Hi, I'm Ilana Fernandez, founder
and managing director of Fit
for a Goddess.
I have a doctorate in Clinical
Psychology specializing in Life Span Development and
am a Registered Play Therapist.
I've worked for many years with
people of all ages supporting healthy growth and development
throughout ones life span. Working as a Child and Family
Therapist, I've specialized in parenting and attachment
issues. My work with couples integrates the development
of the self while nurturing healthy attachments.
My current focus, with an emphasis on movement, has been inspired by an overwhelming sense of the need to
renew and enliven the essential and authentic feminine
in women today. The things we do in our classes draws
on my passion for dance and training in many of its
forms such as; jazz, modern, ballet, Latin, hula, and
Tahitian. The fact that I've also done specialized
training in dance therapy, movement therapy and art
therapy has helped with our class design.
Those design components have been integrated with research on ancient ritual and ceremonial dance movements performed throughout the ages among matriarchal and benevolent societies.
Those mostly-forgotten
forms where sensuality and spirituality were one in the
same.
Bringing
back this balance, and with it a sense of healing and wholeness,
is my primary goal for each of our Goddess classes.
And I can't leave this out: I also believes that the
Fit for a Goddess sensual dance workout is the most fun
you
will
ever have getting and staying fit...in mind, body, and
spirit!
Ilana
More about Ilana (from
another source)
Hello, I'm Ilana's favorite Web
Geek, the designer of this site and someone who knows
her pretty well.
As
I've been putting Ilana's words about herself into
place, above, I decided to add some
things that those of you involved with the Goddess classes
might find interesting.
First, you should know that when
you work with Ilana you'll be meeting one of the most
honestly caring people you've ever met. And, while she
has all those very impressive academic psychologist credentials,
her interest in people does NOT come out of her training
but from her heart.
Second,
if you're looking for a teacher with patience just
imagine someone who raised
nine (yes, as in 9) children. Ilana did that: Two biological
and seven that were "presented" to her via
marriage.
Third,
is that she was a movie & TV child actress from
the time she was four until she walked away from Hollywood,
to move to Hawaii, at
17.
You can recognize her as one of the scared kids in Hitchcock's
The Birds, as Jill
in the Ray Bolger, Annette Funicello version of
Babes in Toyland, other
films and several familiar TV shows. If you're interested
in the names and her roles, just Google
Ilana Dowding.
Fourth,
she’s the author
of a parenting book and companion video series entitled “Cherish
Your Child” and is developing a children’s
book.
Lastly, she loves to dance, is
terribly good at it and makes everyone who dances with
her look (and feel) great!
db
The "US" part of Fit
for a Goddess: Due to
our phenomenal growth and popularity, I'm unable to teach
all the classes myself . I've trained and certified an amazing and talented team of fabulous instructors in the Fit for a Goddess method. Please click here for our Photo
Gallery.
Other "Goddess Graduates" are in the apprentice
process and facilitate our current classes. If you are
interested in the possibility of working towards instructing,
the first step is to take one of our class series. If
you have further questions regarding intructor training,
please contact me.
My vision of developing a
Fit for a Goddess Women’s
Center is coming to fruition! Our new home on Ward Ave. in Honolulu is where women come together to develop their mind,
body, and spiritual fitness through various means. In
addition to having the sensual dance workout classes,
I offer counseling services, workshops, and a boutique
that carries unique workout wear as well as personal
empowerment resources including information regarding
the influence of the “Goddess nature” throughout
the ages. We have made this a “sanctuary” or
meeting area for women. Through what is learned as the
center evolves, we would also like to develop a similar
prototype that would provide the same level of support
to meet the needs of today’s men.
