DemystiPHI Presents

Return to SovereigntyThe Practicum

Skill-building for your sovereignty journey. Learn to harness the power of choice as a daily act of reclamation, self-trust, and personal freedom. Designed for melanated men and women ready to move from insight to practice.

Free Workbook Download Through March 3rdCelebrating Black History Month
Join the Practicum View Schedule & Pricing
Free workbook ends March 3, 2026 --d --h --m
About the Practicum

From Understanding to Action

The original Return to Sovereignty series planted the seeds. You explored what it means to own your inner world, to trust yourself, and to act from personal integrity. Now it is time to cultivate those seeds into something you can practice every single day.

The Practicum is where sovereignty becomes a lived skill. Starting with Module 1, The Power of Choice, you will learn to recognize the hidden forces beneath your decisions, including inherited survival patterns, unmet needs, and beliefs that were handed to you rather than chosen by you.

This is not about making better choices from a place of judgment. This is about making conscious choices from a place of clarity, self-trust, and alignment with who you truly are.

Module 1 Focus: The Power of Choice

Every day, you make thousands of choices. Most happen on autopilot, shaped by patterns laid down long before you were aware of them. For melanated communities, many of those patterns were survival strategies passed down across generations.

In this practicum, you will learn to see those patterns clearly, honor their origin, and consciously choose what serves you now.

Sovereign Decision-Making Body Awareness Values Alignment Vulnerability & Curiosity Self-Trust Building S.P.A.C.E. Framework
Foundation

Core Qualities of Sovereignty

These five qualities form the bedrock of your sovereignty practice. Each one plays a direct role in how you make choices. Tap any quality to explore what it means in action.

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Self-Awareness

Tap to explore
The art of listening deeply to your body's signals, emotions, and intuition. Self-awareness means tuning in to what is genuinely happening inside you before you act. For melanated souls, this includes noticing when your body carries the weight of racialized stress, code-switching fatigue, or emotional labor from navigating spaces that were not built for you.
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Self-Determination

Tap to explore
The ability to chart your own course and make choices aligned with your values and purpose. Self-determination holds specific resonance for Black and Brown communities. It is not only a psychological construct but a principle that liberation movements have fought for.
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Self-Trust

Tap to explore
Believing in your inner wisdom and relying on your own judgment rather than being swayed by outside opinions. Self-trust is particularly tender for those whose judgment has been historically dismissed, gaslit, or overridden by dominant culture.
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Self-Attunement

Tap to explore
Learning to read the language of your own body and nervous system. Your body registers safety or threat before your thinking mind catches up. Self-attunement is the practice of discerning between old signals and present reality.
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Personal Integrity

Tap to explore
Aligning your actions with your core values, even when it is challenging or risky. For those navigating predominantly white spaces, integrity sometimes means holding your truth in the face of systems that routinely discount it. That is not stubbornness. That is sovereignty.
The Journey

Practicum Modules

Six modules exploring sovereignty across every dimension of your life. Module 1 is facilitated through live sessions. Modules 2 through 6 are available as self-paced workbook downloads.

Live Sessions
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Module 1

The Power of Choice

Sovereignty with self means taking complete ownership of your inner world; your thoughts, emotions, reactions, and choices.

Definition: Sovereignty with self is the foundation of all other forms of sovereignty. It begins with recognizing the forces beneath your choices and learning to act from alignment rather than reaction.

Learning Objectives:

• Understand choice as an active expression of sovereignty

• Identify inherited survival patterns, beliefs, and unmet needs that shape decisions beneath conscious awareness

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Module 2

Intimate Partnerships

Exploring sovereignty within your closest relationships while honoring connection and interdependence.

Definition: Sovereignty in intimate partnerships means maintaining your sense of self, your values, and your boundaries while building genuine closeness with another person.

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Module 3

Children & Inner Child

Reclaiming sovereignty in parenting and reconnecting with the parts of yourself that still need tending.

Definition: Sovereignty with children and your inner child is about breaking cycles, healing inherited patterns, and parenting from wholeness rather than woundedness.

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Module 4

Family & Friends

Navigating sovereignty within family systems and friendships where loyalty and personal truth may feel at odds.

