Feature: Sacha Jones from Stiggly Holistics
Stiggly Holistics NYC is an East Village, New York City based wellness company, specializing in wellness and nutrition counseling and cleansing, using a holistic approach. I met Sacha Jones, the founder, a few years ago when we were both core members of the Stanton Street CSA. (she’s still a core member!)
Sacha describes “holistic” as “looking at your wellness in the context of your whole life. We look at what you eat but it’s so much more than that. By looking at your whole lifestyle, we get down to the nitty-gritty of what’s really going on. We start talking about kale and smoothies, but end up moving on to relationships with their mother. It’s actually very interesting and deep, meaningful work for me.”
So, what is this funny word “Stiggly?" The name “Stiggly” comes from a children’s book called “Stig of the Dump” by Clive King. This book is about a cave boy named Stig, who lives in a dump, and makes things out of garbage. Sacha adored this book growing up and was impressed with Stig being “such a recycler and up-cycler”. Later on she discovered that “Stig” means “path” in Scandinavian languages. Sacha explains, “I love the idea of getting people on the wellness path. It had been a silly name that bounced around for years, and at some point I wanted to add it to my business.”
Sacha has always had an interest in natural remedies. As a child she made perfume from rose petals and washed her face with morning dew. At 15, she began studying herbs and at 17 became a vegetarian. Then 10 years ago, Sacha became ill with colitis, which inspired her to start seriously studying nutrition. She did not want to use drugs, so she focused on a high probiotic and gluten-free diet.
Similar to how the feng shui of your home can represent blocks in your life, Sacha says she “began to realize how much of her illness was emotional and how it can really be representative of what’s going on in your life." With her lifestyle changes, Sacha has truly healed her body and has not had any flare-up in 8-1/2 years.
Besides private wellness counseling, natural body products (from Stiggly Lab) and workshops, one major focus of Stiggly Holistics are guided group cleanses. Sacha provides a shopping list, recipes, and guidance throughout the entire cleanse.
There is a secret, private Facebook group that really acts as “glue” for the group. Sacha explains how “everybody gathers together and cheers each other along which is such a big part of the cleanse.” Although it is for a focused period of time, Sacha describes her cleanses as “a springboard into wellness forever, it’s not like the master cleanse, too intense, or too soft, which is not very sustainable over time. My cleanses look at eating clean and overall nourishment. Many people just don’t know how to do that, so a cleanse can help people make permanent changes to move forward.”
In fact, Sacha is organizing a Spring Cleanse this week! The official cleanse starts on Monday June 3rd and ends on June 17th. If you miss this one, she holds them at least once every season. She welcomes participants at ALL levels and it's international!
Be sure to check out Sacha’s fabulous super-cleansing recipe for Fire Water that she so kindly shared. I’m making it tomorrow!
Sacha Jones, founder and director of Stiggly Holistics, is a Certified Holistic Wellness Counselor (American Association of Drugless Practioners) - a graduate of the Institute of Integrative Nutrition.
Sacha grew up in Wales & England, and has always been passionate about plants & natural healing. Professionally, Sacha was drawn to work in the healing arts after working through some of her own serious health issues, and loves helping others get on their personal path to being their best self. She believes there are many ways of looking at wellness - that a truly holistic approach is necessary for optimal healing.