Kari Brunson Wright, Josh Spell, and Rachel Coates talk about their new Ilumn Collective app that is defining how mental health and coaching can be accessible for dancers, dance educators and parents. Join the podcast as we talk about perfectionism, body image, compassion and resilience for the dancer.

Kari Brunson WrightAfter nearly a decade dancing with Pacific Northwest Ballet and thirteen years as a food entrepreneur and CEO, Kari discovered that her deepest joy and fulfillment came from helping others grow—personally, professionally, and spiritually. In 2022, she became a certified coach through the International Coaching Federation and launched an IFS-informed psycho-spiritual practice centered on the art of being well.
Kari coaches founders, leaders, and creatives in values-based leadership, organizational clarity, and personal alignment. She lives in Seattle with her husband and two young children, and she loves cooking vegetables, listening to podcasts, reading fiction, and getting her hands dirty in the garden.

Rachel Coates is a dancer turned licensed mental health therapist living in the state of Washington. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from University of Kansas and a Masters of Science in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from Western Washington University. She has experience working in community mental health and group practice and currently runs a private practice. Rachel has experience working with clients on a myriad of challenges including anxiety, depression, relationship challenges, trauma, grief, parenting issues, and rites of passage. She has training in Internal Family Systems, Mindful Self-Compassion, and is an ongoing student in energy studies and somatics work. Drawing from her experience as a professional ballet dancer for 15 years, Rachel has a passion for helping dancers navigate their art form in expansive and healthy ways. She has extensive experience leading seminars for dancers, providing dancer-specific counseling, and writing course work to help dancers thrive.

Josh Spell is a licensed social worker in the state of Washington and currently works in private practice in Seattle. Before beginning his practice, Josh worked in the field of eating disorders and generalized behavioral health settings. He earned a master’s degree in social work from the University of Washington and received his undergraduate degree from Seattle University. Josh was a dancer with Pacific Northwest Ballet from 2001 to 2011 and danced with Kansas City Ballet for two seasons. He trained at the School of American Ballet and attended Summer Courses at Pacific Northwest Ballet School. Josh danced a range of repertory from George Balanchine to Twyla Tharp. Among his favorite roles were the second sailor in Jerome Robbin’s Fancy Free, Puck in George Balanchine’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Benvolio and Acolytes in Jean-Christophe Maillot’s Roméo et Juliette and roles in Jiri Kylián’s Sechs Tänze and Petite Mort. In 2020 Josh returned to PNB in a new role as consulting therapist. He works with professional dancers and students all over the country centering dance from a holistic perspective and offering a wide variety of mental health tools. He has given various seminars on performance anxiety, perfectionism, body image, self-compassion and identity. In addition to his therapist and dancer identities, Josh is a plant enthusiast, aesthete and lover of the arts.

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