, andso doing that made me start to
educate people more, talk aboutmore mental health, because I
don't think I understood howmuch my mental health was being
(17:42):
bothered and conflicted by whatwas happening.
And then having a platform andbeing a voice for communities,
right Like, and then you haveyour own healing to do, you have
your own situations to do.
So I think it just it didsomething for us all.
So I'm very pleased to hearthat it actually helped you guys
grow.
And it's crazy to think that theMidwest has such a lack of
(18:05):
understanding to healing whenyou can look at that straight
line and see that we are themost violent, from St Louis to
Kansas City to Chicago, rightLike all of these places where
we're literally on this list ofviolent cities and we lack
healing and knowledge to whatthat looks like.
(18:27):
And it's just, it's the state ofmind, right, like everybody
always talk about a certainstate of mind and I always say,
like it's definitely in theMidwest, it's a state of mind it
doesn't matter from here or StLouis or Chicago, it's a state
of mind that we all carry.
And so now let's shift a littlebit and go right into some of
your work.
Outside you have the educationpiece, you guys have the
(18:50):
physical healing piece, and sowhat are things that kind of go
under?
That Like when you bring peoplein and they're just sore and
dealing with pain, like what aresome of the ways that you try
to serve them?
That's kind of different thanwhat they would go to if they
went to like the doctor ortherapy, in a sense.
Speaker 3 (19:08):
You know what Our cryotherapy chamber is, that
number one piece.
If somebody comes in and theyhave pain, information, or even
if they can't sleep at night orget headaches, the cryotherapy
chamber is that instantgratification, like you only
could feel it some differentthan when you walked in.
(19:30):
And so when you feel somethingdifferent, just know we got you.
Speaker 1 (19:34):
After that, I love that you know what, but that's
the big buzzword out there foryou guys.
I think anytime I hear someoneor mention that's the first
thing they bring up.
You know and so like, what arethe overall benefits or some of
the benefits that you could justshare so people can understand
(19:56):
what that is and maybe what'sthe process of it Like?
Because you know cryo likethere, but no one knows it.
Isn't it like cold chamber?
Speaker 3 (20:05):
It's a cold chamber, it's down to negative 154
degrees and people are alwayslike, what?
Like I can go in there.
It's like it's such a shortamount of time three minutes
that yeah, you can go in there.
But the process that happens is, once you go in there, your
body tries to keep you warm,naturally, so it automatically
(20:28):
pulls all of your blood to thecore of your body and speeds up
your metabolism.
So your metabolism is speedingup to try to keep you warm.
And Right at that two minute twoand a half minute mark, you do
reach where your body shiftedinto hypothermia.
But that's when the magichappens, right.
(20:49):
So you're shifting into intohypothermia, but you're only in
there in 30 seconds, a minute orwhatever, and then you come out
.
So when you come out, the bloodthat went to your core we
disperses throughout your wholebody.
So it's like a recalibration,like a reset.
You get blood flow in placesyou probably never had or
(21:10):
haven't had it in a really longtime Brain, head included, and
so it just awakens all of thesense, the systems, and the
central nervous system releasestoxins inflammation, pain,
headaches.
You burn calories because thatmetabolism shot up.
(21:31):
So 800 calories, it's like theicing on a cake.
So we tell people at the end,still mulling it over whether
they want to get in there.
We like 800 calories.
They're like yeah.
(21:52):
Yeah yeah, yeah, yeah.
That's what gets a lot ofpeople.
They're like, yeah, yeah that'sgood to know.
Speaker 1 (22:03):
Like, I highly recommend anybody that wants you
know To heal and go throughthis process.
Speaker 2 (22:09):
I don't want to say like just going into burn 800
calories, but that's what Iwanted to say.
That's what I wanted to say.
Speaker 1 (22:15):
Come on in in a minute and it was 800.
Speaker 3 (22:18):
That's right.
Speaker 1 (22:21):
So I like that because I think you know, at
least for me, I always have anissue with blood flow and things
, and so to learn that processsee, that's that education piece
and that's that piece that alot of people don't understand
that your body needs to resetand there's certain things and
methods to kind of help amplifythat.
(22:43):
I share experience.
I was in Canada last Octoberand I went to a place called the
Scandinavis spot and it was ano technology zone, so put your
phone up, like it, and we werefilming something.
So of course I got to have myphone but they were like like
(23:03):
they had to open up in 30minutes and like, when that 30
minutes hit, you can't havenothing.
