A woman with long brown hair, wearing a green hat, denim shirt, and a brown vest, is smiling and touching her throat with one hand while sitting outdoors

Hi, I’m dr. Naomi watkins

Providing you with Grounded Tools for navigating Radical Change

I guide folks who are navigating radical change and upheaval to intentionally root, rebuild, and rewrite their stories. My mission is to ensure that a period of change doesn't lead to burnout, but instead transforms into the most powerful, grounded era of your life.

The Sequoia Circle is built on one core truth: Change isn't a crisis; it is life's only constant. Since upheaval is inevitable, our work focuses on giving you the grounded tools to meet every shift with resilience. Our central program, The Rerooted Way, is the home for this work, teaching you to thrive by accessing ancient wisdom and developing new embodied practices rooted in the natural world and your body.

Tall redwood trees in a dense forest with green foliage and a clear blue sky.

The Source of Wisdom: The Ocean, The Sequoia, and The Circle

Years after leaving my tenure-track academic position and organized religion, and following a sexual assault, I finally confessed to my therapist: I was utterly exhausted. The pain of my trauma was too much to carry alone, but I couldn't bear to hold it any longer.

She asked: "What can you do with this pain right now?"

I closed my eyes, and the answer arrived as a vision. I let the ocean hold me and scream all that pain into its dark, deep abyss, visualizing the earth absorbing every bit of it. A wave then carried me to a giant sequoia—a scar on its trunk, an opening. Enveloped by that great tree, I felt safe and warm. As the water nourished its roots, I merged with its trunk, becoming part of its enduring strength.

I then saw myself standing tall in a large circle of sequoias. Our branches swayed, nodding in recognition of our similar journeys. We stood in counsel, in solidarity. Collectively strong.

My healing has not involved any one thing or followed a linear path. Community supports me. Therapy delivers me. Myth and story reveal possibilities. And nature holds and guides me. She reminds me that this beautiful natural world—a world that has endured abuse and violence—has shown me how to let old things die, to rebuild, to regrow, and to thrive with magnificent splendor.

The Methodology: Blending Structure & Embodiment

A group of people sitting in a circle on the forest ground during the daytime, with trees and a hillside in the background.

The problem is, we usually try to hustle our way through change, frantically trying to rebuild a new life with the very tools that led to the collapse. The Sequoia Circle offers the antidote. Our programs will teach you how to shift out of hustle by embracing the natural rhythm of the seasons and developing a new, reliable toolkit of embodied practices to achieve grounded, sustainable transformation.

My guidance blends rigorous academic structure with embodied, ancient wisdom:

As a Ph.D. in Education and an educational leader, I know how to structure the most complex emotional work into clear, actionable cycles of grounded change. I teach embodiment by showing you how to use the wisdom of your breath (as a certified breathwork facilitator), your body (as a certified yoga teacher and somatic coach) and the natural world (as a certified Forest Therapy Guide) as your most impactful teachers. We use archetype and myth as powerful tools to give voice and shape to your inner transformation.

My commitment to community is proven through co-founding the non-profit Aspiring Mormon Women, which gave many women the courage and support to make a significant leap or change in their educational and professional lives.

A woman standing upright on a hillside with sparse bushes, looking into the distance, in a black-and-white photograph.

These principles define the culture and commitment of the The Sequoia Circle:

  • Radical Authenticity: We commit to dropping the masks of perfection. We seek honesty over comfort, believing your messy, true self is your most valuable tool.

  • Grounded Presence: This is the practice of anchoring your attention in your body and breath, which is the core source of your resilience against chaos.

  • The Power of the Collective: We believe in shared authority. The wisdom in this work is shared, ensuring you never feel isolated or reliant on a single source of truth in your change.

  • Ethical Container: We approach all work from a trauma-informed perspective. This is not a replacement for medical care or clinical therapy. We encourage all members to maintain professional therapeutic support as needed.

Core Values

Three white candles surrounded by flower petals and seashells on a colorful cloth with landscape in the background.

Logistics and PlaCE

The Structure of Our Work Together

You can join us for long-term programs like The Rerooted Way (delivered through digital content and online community), or connect through our in-person workshops and events.

Honoring Place

My own deep rooting is in Salt Lake City, Utah, on the traditional and ancestral homelands of the Shoshone, Goshute, and Ute Tribes. This connection to place informs the wisdom I bring to my practice and every teaching.

the invitation

One lone sequoia is a wonder. But a circle of sequoias? That’s a miracle worth investing in. I invite you to stand and grow with me and others in The Sequoia Circle, spreading our branches and wisdom into the possibilities of the future.

Credentials and Qualifications

Logo for The Forest Therapy School with the words 'Certified Guide' on a green background.
Open book titled "Champions of Change" showing illustrated women, with one woman featured in a portrait on the right page. The woman in the portrait is identified as Fanny Brooks.