Jennifer Banez is an intuitive Reiki practitioner, sound healing facilitator, and yoga instructor whose work centers on restoring balance and renewal through yin yoga, immersive sound healing, and nature-based meditation experiences.
About
The Center for Healing came to Kat in the midst of the pandemic when she was sitting deeply with the need for practices that can help people to become more fully embodied as human beings—to anchor into the body, to release what isn’t serving, and to move more easefully in the direction of positive change. These are practices that help each of us to know who we are at deeper and deeper levels, to come into the highest alignment with our destiny, and to serve those around us and Mother Earth in doing so.
The Center of Healing offers holistic modalities for working the physical, emotional, and energy bodies of all those seeking healing, wellness, and more freedom on these levels of being. These include somatic practices of yoga asana, massage therapy, energy work including reiki and quantum expansion, ayurvedic counseling for lifestyle and nutrition, and ancestral dreamwork, as well as other modalities.
These modalities can help address anxiety and stress-related issues, depression, the death of loved ones, relationship issues, and other conditions affecting well-being. They help us to find a place to rejoice, to come back to ourselves, to return to our connection with our bodies and with the Earth and our ancestors, and to find our own inner guidance. In healing ourselves, we may find that we begin to heal those around us, too, simply by being more ourselves. TO REMEMBER WHO WE ARE.
The Center of Healing offers online as well as in-person sessions through individual and group retreat settings.
About me
Kat Janicka founded the Center of Healing in 2020 with a powerful vision: to make holistic wellness accessible to all, especially for those seeking safe spaces for healing and growth. Her journey is deeply personal; after navigating challenges with anxiety, loss, and the transformative impact of meditation and spiritual practice, Kat dedicated herself to helping others find their own paths to healing and self-discovery, moving from Europe to the U.S. to expand her work.
With over 20 years of experience, Kat has developed a unique practice that integrates hatha yoga (in the Sivananda tradition), Zen meditation, and Tibetan Buddhist teachings. Her approach to energy healing merges Reiki, Quantum Energy Healing, and shamanic elements, drawing from diverse traditions to support individuals on their healing journeys. In New York City, she led Tibetan Buddhist meditation and collaborated with the city to make yoga and energy healing accessible in parks, libraries, schools, and shelters. In Europe, she continues to empower and support Ukrainian refugees.
Currently pursuing a PhD in Transformative Studies at CIIS, Kat focuses on the integration of the divine masculine and feminine, consciousness, and transformation. This academic path further strengthens her commitment to the Center of Healing, fostering a community-centered approach to wellness, empowerment, and personal growth.
Through the Center of Healing, Kat offers accessible wellness programs, including workshops, retreats, and continuous support focused on personal and spiritual growth. Your support for this nonprofit allows us to reach those who need it most, helping us provide resources for healing, empowerment, and transformation.
Teachers & Healers
Jennifer Banez
Bryan Paul Alonso
Bryan began practicing and teaching yoga about 10 years ago now, but he has long since learned that the real work begins when you roll up your mat. Though he was born and raised a Roman Catholic, his formative spiritual practice was Zen Buddhism- a practice that opened up his interests in the broad and interwoven fabric of all religion and spiritwork and his studies now lay mainly in the realm of Vajrayana and Tantra. Bryan tries to live as a true yogi: free-flowing, adaptable, light-hearted and easy and full of tender, loving compassion. He has practiced extensively in grief work and energy work, and received his first reiki attunement 15 years ago- but he feels that everything is energy work, that living a good life is an art form, and that the “spiritual path“ can be distilled into one very simple (and complex) task: to do the best one can to be a good person.
Sunshine Jackson
Sunshine Jackson is an Integrative Alignment Coach who helps soulful, sensitive seekers return to the deeper truth within themselves and rediscover the parts that already know peace, joy, and belonging. Her approach is inquisitive, intuitive, and moment-to-moment, blending emotional insight, nervous-system awareness, and spiritual clarity into a warm, grounded presence.