We don't care who you are, whatyou're doing, like it's private
and I didn't understand it.
So one of the processes theyput me through was to get into a
hot tub and then they did acold, cold plunge and of course,
(23:24):
like you know, I have to spinethe court injury, so I can't
feel so much below my waist, butI did feel the overall level of
like my breath was kind ofbeing renewed, like my body had
felt like replenished in a lotof ways and I might've been in
that cold water a little longerbecause they helped me get out
(23:45):
of there.
Speaker 2 (23:46):
I feel bad for the guy who had on shorts that had
to go in there.
Just act like it wasn't cold.
Speaker 1 (23:51):
Cause, I don't know, but it was, you know, not so
much of like the same thing, butI understand the similarity
because that was a practice thatthey focused on out there was
to be able to get into one placeand get your body familiar with
this and then jumping intosomething different and then
having your body kind of adjustand adapt to that.
(24:12):
That's the entryway.
You got to get in there, yougot to do the cry it's gonna
change your life.
And then so have you found,when people do that and they get
that overall, that instantgratification as a sense right,
Like, are they more willing toexplore other things that you
guys provide at that point?
Speaker 3 (24:33):
Yeah, it's like an awakening, because even if they
had doubts about anything whenthey came in there, we get them
into that chamber at negative154 and they make it out alive
and they feel better for it thanthey're listening right.
(24:54):
So that's why we start mostpeople off and it does so much
you can.
If you come in there and say,no, I ain't on the wrong with me
, you still gonna feel betterwhen you get out of the crowd
there, jenner still.
So it's the first thing that werecommend when people are
introduced to what we do.
(25:15):
Okay, okay.
Speaker 1 (25:18):
So all right.
So now we take away a littlebit, let's emphasize and say
that's for the pain side, right,like an entry way to be
awakened to the other thing.
So, like right now I'm goingthrough yoga and meditation
practices out here, but I'mworking more on breath work and
(25:39):
it's a little bit different thanthe actual, like physical
aspect, because I'm not goinginto like positions and things
that we're literally justworking on the breath and ways
that I can breathe differently.
Kind of talk about more of nowthe mental and emotional side of
like the work that you do andthe practices, because, yeah,
you can get into this tank,right, and it awakens you and it
(26:03):
gives you that clarity.
But now that you have thisthought process of healing, you
might find a way to kind of Idon't know, like for me, I
really have my trauma at timesand I go through a lot in a day,
and so what is the practicesthat you guys kind of teach when
it comes to like that mentalhealth, how to find that
(26:24):
everyday clarity?
And then, the same way isemotional, because I see, like
the crystal therapy on here,like I know that you guys do
more organic type of supplementsand things when it comes to
different areas but mentalhealth, like where is that at
with the lay list center andyour work, and like what are
(26:44):
some of the programs or thingsthat you do around that?
Speaker 3 (26:47):
Yeah, so the way that I implement sort of mental
health and those things isthrough spirituality and then
tapping into what did ourancestors do?
How do they connect thesethings?
How does the physicalmanifestation of an imbalance or
(27:07):
pain even connect to achildhood thing that has somehow
created this blockage in acertain body part that
manifested now into somethingthat you physically feel right?
So there are I'm not sure ifyou're familiar with, like the
(27:29):
chakra system.
That's the easiest way I canconnect.
Okay, so root chakra very basicone is connected to and my
practice is connected to fear,those first couple years of life
and the experiences that youhad during that time.
(27:51):
So, and then they will manifestinto things like elimination
issues.
So people who have issues withwe're gonna get real on here
constipation, things like thatcan connect that to the root.
And I mean it's the energycenter, it's the same area and
(28:14):
probably something fearful thathappened, even if it was
ungroundedness.
They moved all the time.
Mom or dad was an alcoholic andsaid they stayed in fear all
the time as a child and thenmoving up.
The sacral is connected tocreativity, but it's also the
women's reproductive system.
The physical manifestation ofan imbalance would be something
(28:36):
like fibroid issues that a lotof women go through but can be
connected energetically tosexual assault, and in energy
session with me we're gonna talkabout some of those things.
Sometimes people open up,sometimes they don't.
Sometimes you can fill theenergy in different centers and
work through blockages that wayand then later they open up.
(28:59):
But it's all about trying toconnect that physical imbalance
and chronic condition withsomething that probably was a
blockage from age three.
Speaker 1 (29:12):
Oh, that was so good.
