What year were you born? Do you have a birth story?
California, October 1972 Wednesday. My dad had people over and they were watching sports. I was born at 9:11 (that was before 911 was the emergency #)
What was your life like growing up? What dreams and goals did you have for your life when you left High School?
This is complicated as it was a dichotomy of idyllic and traumatic. I was raised by my Puerto Rican dad, Andy Garcia (not the actor) and my Jewish stepmom. I am the 3rd of 4 kids and the only girl. My household was very gendered and as a closeted queer kid that made for a complicated understanding of myself.
When I left high school - I thought I’d be an art historian or art entrepreneur. However, my own history with trauma led me to psychology. It wasn’t until nearly my last year of college when I was making deeply personal art in a sculpture class that an art professor suggested I consider art therapy. That suggestion led me down a path to my life’s work.
Name at least one outstanding experience you have had in your life. How did this or these events affect you?
I began working with plant medicines therapeutically for my own healing journey in 2015. As a trauma survivor and therapist of 16 years at the time, I believed I knew a lot about the human capacity to heal. However, working outside the paradigm of traditional therapy allowed me an entry point into a level of healing so profound, my life was irrevocably altered. It was from that point forward that I knew my path in this life was to offer others the same gifts of healing I had received through art, nature connection and plant medicines.
When in your life, so far, have you felt most confident and why?
I feel most confident when connecting with others through creativity and nature based play. I love being outdoors, making art alongside a river or trail and feeling into the interconnection we all have with all beings.
Was there a time in your life where you felt ‘stuck’, unable to find the energy or strength to move forward or to make a big change? If so, can you share what it was &/or what helped you get past this road block?
I have felt stuck many times in my life but, like most people, change comes when the fear of staying the same outweighs the fear of the unknown. Learning to regulate my nervous system and embrace difficult emotions - to really feel them and see what’s underneath - has been a gift that has served me so well in the last decade.
What is the one piece of advice would you give your younger self?
Take time everyday to listen to yourself, your body, your heart, your spirit. Identify your wants and needs first and foremost, and then figure out how to honor them while also living in reciprocity and respect for the other beings on this earth.
How have your dreams and goals changed now that you are 40+
I am more focused on returning to simplicity… to lifeways that are harmonious and sustainable. I am creating spaces and places that invite healing and connection and that allow people to step out of the paradigm of frenetic accomplishment and accumulation of stuff.
Have your core values changed over time? What do you value now?
I have always valued creativity, nature and connection. When I was younger, these things felt like the reward I would allow myself when the other tasks of living and working were done. Now, this is my work and my reward.
Share an indulgence:
Cheese! I never hesitate to buy really yummy cheeses.
How do other people to describe you or see you?
Playful, authentic, attuned, youthful, curious and creative.
What is your super power?
I am wickedly successful at manifesting the best healers in my life. I am surrounded by amazing women (and a few men) who are doing incredible work and offering others unique and powerful opportunities to heal.
Can you share what your favourite part of your body is? Why?
My favorite part of my body is my voice. It took me a very long time to find it and it feels like such a gift to be able to use it freely.
Do you like being 40+?
Fuck yes!
Has your relationship with yourself changed as you have gotten older? How?
I am kinder, more self-compassionate and more in awe of the gift of being here in this time and place..
What are you passionate about now? Ie: career, volunteer work, hobbies, how you spend your time. Please describe and include any links that you would like to share. Alternatively, If you are challenged in some way and unable to do what you love/wish to do, please share.
There is a divine magic that comes through all sentient beings and when we can tap into our own inherent goodness and hold ourselves in deep connection and reciprocity with the more-than-human world, we open a portal to a way of living that is unencumbered by colonization and empire. Let’s gift ourselves and others a way of relating that is untainted by the oppressive systems and beliefs of modern society.
I began working with plant medicines therapeutically for my own healing journey in 2015. As a trauma survivor and therapist of 16 years at the time, I believed I knew a lot about the human capacity to heal. However, working outside the paradigm of traditional therapy allowed me an entry point into a level of healing so profound, my life was irrevocably altered. It was from that point forward that I knew my path in this life was to offer others the same gifts of healing I had received through art, nature connection and psychedelics.