Definition: Sovereignty with family and friends means honoring your communal bonds while standing firmly in your own truth.

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Module 5

Professional Life

Exercising sovereignty in the workplace and professional spaces, particularly as a melanated person.

Definition: Sovereignty in professional life means showing up authentically, releasing the exhausting performance of code-switching, and advocating for your value without shrinking.

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Module 6

Integration & Summary

Weaving all dimensions of sovereignty into a sustainable, lifelong practice.

Definition: Integration is the practice of bringing all five dimensions of sovereignty into daily, embodied practice.

Module 1: The Power of Choice is explored through live facilitated sessions.
Modules 2 through 6 will be available as downloadable workbooks on demystiphi.com.
The Power of Choice — Self-Assessment

How Sovereign Are Your Choices?

These questions are not tests — they are mirrors. Read each one slowly. Notice what stirs. Select the ones that spark honest recognition. Your curiosity is the first act of sovereignty.

When was the last time you paused before reacting and actually chose your response instead of defaulting to autopilot?
Do you notice yourself seeking permission or validation before trusting a decision your body already knows the answer to?
Have you ever caught yourself performing strength? Like pushing through exhaustion because rest felt like something you had to earn?
What if the patterns running your relationships were inherited scripts; not ones you consciously chose? Are you curious about what those scripts are?
When you think about what you actually want — separate from what others expect — does clarity come easily, or does it feel unfamiliar?
Do you find that saying “no” feels like a betrayal of the people around you; even when saying “yes” betrays yourself?
How often do you code-switch or adjust your energy to manage someone else’s comfort? What does constantly making yourself palatable cost you by the end of the day?
If your ancestors could see the choices you are making today, would they recognize them as freedom? Or would they see a different version of the same survival?
Are you ready to shift from knowing what needs to change and start practicing how to change it, with guided support and sacred community?
What would it feel like to make decisions from your true values instead of from your fear? Are you ready to give yourself permission to heal in a space where your whole identity is honored?
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Tap the questions that resonate with you.

RECLAIM YOUR POWER TODAY!
Your Investment Includes

Everything You Need for Transformation

Your investment includes everything you need for skill-building, community, and ongoing support on your sovereignty journey.

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The Power of Choice Workbook

Comprehensive practicum workbook with exercises, frameworks, and reflection prompts to support your sovereignty journey and beyond.

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Weekly Vent Sessions

Choose your session: Lunch & Learn on Wednesdays at 12pm EST or Dine & Dish on Thursdays at 6pm EST.

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Private Online Community

Exclusive access to our supportive melanated WhatsApp community space where you can connect, share, and grow together.

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Sovereignty Toolkit

A curated collection of practices including the S.P.A.C.E. Framework, sovereignty decision making reflections and skill building tools.

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Certificate of Completion

Official recognition of your transformative journey upon successful attendance and completion.

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1-on-1 Vent Session

A 45-minute personal vent session with Viola, to integrate your learnings and answer specific questions, is available by request. Email to reserve your 1:1 session!

Pricing & Schedule

Accessible Investment in Your Sovereignty

The Practicum is designed to be accessible for melanated communities. Intimate cohort size (10 spots per vent session) ensures personalized attention and meaningful connection.

Vent Sessions Schedule

Wednesdays
Lunch & Learn12:00 PM - 1:00 PM EST
Thursdays
Dine & Dish6:00 PM - 7:00 PM EST
Format
Choose Your SessionPick one day per week that fits your schedule. Both sessions cover the same material in the workbook. Send payment to Cashapp $DemystiPHI or Zelle: via email. Receive virtual link to attend session.
March 11 - April 16, 2026
6 weeks of guided sovereignty practice
Black History Month Special

The Practicum Workbook

FREE
Through March 3, 2026
$50
Regular price after March 3rd
Vent Drop-In Sessions: $50 per session
Bulk Vent Drop-In Package I: $250 for 6 sessions
Bulk Vent Drop-In Package II: $500 for ALL 12 sessions
CLAIM YOUR SPOT NOW
Why This Work Matters

Benefits of Group Practicum Work

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You Are Not Alone

Share and hear experiences from people who truly understand your journey.