She specializes in guiding those who feel a deeper calling within and are ready for more clarity, ease, and meaningful forward movement. Her clients are often creative, self-aware, big-hearted people who have “done the work,” yet still find themselves meeting ambivalence, inner resistance, overthinking, or quiet self-doubt. Sunshine meets them exactly where they are—not to fix, but to gently loosen old protections and reconnect them with their inner wise one.
Her work offers both structure and freedom, with a coaching style that is less about self-improvement and more about self-remembrance: a return to wholeness, inner safety, and the natural joy that already lives beneath the noise. Clients describe her presence as hopeful, grounding, and deeply affirming.
Clare Patterson
Yoga for cancer patients and survivors to help manage side effects of treatment, such as bone density loss, neuropathy, and fatigue, as well as promote inner strength and resilience.
Esther Cho
TEACHER – KOMYO REIKI DO LINEAGE
Esther Cho is a Reiki Master/Teacher, certified in 2014 in the traditional Usui Reiki lineage, Komyo ReikiDo, under the guidance of founder Hyakuten Inamoto Sensei. Esther offers in-person and remote Reiki treatments for humans and animals, as well as Reiki certification classes from Level 1 to Master Level. Initial sessions typically last 1.5 hours, with follow-up sessions available at 45 or 100 minutes, depending on the client’s needs and preferences. This version improves flow and readability. Let me know if you’d like further adjustments!
A.L. Garris
A.L. Garris is the origin of Acasma Quantum Energy, a higher vibrational consciousness here to assist Humanity as they heal their Beings and remember who they are, Quantum Light. A.L. is a higher dimensional Being, a master healer, master teacher, and published author with clients and students from all over the Earth.
Pooja Amy Shah
Integrative Medicine Physician. Pooja is Licensed in Medical Acupuncture. She is a teacher of Eastern Mind-Body Practices @ O-p-e-n.com, The Path, + Nalanda Institute. Yoga Teacher Certified.
Lorraine Coulter
Lorraine’s teaching is intuitive and heart-centered, and draws from deep practice in Buddhist meditation, ashtanga yoga and pranayama, quantum healing, and Ayurveda.
Robert Palusiński
Jungian psychotherapist (facilitator, trainer, coach, therapist).
His primary (though not the only) tool is Process-Oriented Psychology developed by Jungian analyst Arnold Mindell.
http://deepdemocracycases.blogspot.com/2014/01/about-me.html
Maggie Zurowska
Maggie Ambika Zurowska is a certificate yoga instructor in hatha yoga, Sivananda style (200h) and kundalini yoga (300h) and so she combinetes physical asna work out -vinyasa style with the energy and breath work: kundalini. She believes yoga is all of it together-unity of a body, mind, and energy body. Maggie is also a level 2 certified Reiki healer, vegan chef, instructor and animal activist: “All is one. One is all. “
Shannon Larsen
Shannon has been sharing the practice of yoga locally and internationally since 2011. Her belief in the body and mind’s ability to push past limits and heal in many ways led her to study therapeutics, yoga for athletes, yoga for kids, and trauma-informed yoga. She has shared movement and mindfulness with teens in juvenile hall, school children, college athletes, and adults of all ages and abilities. As an instructor, Shannon’s goal is to hold a safe space for people to explore movement and connect deeper with themselves and beyond. In this space of openness, she knows our bodies can strengthen and align, and we can settle our minds enough to hear the inner whispers that encourage us to live our truth and offer our unique gifts to this world. Shannon trusts that the more connected we become with ourselves, the more connected we become with each other. Movement and visualization have played a huge role in Shannon’s own health journey and she is honored to share these practices with others through Yin, Hatha, Flow, Yoga Nidra, Mindful Art Sessions alongside her artist sister Andrea, and of course the invitation to laugh amidst the challenge. As a lifetime musician, Shannon often incorporates some form of soothing sound in her classes.