When working with clients, I hold us both as perfectly imperfect beings with innate wisdom and I offer to be a collaborative presence on their journey to re-embody their highest self. Even as we navigate places of deep pain and disconnection, I invite in creativity and play, promoting joy and pleasure as a radical act of self love and self care. Spa days are great but delighting in the sweep of a brush stroke across a page or the sensation of the warm sun rays on our skin is a pleasure accessible to us all. Finding our rhythm with the moon or quenching our thirst by a water’s edge can bring us back into connection with our humanity and allow us to open ourselves to the richness of the world even as we experience her pain. I feel deeply honored to be alive at this time and contributing to our collective healing.
I encourage everyone to wholly embrace their bodies at every age and to see their unique fleshy landscapes with the same awe and wonder that we gaze upon a rainbow over the Grand Canyon or the iridescence of a hummingbird’s wings. Participating in this exquisite photography project has been another way to decolonize beauty and reclaim my own body. It was a soul deep experience that I will carry within for the rest of my days.
What goals/ambitions/dreams would you like to be working on that you haven’t had the opportunity to start on yet?
I am looking forward to expanding to an international audience when it comes to offering my expressive arts ecotherapy retreats.
What would the title of your book be? (this is an interesting one)
From Lump To Leader: A story of loss, love and learning
What advice would you give your future self?
Live without fear and love every part of yourself.
Perceptions & Advice
How do you think women of your generation are perceived?
There’s a whole TikTok movement dedicated to Gen X women that answers this better than I ever could.
Do you have a favourite quote to share?
I love this Emory Hall Poem:
make peace
with all the women
you once were.
lay flowers
at their feet.
offer them incense
and honey
and forgiveness.
honor them
and give them
your silence.
listen.
bless them
and let them be.
for they are the bones
of the temple
you sit in now.
for they are
the rivers
of wisdom
leading you toward
the sea.
i have been a thousand different women
Thank you Jillyn, so much, for sharing your story with such honesty, depth, and soul. Your reflections are not only moving but an invitation—for anyone lucky enough to read them—to reimagine healing, connection, and creative embodiment in a world that often forgets its own heart.
I see that you have a workshop coming up called: Crossing the Threshold. Can you describe what it’s about?
Of course! Crossing the Threshold is a four month expressive arts ecotherapy offering with twice monthly meetups on zoom to gather in an intimate group and explore what’s alive within you at this time… what’s ready to be released and what’s emerging. This offering then culminates in 6 days out on the land where you will be supported as you embark upon a two day, two night solo experience.
Amazing, thank you!
If anyone reading about Jillynn is interested in learning more about her practice and/or workshop offerings, please follow these links:
Calling all women 40 and beyond—this is for you.
Whether you’re stepping into this chapter with confidence, finding your way one messy miracle at a time, or oscillating wildly between the two—there’s a place for you in this year’s Women Over Forty Portraits & Story Project.
This project is a celebration of real lives in progress—complex, beautiful, unfinished. And now, there's even more reason to share: selected stories will be featured in the upcoming debut of Crone Culture—a magazine created for women to be truly seen and heard.
Because this stage of life isn’t an ending—it’s a reawakening. Let’s show the world what that really looks like.
What’s the purpose of the Women Over 40 Project?
1. Reclaim Your Power
This isn’t about “staying young”—it’s about owning your age and everything that comes with it. Women over 40 carry an immense reservoir of wisdom, beauty, and grit that the world is only just beginning to recognize. This project invites you to reconnect with your core self—not some filtered, performative version, but the real one. The one that’s still unfolding. You’re not behind—you’re right on time.
2. Build real Community: This isn’t just a photoshoot—it’s a movement. Connect with women who are done apologizing for taking up space and are ready to cheer each other on. Upon completion, the project celebration will provide the opportunity to meet and surround yourself with inspiring individuals. Fostering connection and new friendships.
3. Shift the Narrative
Your story matters. Your perspective matters. When you share your lived experience, you’re not just reflecting—you’re reshaping the conversation around aging, identity, and womanhood. And now, there's even more reason to speak up: selected stories from the project will be featured in the upcoming launch of Crone Culture—a new magazine amplifying the voices of women who are done being quiet.
Ready to Jump In?
If you're feeling the nudge (or the full-on shove), click here to learn more and submit your application. The process is simple, the impact is deep, and the community? Unstoppable.
Join Women Over 40 and Be Part of the Shift.
No more waiting to be chosen. No more shrinking. Let’s break the stereotypes, rewrite the rules, and celebrate this chapter—loudly, proudly, and together.