It's allowing people to thinksometimes, at least for me,
that's what I got from that.
It's like I could be physicallyfeeling some type of pain right
now and the root of it could besomething that I've blocked out
from my past but still is there.
Wow, ooh, you know, they say alot of things bear weight, right
(29:39):
, and sometimes people are outhere every day with a lot of
weight heavy on them, liketearing them down because they
haven't found a way to releaseand they're imbalanced and oh,
that is so I like.
So I'm gonna kind of go back alittle bit.
When you mentioned, like, dowhat your ancestors did, right,
(30:02):
and so I had a conversation lastweek and this is my
transparency, because we weretalking about history and I had
to be honest and say that Idon't know mine, right, and so,
as we were talking aboutancestors and where did I come
(30:23):
from, what's my lineage, and Imean it definitely brought me
into a place of depression for asecond.
I did feel that overwhelmedbecause I mean, for probably a
lot of black people we don'tknow so much outside of, like
our parents' parents, and ifthat's who we were able to meet,
and if you're lucky, you mightknow a little bit more, but for
(30:43):
me I just didn't have that, andso I've been going through some
things to set intentions onlearning more and kind of
opening up that door for myancestors to speak to me so that
I can, because when I look atmy features, there's so much
that I see, but that's notwhat's written down for me.
And when I think about my lifeand I think about the things
(31:07):
that I've been able to overcomeand do, like that, just like you
said earlier, like it's in me,right.
And so if this is in me, thatit has to be something that I'm
tied to.
And I've learned that when weunderstand our history and we
understand where our ancestorscome from, we can also start to
figure out that trauma thatwe've probably been holding on,
(31:30):
especially if it comes fromgenerations, right.
And so I just wanted to put somejust emphasize on that because,
yeah, like, do what yourancestors do, and if you don't
know what they did, it'sprobably time to start to figure
out who they were and gothrough some practices to learn
that, because once you start tolearn your history, you can also
(31:51):
find more clarity into, like,your path and your passion and
what you're destined to do.
So do you know your ancestors?
Have you done the practice tolike go that far, or at least
start to understand that?
Or were you already kind ofbrought into having those ties
Like just curious eggs?
Speaker 3 (32:14):
No, I didn't have those ties.
You know what.
I just feel connection, like Isaid, like it's always been in
me.
Once I had the tools to listen,I just draw to what feels right
and then I'm a little bit of aconspiracy theorist.
But so I don't want to get himmy DNA.
I want to get him my DNA Like Iwas like.
(32:38):
I was like what do you think?
Speaker 2 (32:39):
one I love that.
Speaker 3 (32:46):
I'm a big one, no, but I just feel close to the
practices that I do and I allow,I think, for ancestors to speak
through me in what I do, andthat's to say I mean because for
them it was, you know, therewas no labeling anything, it was
(33:10):
just get up and do what we areused to doing, and so I just
feel like I get up and I do thethings that they did.
Speaker 1 (33:19):
Yeah, yeah, no, I feel the same way.
It definitely comes to my mindthat my routine and the way that
I carry myself every day is theway that was like a routine for
people before me, thegenerations before me, you know,
(33:40):
and I believe that.
So we have so many people thathave watched this and I think
it's just important.
As we talk about these thingsand we talk about healing, a lot
of people are like you know.
Most people do get healing,most people can go to therapy,
but then you think about ourcommunities we come from and
that's not true.
And if you don't know so muchof your history and what you do
(34:04):
realize is that the generationis probably right, before you
didn't go through healing theway that you're trying to seek
it now, you know, and so we arelooking at those individuals
that actually help us probablydon't get a lot of service.
Like I always say, like I'malways, I believe that I'm
helping my mom and my dadactually find a better way of
(34:24):
healing, letting things go,processing and even finding
their passions at this age oflife.
I always talk about the lightthat I saw in my grandmother's
eyes as I started to reallybecome who I'm supposed to be
and that even was something thatreally spoke to me of, like man
.
All right, yeah, it was thatenergy.
(34:46):
I feel energy, I'm tied tothings and, as you mentioned,
like if ancestors speaking toyou, I think that's, yeah, I
think that's why I live life theway I do.
I'm in LA.
I learned in my journey offinding ancestry that I had
history in LA.
My grandparents were out in LA.
I learned that maybe about ayear ago, and so I always
(35:09):
wondered why I was drawn hereonce I came out here in 2016.
And so that has literally hadme intrigued here to figure out
what roots do I have here?