Wafaa Adyadou
Wafaa is a creativity enthusiast exploring the meeting point of science, spirituality, and art. Her work is inspired by the intelligence of cellular life and the subtle ways consciousness expresses itself through the body, language, and creative practice. As an independent researcher and member of the International Center for Transdisciplinary Research (CIRET), she is interested in transdisciplinary approaches to healing, communication, and human evolution.
Fluent in several languages and passionate about mindful communication, Wafaa teaches with a unique approach that combines clarity, presence, and intuition. Her background includes over 18 years of experience in business strategy, which she now integrates with meditation, language teaching, and contemplative practices.
She is an experienced yoga and meditation teacher who has offered more than 2,500 hours of sessions and workshops in universities, hospitals, corporate environments, and community spaces. Continuing her path of study, she has completed specialized training in traumatic brain injury (TBI) and acquired brain injury (ABI), allowing her to adapt yoga and meditation for neurological healing and gentle rehabilitation.
As an artist, Wafaa creates meditative works inspired by the beauty of the human being from the inside out. Her collections Neura and Cellula reflect the harmony between science and spirit, revealing the poetic dimension of cellular life.
She also supports nonprofit and community initiatives through fundraising events and collaborations with art galleries, helping create spaces where art, healing, and human connection can meet.
Jenel Ronn
Jenel Ronn has been practicing yoga for 10 years. Trained in the Sivananda style and earning title of Yoga Acharya, Master of Yoga certification in 2018 she continues to teach virtually in Vermont now having taught in NYC, Thailand and other studios in the US.
Jose L Cora
Jose L Cora practice Thai massage mixed with other styles that are integrated. His type of massage is a sequence of pressure on points and sen lines, circulatory compressions, joint mobilizations, stretching, and reflex stimulation. All chained in a regular rhythm, where the masseur’s breathing harmonizes with that of the patient. The goal is to balance the body to help toy heal itself.
Sarika Jain
Sarika Jain is a leading South Asian expert on love and Dating Coach to successful, go-getter women. Her unique approach encompasses everything from uncovering relationship patterns and closing one’s ‘Ex Files’ to practicing self-love and mindfulness in relationships, all with the goal of inspiring women to live the lives they’ve dreamed about – experiencing profound love, success and fulfillment.
Sarika’s background includes working in the corporate world and on Wall Street for over fifteen years before deciding to pursue her dream full time of creating a movement around healthy love and empowerment for women over ten years ago. She is a student of energy healing, psychology, feminine leadership and relationships. She’s been called a “Relationship Sorceress” by her clients. More information can be found on her website:
Nihal Atma
Imparts knowledge and inspiration through energetic techniques that tap into the power of Kundalini Yoga. This ancient practice has been handed down from guru to student for thousands of years. Explore the limitless possibilities of this practice as Nihal as your guide.
Robin Decker
Robin is an Quantum Energy Alchemist and her work is here to support you in remembering your wholeness and magic. Healing comes online from within you and you live directly from your own Source connection. Robin’s frequency emits a signal via her voice, image, and intention that entrains your vibration to a higher level, allowing you to shed old patterns, beliefs, and traumas in your unique way, tima, and space as no two people are alike and each session varies based on what shows up in the moment. A session consists of conscious conversation, movement of energy, sound healing, heart activations, and more, depending on each client’s intention and level of consciousness. Love is your true Source and Robin is here to remind you of this.
Alexander Puentes
Alexander Puentes has been drawn to mindfulness and intentional movement practices for several years. As a wildland firefighter and EMT, his physically demanding careers led him to seek a space for pause. His interest in health, wellness and settling the mind inspired him to become a certified yoga instructor. He enjoys teaching yoga with happy holds, a practice that allows for a pause while also stretching and strengthening the mind and body. In his spare time, Alexander brews his own artisan small batch kombucha as a way to support and inspire health from the inside out. He is always looking for ways to grow and challenge himself while maintaining a positive attitude everywhere he goes.
