About me & my apostolate

Sister Mary Stephen (Carolyn Meiners) has been a nun for over 28 years and was one of the foundresses of her monastery.

In honoring her desire to follow God’s call beyond the walls of her monastery, the competent Church authorities have granted her this precious time away. In accordance with her superior’s wishes, she is currently financially independent from the monastery, and as such, her work remains separate from the monastery’s apostolates.

She is using this time to pursue further education and deepen her personal healing journey—gifts she is now sharing with others.

Most recently, she founded Restorative Catholic—a holistic ministry dedicated to inner healing and human flourishing.

Through this work, she primarily offers Zoom-based courses featuring Catholic Somatic Exercises, along with one-on-one coaching.

She holds a B.A. in Psychology and Social Behavior from the University of California, Irvine (UCI), and has completed several specialized training programs. These include a certifications as a Biology of Trauma Professional, with Trauma Healing Accelerated (THA), Integrative Somatic Trauma Therapy, Somatic Stress Release and Somatic EMDR with Embody Lab; Parts Work Fundamentals (IFS) with Dr. Gerry Crete; and Catholic Coaching Fundamentals with Metanoia Catholic.

She enjoys teaching this ground-up approach through Virtual Somatic Pilgrimages, which weave together somatic practices, parts work, and the richness of the Catholic faith.