Lucas Adcock
Staff Writer
It was a Sunday night when Chelsea Hooper and her family arrived in Pocahontas County making their permanent move. Despite it being dark and difficult to see nearly anything outside at night – as it is, and shall remain, in our beautiful mountains – they awoke to the beautiful nature surrounding them.
“My husband had transferred with his job and had to start work immediately,” Hooper explained. “So, we jumped right into life here. It was definitely an adjustment coming from city conveniences, but we loved the quiet, the space, and the slower pace right away.” A quiet, instant connection to the natural beauty of the area.
Though Hooper had lived with her husband and children in southern California for years, she was familiar with Pocahontas County, having had other close family already relocate to the area themselves. Following rising costs in California and a longing for a slower way of life, a permanent change of scenery was prompted.
“Coming from the desert in Southern California,” Hooper said, “we were amazed by the abundance here of the forests, rivers, wildlife and open land. That strong connection to nature is a huge part of why we stayed. Life here feels much slower, and more intentional.”
In Pocahontas County, there is no busy Interstate 5 to keep you on your toes while sports cars or motorcyclist ride by you going speeds that the cops can’t even catch up with them. There’s not a place on the sidewalk congested with people staring at their phones.
Here, you can’t walk down a street that is right next to the ocean, but that’s not the point. Instead, you traverse the trails, the mountain tops, the forests, the communities, the art…
Aside from the spectacular scenery, living in a small community can have some aspects that you need to take into extra consideration. For Hooper, it’s health. Access to healthcare in our community, while it’s certainly available, does require more of a focused intention than in a major city, where healthcare access feels like it’s available on every street corner.
On the topic of health, Hooper noted, “Many people have to travel long distances for specialized medical care. There’s also a culture of extremely hard work here, especially tied to farming, weather and seasonal demands, so self-care often gets pushed aside. One thing my husband and I are passionate about is healthy, locally sourced food and reconnecting communities to sustainable food systems. We hope to eventually help create more community education around food, mental health, nervous system health and wellness tools that feel realistic and accessible for everyone.”
What sparked an interest in wellness and healing work for Hooper wasn’t just moving. Her journey began when she found out that her mother had been diagnosed with breast cancer. Her mother had chosen a holistic path for healing, based on nutrition, emotional healing, mindfulness, and other natural healing modalities, instead of conventional treatment.
While her mother’s instructor was teaching her to focus on yoga, breathwork, emotional healing, and the understanding of how trauma and stress affect the body, Hooper was experiencing a struggle of anxiety and depression herself.
“I started learning from her teacher,” she said, “and discovered tools like yoga, mindfulness, breathwork, emotional awareness and nervous system regulation.”
After learning about those practices, she decided to study them more intently, even focusing on studies with energy work and psychology.
“Those practices truly changed my life. I became a yoga teacher, personal trainer, and a health-and-wellness coach, because I knew I wanted to help other people experience the same kind of healing and self-awareness that helped me.”
She’d started with children’s yoga, raising her own younger kids at the time, and working with young kids all the way up to teenagers in the beginning stages, which solidified her passion for helping others through movement, breathwork and mindfulness. After having studied wellness practices for so long, Hooper is now able to teach the benefits of practices to those who may not have had the experience with it.
“I was born with physical disabilities in my feet, and had reconstructive surgeries as an infant, so I’ve personally experienced how everybody is different. That made me passionate about helping people in ways that honor their individual bodies and needs instead of using a one-size-fits-all approach.”
Of the practices and experiences that she’s had since relocating, what’s surprised her the most is the pure resilience that her family had shown for the move. Life was forcing them to be stronger. More independent. And a necessity to build community caused them to thrive.
“I’m proud that we stayed,” she said. “Adapt-ed… And created a life here, despite the challenges. It taught me a lot about resilience, healing and the importance of good community.”
Hooper is all about things creative – digital art, wood burning, nature art, painting, poetry, design work and creating things in Canva.
“I’m always coming up with new ideas and projects, she said.”
But artwork aside, her deepest passion is health and wellness. Every day is different. Most mornings, she’s up making breakfast and coffee, getting the kids on the bus for school, checking email, juggling family schedules…
“Other days I’m working on community projects, Woman’s Club activities, personal art or brainstorming wellness ideas for the future.”
For Hooper, it’s simple: nature is health.
The land itself and the plants that grow here are the medicines.
“I think modern life really disconnects people from nature,” Hooper said. ‘Living here reconnects you to the rhythms of the seasons, the outdoors, and the natural world. Even something as simple as driving carefully because of wildlife slows you down and makes you become more aware.
Nature encourages movement, mindfulness and nervous system regulation in ways that are incredibly healing for both physical and mental health.
This slowing down, seeing a client connecting with themselves – feeling their heartbeat, noticing their body, releasing any tension, or simply breathing deeply for the first time in a long time. This is the most powerful thing she’s experienced with her own practices with her clients.
And just like the permanent move – the relocation to a beautiful new way of life – so are her practices. Doing these things won’t always be easy, but you have to care. That’s what makes you a part of it. Like the community; eventually you become one.
“Ultimately,” Hooper said. “We want to help create stronger connections between wellness, food, community, and self-sufficiency in small-town life.”
Hooper loves taking on new clients and even teaching others through classes such as meditation, which she runs once a month with two other wonderful practitioners. You can reach out to her at: Hooperhealinghavenwv@gmail.com