Because I do find peace here,and that's just rare, coming
from Kansas City and not reallyever living somewhere else.
Right, like, I was a product ofmy environment for a long time
and now I'm in an environmentthat I feel like I belong in or
(35:32):
that I find some peace here, andwhy?
Right, so that's good, and Ilove that.
We had that talk about that.
So now, emotional health, right, like, of course, we have all
of these things.
And maybe speaking moreemphasizing on women too I know
that you do a lot of work withwomen and trying to educate.
(35:52):
When it comes to the feminineside, I have a friend that kind
of did some practices with likesteam or something.
I don't know what that wholepractice was.
Speaker 3 (36:01):
Only steam.
I think you knew the word, yeah.
Speaker 2 (36:09):
I try to steer away from things I don't have a lot
of knowledge about.
You know, like it wasinteresting, but I'm like, oh,
you did what with what.
And then it came with a littleegg, like I don't know, like,
but I don't know.
Speaker 1 (36:24):
Like so what is that?
Is that more of like acleansing practice that you guys
do when it comes to women?
I think that a lot of.
If there's women watching this,I think it's important for them
to hear that part.
At least, for me, I thought itwas important.
Speaker 3 (36:38):
Yeah, we've been doing it from the start too,
ever since we opened, doingthose Yoni's themes, and I think
that, for women, we're a lotdisconnected from, like, true
sexuality and like, of course,we do the acts of sex and we
(36:59):
procreate in all of those things.
But, like, what does creatingmean?
And how do you connect to thesacral energy center and how do
you feel your divine feminism?
And through that practice which, again, our ancestors did for
multiple reasons, some of whichwas healing after having a baby
(37:21):
or even tightening, and then theother one is fertility.
So we have all these differentherb blends that help you to
connect through, I feel like,through nature, the herbs, they
kind of take care of you, theplants take care of you, so
they're choosing.
Like, which experience do Iwant?
But all in all, it's connectingto sacred feminism, knowing
(37:45):
that you're doing something foryourself in that way and doing
the practices that our ancestorsdid for many, many years ago.
It's reconnecting in that way.
Speaker 1 (37:56):
That's good.
I just you know, if we talkabout like all the work that you
guys do, cause it is a holisticI don't want to get it wrong
but like it's definitely acenter around a lot of different
holistic practices and just,yeah, I want people to know that
it's not just about going inand getting a cryo, getting in a
cryo tank.
If you're a woman and you knowyou have certain things that are
(38:21):
making you distant or even wantto learn more about yourself,
this is a place that you can goand I just learned that from a
friend that went there and theirexcitement of what they got
from it and their journey oftheir own healing.
So I think that, yeah, womennew women need to know that it's
(38:42):
a service for everybody,especially when it gets to that
level, cause you don't have alot of people that talk about
that.
We normally just hear about thedisconnect when it comes to
fertility and, like you said,like sexual abuse or something
like.
You always hear about thosethings, but you never hear about
someone taking ownership backinto that.
And what does that practicelooks like?
(39:03):
And you know this is what outof the shadows is is that most
people are going to the wrongperson to be served in the right
way.
And there are, you know, placeslike the Layla Center and
individuals like Ms Mays righthere that are literally
educating you, not just givingyou something, but educating you
on a way to do this you knowforever and actually take care
(39:26):
of yourself more.
So, when it comes to, like youknow, that education piece, what
is the most important thingthat you want people to take
away?
Speaker 3 (39:35):
I think it's that you can really use nature to take
care of yourself, to reversesome effects of medications, of
physical manifestation, ofblockages, and that it's a full
body connection thing.
It's not like I have pain in myelbow so I'm going to the elbow
(39:56):
doctor.
It's what's going on in mywhole body, you know at the same
time, and what's going on in mymind and what am I consuming on
a nutritional level, on anenergetic level, on a mental
level, like what people arearound, what am I watching, what
(40:19):
am I listening to all of thethings?
So it's about connecting backto nature, getting your feet on
the ground and understandingthat your whole body needs that
full holistic Health journey.
Speaker 1 (40:37):
No, I like that.
I like that Nature, nature.
I think a lot of people strayaway from understanding that the
things that we need most,things that we can get in, the
value that we can get from life,is literally going outside your
door, you know, soaking up sun,getting into fresh water if you
can, grounding yourself in theground and the soil, getting
(41:00):
your feet just to touch thegrass, like the connections,
learning more about the foods,allowing you know how food can
become medicine, what foods canhelp with inflammation.