Iza Klementowska
Non-fiction writer focused on people striving to find peace and happiness amid life’s challenges. With a background in Tibetan Buddhism rooted in kindness, love, and compassion, and inspired by the teachings of Dr. Madan Kataria, she developed a unique tool to bring joy and relief: laughter yoga sessions combined with Kundalini yoga techniques and ecstatic dance. These exercises and breathing practices can reduce stress, boost the immune system, and maintain a positive mindset during difficult times.
She performs Kobido massage, a ritual that not only soothes and lifts the facial muscles, but also nurtures the spirit and gently awakens the energies of the third eye, throat, and heart chakras.
Eliza Woznica
Eliza Woznica is a holistic beauty therapist specializing in natural facial rejuvenation through advanced manual facial therapie Buccal Lift℠ and massage techniques. With nearly a decade of experience, Eliza brings deep knowledge of anatomy, intentional touch, and a heartfelt approach to every treatment. Her mission is to create holistic, personalized experiences while educating clients on the Slow Beauty Concept as both a treatment philosophy and a lifestyle.
Through her studio ellistic – a warm and welcoming oasis in the heart of Williamsburg, Brooklyn, Eliza offers more than facials—she creates restorative rituals designed to bring clients back into balance and support optimal wellbeing. Surrounded by relaxing aromatherapy and the sounds of nature, each session is customized to meet the skin’s unique needs while nurturing the body, mind, and spirit.
Eliza’s work is rooted in the belief that beauty and healing begin within. Her comprehensive approach to natural manual facial rejuvenation helps reduce stress, calm the mind, and stimulate the body’s own regenerative processes—without invasive procedures or downtime. Every therapy is a carefully tailored journey toward wellbeing, radiance, and self-acceptance, revealing healthy, glowing skin in harmony with inner balance.
Victoriia Melnyk
Victoria is a devoted massage therapist and cosmetologist whose work is grounded in education, professionalism, and a holistic approach to health. She believes that every encounter is an opportunity for growth and that compassionate touch can support balance in body, mind, and soul.
Her practice combines massage, somatics, and movement awareness to help clients release tension, relax deeply, and reconnect with themselves. Victoria approaches each person with respect for their individuality, creating a safe and supportive space for healing.
She continues to expand her skills through ongoing trainings, including:
• Personal Trainer & Gym Instructor — Kraków, 15.06.2025
• Yoga for Kids — Zgierz, 13.07.2025
• Animal Flow — Gdańsk, 21.09.2025
• 100h Yoga Teacher Training — Rishikesh, 13.02.2026
Yoga
The Center for Healing offers tailored individual, group, and corporate classes as well as retreats in a range of yoga traditions and styles, including hatha, kundalini, vinyasa, yin, restorative, and ashtanga. We create and develop our programs to be accessible to all ages and abilities.
Meditation
The Center for Healing offers online and in-person meditation instruction, classes, and retreats by request grounded in the Buddhist and mindfulness traditions, including vipassana and zazen. We offer guided meditations and one-on-one intuitive work practice with a meditation teacher.
Bodywork
The Center for Healing offers a range of body work modalities, including traditional massage therapies, shiatzu, Thai massage, Japanese face therapy, and cranial sacral therapy, and more. These are available on retreat and in individual and corporate settings by request.
Dreamwork
The Center of Healing offers dreamwork sessions for individuals and groups in retreat settings. Dreamwork helps us understand and integrate material from the subconscious so that we can become aware of deeper emotional patterns in the psyche, integrate messages from these patterns and release where necessary. It also helps our positive aspirations and dream elements become manifest in our lives.
Retreats
At our retreats, we offer a diverse range of healing modalities, empowering you to create a combination that aligns with your personal journey. As a holistic healing center, we believe that integrating multiple practices amplifies the transformative potential of each retreat. Additionally, all proceeds from our retreats directly support our nonprofit initiatives, helping us extend holistic wellness to communities in need.
Summer 2026
- Interested in a sailing retreat through the Greek or Croatian islands?
- Would you like a retreat in a unique or specific location?
