Meet the Facilitators — Returning to Presence

Facilitator

Rhoda Phillips

Rhoda Phillips is a registered nurse, educator, and the author of Returning to Presence: A Reflective Workbook. Her journey into this work began as a new mother at 37 after years of infertility, balancing full-time nursing with exhaustion and the growing awareness that she was holding everything together on the outside while feeling unsettled within.

Over time, she began to recognize that anxiety, shame, and strong emotional reactions were not personal failures, but protective patterns formed earlier in life. Instead of fighting them, she experimented with stillness instead of rushing, acceptance instead of resistance, and curiosity instead of self-criticism. The practices in this book are ones she personally finds useful and continues to return to in her own life.

Drawing from heart–brain coherence, trauma-informed awareness, and a deeply relational spiritual practice centered around the Circle of Peace, Rhoda offers a grounded and gentle approach to inner work. She believes that awareness deepens through repetition, honesty, and compassion, and that agency grows when choice is recognized without pressure or blame.

Facilitator

Rachel Miller

Rachel came to this practice from a place of deep personal crisis. After years of caring for a daughter with debilitating seizures, the strength she had relied on for decades collapsed under its own weight — panic attacks, nausea, and a body that could no longer power through.

Through the work that would become Returning to Presence, Rachel learned to stop resisting, to speak kindly to the parts of her that had been protecting her since childhood, and to find a space of peace where she could receive — rather than strive for — guidance and clarity.

Rachel brings warmth, empathy, and the quiet authority of someone who has lived this transformation. She wrote the foreword to Returning to Presence and co-facilitates sessions alongside Rhoda.

Our Approach

What guides our work

We serve as facilitators — helping you learn how to settle your body, quiet internal pressure, and enter your own Circle of Peace to speak with God, Lady Wisdom, and loving presences. We do not tell you what to believe. We do not interpret your experience for you. We create a calm, grounded environment and gently guide you through the practice.

Our philosophy is simple: you always have the freedom to choose. If a practice feels helpful, use it. If something does not feel right, set it aside. Your agency is never overridden.

Scope of Practice

We are not licensed therapists or counselors. Returning to Presence is not therapy, clinical treatment, or crisis support. We do not diagnose, treat, or prescribe. This is a supported practice of inner awareness. If you are in need of professional mental health support, we encourage you to work with a licensed provider.

Next Step

We'd love to walk with you

Whether you're just curious or ready to begin, we're here.

Get in Touch