I know if anyone's watched someof these episodes, I say with
tea.
I didn't start drinking teatill maybe last July, on a
consistent basis.
At first it was just coffee andI wasn't even a coffee fan
(41:23):
until I got into likeentrepreneurship, right.
But then it was like, oh, I getcoffee, coffee.
And then after a while I waslike but I don't have the energy
, or maybe my body is dealingwith, you know, inflammation and
coffee's not going to help that.
But there can be a herbal teathat can actually give me some
benefits.
You know, how can I be morenatural with my energy?
(41:44):
Well, it's probably going tocome from something that's more
natural, you know, and so beingable to emphasize that.
You know, nature can reallycure us.
All is important.
And I went when I was in Canada,like I got to meet some of the
first nations out there and theytook me in a forest, we did a
forest walk and they literallytaught me all the different
plants and trees that theycreate everything, and that was
(42:07):
the way that they did healingfrom plants, like lichen and
like all of it was like.
And then I learned about thecedar tree and like all the
things that were made out ofthat.
Like I learned.
It was just so many things thatI learned that, you know,
frankly, I felt like I shouldjust have a garden with all of
these things around me so that Icould be like, oh, this is
(42:28):
going to help with wounds, oh,this is going to help with this,
oh, this is going to help withthat.
Because what I found is some ofthe products that we get in
medicine have the natural thingsin it, additionally with
chemicals.
Right, like I've learned thattoo.
Like people know what's goingto actually cure you, but they
add some things on top of it tomake sure that you come back
(42:51):
Right, like, and so, before weeven like in everything, it's
like that part, right, like sothat part of plants and medicine
and nature and what it does.
Could you provide people withsome practices when it comes to
like just some everydaypractices you can do?
That can help you with overallwellness.
Speaker 3 (43:13):
Definitely get now in grounding.
I used to when I was goingthrough little issues, emotional
issues, I literally would layback against the tree for hours
at a time, connecting with everypart of your body, doing a body
scan, especially in nature too,where if your body is on the
(43:35):
ground, the ground will soakthat negativity or pain or
anything out of you, right?
So if you're scanning your body, checking in every step of the
way head, your eyes, your throat, your heart, your stomach and
(43:57):
you're doing this body scan andyou're making note of what you
feel and being present in thatmoment, while connecting to like
whatever it is andacknowledging it, while in
nature allowing the elements tohelp heal you and take away some
(44:17):
of those things, it's a really,really enlightening experience
and it's something thateverybody can do just right out
in your backyard.
So learning what nativemedicinal plants grow right in
your backyard, in the cracks ofthe street, on a downtown busy
(44:40):
road, there could be somemedicine.
So learning what's native andwhat you can go and, year after
year after year, find in yourbackyard to take care of you.
I have a story.
So we had a property in LeighSummit where there was all these
(45:02):
different native plants on theproperty.
But one year my husband brokehis foot and we had Arnica came
out of nowhere.
Arnica came and I know it wasout of nowhere because it was
right outside the front door.
I walked past it for years andone year Arnica grew in our
(45:28):
front yard.
Wow and so they'll find you too.
Speaker 1 (45:33):
There you go, there you go, they'll find you too.
That's how much we should beconnected with this earth,
because it's definitely rootedin everything.
It's its own ecosystem, it hasits own nervous system, like
it's everything, and once youget connected to it, it brings
(45:55):
everything to you.
Speaker 3 (45:57):
You are part of it.
A human and a plant has thesame cellular structure.
That's why it can heal you likeit does.
That's why it takes care of youlike it does.
It's a part of you.
Speaker 1 (46:08):
It's not separate from you that's a word that to
me is healing in itself andagain, the knowledge to
understand.
And so, first of all, you knowwe have a few more minutes, but
I appreciate you like sharingall of this knowledge because it
helps me even know that there'ssomething in my backyard that I
can go and be a part of andit's serving me the same way as
(46:32):
I came out here to get served.
Of course, I want people toknow how they can find you, how
they can learn more about yourservices.
But kind of shifting into justthe supplement, the brand that
you have also created, I kind ofjust wanted you to share a
little bit about that, because,of course, we're going through
(46:53):
all these other practices, butyou know, I figured that you
guys have found a way to getthese natural herbs into some
type of level of supplements toprovide.
I'll let you talk about it, butthat's what I want, like let's
share a little bit about that.
And why do you feel that that'simportant and what's the
passion behind that?