- Looking to choose specific healers or modalities for a custom retreat experience?
- Planning a wellness weekend for friends, family, or your team?
Let us help you craft a healing experience tailored to your vision and goals. Contact us to explore personalized retreat options, including sailing adventures or customized healing sessions, and join us in supporting our nonprofit mission through every journey.
Ocean Healing Retreat
Investment & Registration
This weekend is for the part of you that’s so tired of holding everything together.
We’ve got the ocean, the full moon, the practices, and the soft landing.
All you have to do is say yes.
What your tuition covers (paid directly to Center of Healing)
Your payment goes straight to Center of Healing and includes the full retreat experience:
- Daily yoga + meditation to unwind your nervous system
- Breathwork journeys to clear what’s been stuck for way too long
- A deep sound bath to reset your whole field
- Fire ceremony on the beach – release, intention, and a little bit of magic
- Energy healing & coaching for real-life integration (not just retreat high)
- Opening & closing circles held in a trauma-sensitive, heart-centered container
- Breakfast on Saturday & Sunday so you can roll out of bed and straight into “I’m taken care of” mode
This is your all-access pass to the healing, the holding, and the ritual.
What’s not included (and how we made it easy)
- Lodging and transportation are not included in the tuition.
- We have secured a special Center of Healing room rate at Seascape Beach Resort for our group.
Once you register, you’ll get a private link to book your room at our discounted rate, so you can choose what works for your budget and body (solo room, shared, etc.).
Tuition & Dates
- Early Bird – $555
For the ones who feel the yes in their body now.Available for payments received on or before December 15, 2025. -
Standard Rate – $655
For the “okay, I’m really doing this” crowd.Applies to payments from December 16, 2025 through January 25, 2026.
- Final registration deadline:
January 25, 2026 – five days before we gather by the ocean.
Italian Spring Retreat | Tuscany May 2026
A retreat is a pause.
A deliberate break from urgency.
Five days to return to breath, body, and rhythm in Tuscany.
Limited spaces. Application required.
What We’ll Do Together
This retreat is designed for deep restoration, reconnection, and integration, held in gentle structure and embodied practice.
Your retreat experience includes:
- Daily yoga and meditation
- Breathwork and nervous system regulation practices
- Writing workshops + deep rest (so insight can land, not just pass through)
- Elemental rituals rooted in water, fire, and intention
- Energy healing + integration support (so the work stays with you after you return home)
- Opening and closing circles held in a trauma-sensitive, heart-centered container
- Daily breakfast + intentional community building
Investment & Registration
April 30 – May 4, 2026 | Tuscany, Italy
Limited availability
Pricing reflects room placement, privacy, and overall comfort:
- Shared Room: €777
- Single Room: €999
- Premium Rooms: €1,111
All prices include the full retreat program and daily breakfast.
What’s Not Included
- Transportation to and from the retreat location
- Additional meals outside of breakfast
Limited Spaces · Application Required
This retreat is intentionally small to preserve depth, safety, and intimacy. Once spaces are filled, registration will close.
The Setting
We’ll be staying in a private historic villa in Tuscany, reserved exclusively for our group. The space is quiet, spacious, and designed for genuine retreat: soft mornings, long exhales, and the kind of simplicity that helps the body feel safe again.
- 8 double bedrooms (2 on the ground floor, 6 upstairs)
- 5 bathrooms
- Large common room with a shared table (up to 20 people)
- Fully equipped kitchen
- Garden with barbecue and a wood-fired oven
- Outdoor pool (10 × 5 m)
- Parking available on-site and nearby
Acasma in Europe
Ayurveda
Retreats are also supported by Ayurvedic cuisine and awareness of energy cycles. The term Ayurveda comes from the Sanskrit words ayur (life) and veda (science or knowledge). Retreats with in-depth Ayurvedic instruction help participants identify their constitution or dosha type, and design an ayurvedic regimen for body practices, nutrition, herbs, and lifestyle elements for lasting well-being of the body and mind.
