A Journey of Transformation
Welcome!
I'm Cristina — guide, author, and founder of Samdea. This is the story of how I chose to build a life rooted in purpose, growth, and authentic connection.
For many years I followed a "traditional" path — the one that was expected of me. I had a happy marriage, a home, and a successful career.
In 2009, life shook me to my core. Piece by piece, everything I had built fell apart.
Choosing to rebuild myself wasn't easy — but it was the most important decision of my life. Yoga and meditation became my anchors, helping me find healing, clarity, and strength when everything else felt uncertain.
A few years later, I made a bold choice: I left my secure job, earned a second master's degree, found love again, and moved from Italy to California, ready to start a new chapter.
What Have I Learned?
Happiness can't depend on what happens outside of us. Real transformation happens when we shift perspective, connect with our most authentic self, heal our inner world, and find the courage to begin again — no matter how many times it takes.
I started my academic path with a Master's Degree in Law, driven by a desire to make an impact on the world through justice. But I quickly realized that legal work meant living inside a system I couldn't change.
I changed course and spent almost twenty years leading increasingly larger sales teams, using coaching as a leadership tool. Even in the corporate world, my heart stayed connected to something deeper: since my teenage years, yoga and meditation had been my sacred tools for staying grounded and true to myself.
In 2018 I became a certified yoga teacher and started teaching in my free time, while continuing to deepen my studies.
Then came 2020. The world changed. And so did I.
I left the corporate world and devoted myself fully to Coaching, weaving my professional experience together with powerful inner-work techniques.
But my journey wasn't over. Driven by a deep love for the human mind and spirit, I pursued a Master's Degree in Clinical Psychology. That included an internship in Germany focused on psychedelic therapies, a thesis on new approaches to treating depression, and then a 9-month psychedelic coaching program in California.
Today my path is clear: I help people reconnect with themselves, find meaning in change, and transform their lives from the inside out.
The Foundations of My Work
A blend of academic excellence and twenty years of human-centered experience.
Academic Excellence
Clinical Psychology: Master's Degree (2023).
Law: Master's Degree (2001).
Marketing & Communication: 12-month postgraduate Master's program (2001–2002).
Consciousness Studies and the Psychedelic Approach
Psychedelic Therapy and Coaching: Advanced 9-month specialized training (2025–2026) with MIND Foundation (Berlin) and Third Wave (California).
Somatic and Depth Wisdom: Trained in Hypnosis and Active Imagination
Holotropic Breathwork: Currently completing certification (Grof Transpersonal Training, a 3-year program)
Specialized Yoga and Somatics (750+ RYT)
Certified Teacher: Odaka Yoga and Zen Warrior.
Trauma-Informed Practices: Advanced training in Somatic Integration, Trauma-Sensitive Yoga (TCTSY-USA), and Yoga for Eating Disorders.
Leadership and Coaching
Business Experience: 20 years of experience in Sales Management for leading global companies and Fortune 500 organizations.
Leadership Training: Intensive 3-year coaching and leadership training program (2016).
Sexuality: Certified Consultant (2015).
If you're looking for clarity, healing, or a new perspective, I'd be honored to walk this path with you. Let's begin this journey together.
My Professional LinkedIn Profile
My Book: The Path of the Mala
108 steps for those who don't have half an hour a day to meditate
You don't have time to stop.
But every now and then, you have one hand free. A moment between emails. Just enough time for a breath before you respond to someone who made you angry.
That's where The Path of the Mala becomes possible: a method built around a simple, ancient object, designed to fit in one hand and find a place inside a full day.
One bead to come back to your body.
One bead to recognize what truly matters to you.
One bead to choose, instead of react.
The chaos of the day stays the same, but the way you move through it changes: with more clarity, less urgency, closer to what matters to you.
With one small gesture, every day, you can take care of yourself too.
One bead at a time.