To get it out more.
Speaker 3 (47:14):
So I'll first say that, again, covid forced some
things upon us.
Now, while I'm a trainedherbalist, I've been making
medicine.
We've always incorporated itinto our spa treatments, our
wellness treatments at thecenter.
We didn't have a real lineuntil COVID hit and we couldn't
(47:38):
touch anybody anymore.
We made five products aroundthat time and people will come
and pick up their orders and wehelped a lot of people find
COVID.
So it grew from five productsto about 85 products in three
(47:58):
years Wow.
But the basis of it all isreally nutrient dense, medicinal
herbs, supplements completelyclean and skincare.
We launched skincare last yearand it's all about.
I mean, the skin is the largestorgan on the body, so if you're
(48:20):
going to put something on it,make sure you're still lending
to that healing journey.
We have teas.
We have one of our best sellerspeople really love is our hot
chocolate and we call it SevenKings because it's seven
mushrooms, and the Africanchocolate and it's sweetened
with a low glycemic sweetenercalled Jaggery that even
(48:43):
diabetic skin take and it's good.
Okay, we just keep evolving,adding things to our T-bar menu.
We're doing food and it's allherb infused and it's always a
benefit to it.
It's always nutrient dense andjust helping people take some of
(49:04):
the bad out of there every day.
Speaker 1 (49:07):
Oh, I love that.
Oh, all right.
Speaker 3 (49:10):
I know which.
I need to send you some teasince you're gonna die.
Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2 (49:15):
No, I need it, I need it all.
We're gonna definitely kind oflook at the whole menu and check
it out.
Speaker 1 (49:20):
Yeah, so you know how can people find you.
You know when it comes to theLayla Center, as well as the
supplement brand, and then arethere anything that you would
like to leave people with aswell?
So we'll start with where theycan find you.
Speaker 3 (49:36):
So our wellness center and you know the full
scope brand umbrella is theLayla Center and we're the Layla
Center on Instagram andFacebook and that's our website,
laya Center.
And then our supplement andskincare company is
urbanbrandcom.
You can find us on Instagramand Facebook as well.
Speaker 1 (49:59):
Urban.
You know what I love it, it'surban.
Speaker 3 (50:04):
I mean, I come from, I love it.
It's urban, but it's spelledH-E-R-B-A-N, so urban.
Speaker 1 (50:13):
Ooh, there you go, All right.
So then, what would you want toleave the people you know, any
and everybody?
What's one thing that you wouldwant them to always know about
you?
Your story, rather, if it everbecomes hidden in the shadows.
Speaker 3 (50:36):
Vision and the will to succeed, the goals all those
things.
They happen in the mind first.
And it doesn't matter where youare in the world, it doesn't
matter how you came up.
I came into projects.
We were ducking bullets everysingle day.
We didn't even run in the houseanymore.
(50:56):
It was just part of life, right.
But I've always been this sortof I guess you can say dreamer.
So if you can dream it and youcan see it in your head, that's
where it starts and it'sattainable Any and everything.
Speaker 1 (51:10):
Oh, I love it.
I love it.
Yes, if you can believe it, youcan achieve it Right.
If you believe it's something,it starts up here, you believe
it up here and have faith inyour own vision, same way as Ms
Mays and her husband has donewith the Layla Center and their
work with just really empoweringthese unrepresented communities
(51:32):
that lack the knowledge of howthey can organically heal
themselves and become a betterversion of themselves, actually
become who they already areinside.
Speaker 3 (51:43):
There you go.
Thank you, just a little bit.
Speaker 1 (51:51):
Just a little bit.
So, no, thank you for sharingthis time and allowing everyone
to know your story and yourpassion behind your work, and
I'm just looking forward tobuilding a better relationship
with you guys.
Myself and you know learningand educating, because we can
all learn every day.
Speaker 3 (52:10):
So thank you.
Speaker 1 (52:12):
No problem.
And as we conclude anotherinspiring episode, I want to
remind you that success isn'tjust about the spotlight.
It's also about the shadows.
It's about the struggles weconquer, the unseen battles we
fight and the silent victorieswe claim.
I'm Wesley Hamilton and you'vebeen listening to Out of the
(52:34):
Shadows, where we illuminate thestories often left untold.
Join me next week as I ventureback into the shadows and bring
another amazing individual intothe light.
Until then, remember, no storyis too small to inspire.
Keep fighting, Keep winning andstay out of the shadows.
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