Kids
The Center for Healing offers individual or one-on-one online therapies, classes, workshops to awaken little ones’ connection to Spirit and their inner healing, knowing, inspiration, creativity and imagination. Our staff is also experienced in working with difficult emotions and mindfulness techniques to help kids navigate their feelings with awareness and curiosity.
Kat created a meditation class for kids at the Shantideva Center in New York, she has also worked with elementary schools in Brooklyn to create yoga and mindfulness programs. She started the Zen Zoo Yoga program at the Boathouse of Prospect Park which helps to bring children into awareness of their breath and their bodies through games and exercises that incorporate animal sounds and simple breathing awareness techniques.
Reviews
Cristen Hemingway Jaynes
Working with Kat is a transcendent experience for someone like me who deals with trauma and anxiety. Kat works with you to find the source and connects with your issues on a deeply intuitive level. She finds healing and grounding by tapping her own strength and connectedness while helping you find yours. With her you can approach a dreamlike place where healing and connection are possible.
Shinge Roshi Sherry Chayat
Kat Janicka, who has been my student at the Zen Studies Society for the past ten years, has brought a depth of understanding and a boundless compassion to all her efforts, from writing fiction and undergoing intensive meditation retreats to guiding adults and young people in yoga and meditation. An energy healer using reiki and quantum energy modalities, she is profoundly intuitive, and is treasured for her wise counsel.
Born in Poland, she has a deep understanding of global concerns, from women's issues and education to continuing political repression, anti-Semitism, racism, and environmental degradation. She integrates the principles of her spiritual training into whatever circumstances she is called to address.
Amanda Hartman
Throughout my time studying for the recent bar exam, I had virtual wellness sessions with Kat via Brooklyn Law School's Academic Success Program. Our sessions really lifted my spirits. It was a difficult time for me emotionally and mentally, dealing with exam stress while experiencing the pandemic. Kat is very intuitive and helped me gently formulate a plan for taking better care of myself during this time. She made me feel so comfortable right away and just knew what I needed! I highly recommend Kat for all sorts of wellness work, especially meditation, Reiki, and yoga. 💟
Kari Groff MD
I am child psychiatrist that likes to incorporate mindfulness into my work and this has been the perfect gift for my daughter. She has been so inspired. I’m hoping that some of my anxious young clients can get a chance to do it as well.
She and her friends experience Kat like a mentor.
Hopefully, you will continue a children’s program next semester.
I have a ton of contacts in the community- people would be very interested in these groups/activities! Just let me know.
Also- my therapist friends and I have been attending Kat’s Hatha class and it is transformative. Better than any other yoga class I have been to (I really actually don’t like yoga classes that much so this says a lot).
Thanks for doing great work! Thank you for finding Kat or for her finding you!
Breathwork
We offer instruction in simple breathwork practices rooted in the yogic tradition that help to bring various outcomes ranging from calming and soothing to energizing the body and mind while regulating the nervous system bringing the connection between body and mind into balance.
Reiki
Reiki is a system of energy healing that reduces stress while providing deep relaxation and greater well-being through channeling the flow of energy through the hands from the reiki practitioner to the client.
The word reiki is made up of two Japanese words — rei meaning the universal or spiritual energy source; and ki meaning the electro-magnetic energy associated with our physical bodies.
Quantum Healing
Quantum healing helps connect clients with their Higher Self, as well as higher dimensional guides. Sessions take place either one-on-one (online or in-person) or consciousness to consciousness without the need for online contact. Clients receive activations, attunements to higher dimensional energy, and may receive messages or energetic healing from guides and higher dimensional beings. This kind of healing helps us remember who we are and allows for an expansion of consciousness and awareness beyond the third dimension.
Explore Our Nonprofit Initiatives
Discover how the Center of Healing extends its mission beyond retreats. Visit our nonprofit arm to learn about our projects focused on community wellness, accessible healing, and empowerment initiatives. Your support helps us reach those in need and bring holistic wellness to underserved communities.
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