Get rooted Reclaim your soul, serenity, and sisterhood through the healing medicine of the grandmothers

Emmy-nominated TV host, podcaster, life coach, and author Moreno steps away from the limelight and lifestyle writing to embark on a journey to wrestle with her susto, or scare or fright, a term she uses to signify a kind of deep-seated trauma. As she tells her story of discovery and healing, Moreno generously provides practical steps for any woman's journey towards self-knowledge and self-love. This blend of memoir and guide is rooted in the traditions of Moreno's Mexican heritage. Delving into the Indigenous traditions of curanderas, especially those of the Aztec and the Maya, she laments the knowledge lost during the Spanish conquest. Moreno works on recovering this ancient wisdom through research, by connecting to the wise women elders in her family, and by finding others on a similar path. Writing in an intimate, vulnerable voice, she fearlessly confronts such painful topics as addiction and child abuse. Divided into five parts that correspond to Aztec cosmology, with each section ending with activities and exercises that include journal prompts and directions for creating an altar and performing your own limpia (spiritual cleansing) and guided meditations, the book invites readers to modify these activities to honor their own cultural traditions.

Media executive Moreno (Practically Posh) details in this affecting spiritual memoir how she reconnected with her Mexican heritage and became a folk healer. Struggling to balance work and family, Moreno was having a "full-on midlife meltdown" when her cousin introduced her to curanderismo, "a Mesoamerican earth-based healing practice." Moreno quit her job to become a curandera (folk healer) and embarked on a 260-day "healing journey" ("symbolic of the gestation period of a baby") during which she had to confront the susto ("soul loss") she suffered after her father's death when she was 13 and discover her Ser (or "true essence"). To do so, she traced her father's lineage to the Indigenous people of Coahuila, Mexico, learned Aztec herbalism, and participated in a healing ritual in a Belizean cave. Each chapter includes such exercises as connecting with one's ancestors through meditation and writing a farewell letter to the thing or person of which one needs to let go. Through personal anecdotes and pained introspection, the author maintains a frank and open disposition that readers will find stirring. The result is a restorative testament to family and heritage. Agent: Johanna Castillo, Writers House. (June)