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Practical Tools & Fresh Perspectives

Gain awareness and learn effective strategies to become your most powerful and authentic self.

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Practice Communication & Emotional Regulation

Practice expressing yourself, managing difficult emotions, and developing healthier strategies.

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Affordable and Accessible

Drop-in sessions offer many of the same benefits as individual therapy at a fraction of the cost.

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Standalone or Supplement

The Power of Choice Practicum workbook can stand on its own as a self-paced guide or serve as an enriching addition to individual therapy.

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Culturally Grounded Healing

This work centers the lived experiences of melanated communities with frameworks and language that honors our cultural context.

Your Guide

About the Facilitator

Viola Thomas, LCSW

Viola Thomas, MSW, LCSW

Human Systems RE-Engineer

Viola loves helping you reflect on and re-engineer the internal systems quietly running your daily life, working closely with you to become the conscious architect of your own updated operating system. Returning back to "factory settings", if you prefer.

With a deep commitment to culturally relevant healing, Viola created the Return to Sovereignty series and The Power of Choice Practicum to address the unique emotional, historical, and social landscapes that shape the experiences of melanated communities.

As an AuDHD clinician of color, her approach integrates deep clinical expertise with ancestral wisdom, allowing her to facilitate a space where participants can explore their sovereignty with both rigor and tenderness.

🏢 DemystiPHI, LLC is a Black & Female-owned virtual practice
Register

🗱 VENT AWAY 🗱

Complete the form below to join The Practicum - Vent Sessions. Limited spots (10/session) available to maintain an intimate, supportive cohort.

Your information is kept confidential. Registration confirmation will be sent to your email.

Questions

Frequently Asked Questions

What exactly is The Power of Choice Practicum Workbook?+

The Power of Choice Practicum is the companion workbook for Module 1 of Return to Sovereignty Workshop Series. It's a guided deep-dive into sovereign decision-making, designed specifically for melanated people and BIPOC communities. Because our relationship with choice is different.

We inherited survival patterns from people who had to code-switch, shrink, perform, and comply just to stay safe. Those strategies were acts of love from our ancestors. And they're also worth examining now that we're building something new and returning to sovereingty.

In short, this workbook empowers you to deconstruct subconscious patterns and reclaim your agency by making intentional choices that align with your authentic, evolving self.

What are the vent sessions?+
Working through deep material alone can be isolating. That's why I'm creating weekly virtual Vent Sessions starting March 11. Vent Sessions are an hour, in a virtual space held by Viola, where you get to show up exactly as you are, with whatever's on your heart or spirit that week. It's intentionally unstructured, with no scripts or forced positivity. Just a group of 10 people having real conversations about the real things surfacing as you do this sovereignty work. You lead, we hold space. There's no judgment, only curiosity, vulnerability and care.
Is this workshop virtual or in-person?+
The Practicum is currently only available to attend virtually, making it accessible from wherever you are. Let's keep each other company while we do the hard, beautiful work of sovereignty-building.
What if I can’t attend all the sessions?+
All sessions are recorded for participants and will be available through the online community. You can watch at your own pace if you miss a live session.
What is the difference between Lunch & Learn and Dine & Dish?+
Both sessions cover the same material or section of the workbook discussed each week. Lunch & Learn meets on Wednesdays at 12pm EST and Dine & Dish meets on Thursdays at 6pm EST. Choose the time that works best for your schedule.
Are scholarships or financial assistance available?+
Please email [email protected] to discuss financial assistance or alternative payment options.
What materials do I need?+
Just bring yourself, an open heart, and a curious spirit. We provide all workbooks, meeting links, and resources digitally.
What if I’m new to mindfulness or therapeutic topics?+
That is perfectly okay. Our exploration is crafted for everyday individuals looking to enhance their personal growth in an approachable, non-intimidating way.
Will I be required to share personal details?+
You are not required to share anything you are uncomfortable with. You can engage at your own comfort level and pace.
Can I book a 1-on-1 vent session?+
Yes! Email [email protected] to schedule your personal vent session ($75/hr).