Carine Camara is an acupuncturist, healer, and founder of CARRINNA, dedicated to helping individuals cultivate authentic and holistic lifestyles through Beauty, Wellness, and Spirit. With a focus on shifting the narrative around aging, Carine guides people towards self-love and acceptance through life’s various stages. Specializing in women’s health, particularly in perimenopause and menopause, she offers a transformative approach to wellness and personal growth. Located in the East Bay of San Francisco, Carine’s practice provides personalized acupuncture sessions that may include intuitive energy readings, facial rejuvenation, cupping, gua sha, and abdominal therapy. MysticMag finds out more.
What inspired you to create CARRINNA, a platform dedicated to helping people over 40 celebrate life and the aging process beautifully?
The inspiration behind creating my platform stemmed from a pivotal moment—my 40th birthday. I realized there was a lack of dedicated online spaces for women in midlife. At the time, I had been practicing acupuncture for 11 years, focusing on women’s health. Amidst the challenges of the COVID era, I yearned for something more joyful, fun, and celebratory. The pandemic had brought immense negativity, and I wanted to counterbalance that by birthing something different.
I began styling my friends who were also over 40 and encountered difficulties in finding suitable clothing. This experience highlighted the absence of online platforms that represented midlife women in a joyful, youthful manner. While there were a few existing platforms, they seemed to lack the depth and breadth of information we needed.
Hence, I set out to create a space where women could not only see themselves but also find answers and solutions to the unique challenges they face in their 40s and beyond, especially concerning health. The platform covers various aspects, including style, beauty, and health, offering information on perimenopause and menopause, along with solutions and community discussions.
I envisioned a holistic space where women could access information about their health, purchase products, and explore topics related to style, beauty, and wellness—all in one place. My goal is to foster a community where women in midlife can embrace aging joyfully, challenging the traditional narrative around aging. I want this platform to be a beacon of positivity and empowerment for all women in this stage of life.
You offer a holistic approach to beauty, wellness, and spirituality. Can you explain how these aspects are interconnected and why it’s important to address them together?
I believe in offering a holistic approach because I see myself as a systemic thinker by nature. It’s crucial to consider all facets of healing, especially concerning aging, beauty, wellness, and spirituality. These elements complement each other, particularly in spirituality, where it’s about connecting with oneself and a higher source, if that resonates with you. It involves letting go of negative emotions and cultivating positivity, optimism, hope, and love in your mindset and heart. This approach can be incredibly powerful for healing, wellness, and beauty.
I advocate for looking at multiple aspects of health and wellness as integral parts of your identity. It’s about making choices that align with who you are and feel right to you. Whether you’re following a Western approach or another method, I believe it’s holistic as long as it considers the whole picture. This means examining various aspects of your life, such as relationships, stress levels, lifestyle, physical activity, diet, and sleep. All these elements are crucial for health, and it’s vital to approach them holistically.
In my view, a holistic approach also involves approaching health decisions from a place of love and compassion for oneself. It’s about asking yourself if something is truly beneficial for you and being able to make informed decisions. Having support, such as hiring someone to assist you, can be invaluable in guiding you in the right direction. However, it’s essential that this support helps you connect with yourself so that you can ultimately make decisions that are most beneficial for your health.
Your mission is to shift the conversation around aging and guide people toward self-love and acceptance. How do you approach this goal?
I achieve this goal by helping people discover ways to treat and love themselves on a deeper level. When you love and accept yourself, it becomes easier to accept the aging process and appreciate the changes in your physical body. This is where practices like facial acupuncture come into play. They can help address insecurities about one’s face or skin, aiding in self-acceptance and appreciation of one’s appearance.
My aim is to help individuals view their style and wellness as interconnected aspects, working together harmoniously. This approach helps shift the conversation from external appearances to internal well-being. By helping people find more love within themselves, they can learn to love and accept themselves, leading to a more joyful aging process.
In American society, aging is often viewed from an external perspective—you’re considered old because you look, dress, or act a certain way. Older individuals are sometimes undervalued. However, in other cultures, elders are revered for their wisdom and contributions. Shifting this conversation within ourselves can change our experience of aging.
I believe in honoring elders and the wisdom they offer, particularly women as they age. By valuing ourselves and feeling confident and valuable, we can step into the role of a powerful elder in our communities. My goal is to help shift this conversation on a societal level, recognizing the magic and wisdom that elders, especially women, bring to our culture.
Could you share more about the services and treatments offered such as traditional acupuncture, facial acupuncture, and energy healing? How do these treatments contribute to overall well-being and self-care?
Well-being and self-care are at the core of my practice. Traditional acupuncture, which I distinguish from facial acupuncture, works by increasing blood flow and energy throughout the body, promoting balance and facilitating healing. Acupuncture is a self-healing modality; when needles are inserted into specific points, the body’s immune system and natural healing processes are activated. This aspect of acupuncture is truly magical to me, as it demonstrates the body’s innate ability to heal itself.
In my practice, I focus on women’s health, offering treatments for hormonal and endocrine imbalances, fertility, menstrual cycle regulation, and support during perimenopause and menopause. Facial acupuncture is an extension of these body treatments, focusing on points that help improve collagen production, elasticity, and muscle tone in the face. Beyond the physical benefits, facial acupuncture can also help relax the facial muscles, reducing tension and promoting a sense of relaxation.
Energy healing is another aspect of my practice, complementing acupuncture by working with the body’s energy, or chi. As an energy healer and intuitive, I channel energy to clients, often providing insights into emotional blocks, relationships, or even past lives. This form of healing can be integrated into acupuncture sessions or offered as a standalone treatment, either in person or remotely.
I believe that love is a powerful form of medicine, and I strive to infuse all my treatments with love and compassion. I believe that true health and well-being are not possible without love, both for oneself and for others. My goal is to help individuals cultivate more love within themselves, which in turn can lead to a more loving and compassionate world.
What personal experiences or insights have influenced your approach to holistic health and beauty, and how do they shape the services and philosophy of CARRINNA?
My journey into acupuncture and holistic health began when I was 24 and faced with the prospect of surgery for an ovarian cyst. Instead, I opted for acupuncture, which not only resolved the cyst but also alleviated my menstrual cramps. This experience was so transformative that I decided to study acupuncture, with a focus on women’s health, to help others in similar situations.
When I moved to California from New York City, I delved deeper into holistic health, driven by personal struggles like severe acne and menstrual issues. Western medicine offered temporary solutions, but I was seeking more profound and lasting healing. I discovered that by addressing my mental health, spirituality, and releasing negative emotions, I could significantly improve my well-being.
I learned that true healing requires addressing all aspects of health—physical, mental, and spiritual. For instance, I realized that my unresolved anger towards my father was contributing to my menstrual pain. It was only after forgiving him that I experienced significant relief.
This realization highlighted the importance of holistic healing. I believe that true beauty comes from within, rooted in self-love and compassion. I strive to help others recognize this interconnectedness and achieve holistic well-being.
If you would like to find out more about Carine Camara, please visit https://carrinna.com/
