For María Kowalski, this chapter is about reclaiming transition as power. Through the launch of the Happiness Essential Oil Collection with partner Andreina Pradas, and the return of her Powerful Harvest program, Kowalski invites women to experience perimenopause and menopause as sacred rites of passage tended through body, mind, and spirit. Her work, amplified through Wellness Mindset TV in partnership with Miami Dade College TV, weaves ancient wisdom, modern science, and community advocacy into a holistic vision of emotional well‑being one where joy, legacy, and nervous system care are cultivated intentionally, at every stage of life.
María, you’ve recently launched the Happiness Essential Oil Collection with your partner. What inspired you to expand into aromas for spaces, and how do these products support emotional and nervous system well-being?
Yes, we are so excited to expand our Happiness Essential Oil Collection this 2026. We realized that the aroma industry is very popular but a lot of products are synthetic and could be harmful if you are exposed for a long period of time. We spend most of our life in an indoor space and these spaces whether it’s your home or your office should be safe and also offer you a natural way to feel grounded and calm with a sense of joy. Science tells us that the essential oils cross the skin to brain barrier, so the natural compounds of the ingredients are mother earth pharmacy and each one has a positive effect on our nervous system and are also hormone safe. We started with a roll-on 9 years ago as a tool to share with our coaching clients and the results were so positive that we want to create this wellness atmosphere also in bigger spaces. As the line grew from roll on we expanded to soaps, candles, room spray and our most recent diffuser oil.
As of now, we are selling through the website shop of the founder Andreina Pradas, my partner. https://www.inhance.life/shop
For the diffuser for big spaces you need to reach us via email or phone.
As a holistic wellness expert, your work has long centered on guiding women through the sacred rhythms of their lives. How has your mission evolved as you now focus on perimenopause and menopause?
I’ve had my focus on women’s wellness for the past 18 years, when I started to embrace my menstrual cycles as a source of feminine wisdom, health that had a direct impact on my mental health. I even went to a school to learn how to naturally take care of my body and mind with the wisdom passed down from generations of women and elders in S America. Naturally as I continued my journey, I started changing seasons, slowly but surely perimenopause came and 4 years ago I started menopause. I have learned firsthand what this shift means in a woman’s life and I’ve also learned that we can embrace it differently so we don’t panic. This transition is very important and it affects us all in a deep way because in reality we are transitioning from the mother to the wise woman. Our health, our body. our emotions, our mind shifts because of hormonal changes. It can be very disorienting and women end up feeling overwhelmed and depressed. This comes as the middle age crisis, which can bring a lot of grief and unresolved situations but it can also be an initiation to a great new beginning. Having access to someone who is experienced in women’s spirituality and wellness is key during this time as it was for me. Menopause is a Rite of passage and it needs to be treated as such. I have worked with women locally in Miami of all ages in the past 7 years but my practice has also expanded to work online with women all over the country and other parts of the world. I am also bilingual Spanish-English.
You’re reintroducing your flagship Powerful Harvest program after a two-year pause. Why was this moment the right time to bring it back, and how has your own menopause journey shaped the way you now guide other women?
Because I was sailing through the menopause phase and I needed some space and time to digest and come out with the golden nuggets so that I can share them. This program will actually work for any woman that needs a Rite of Passage to her next phase but I am very passionate to partner with perimenopause and menopausal women because we are often not considered as important, society thinks that once you can’t give birth means you are not worthy and many women have believed this. However we are entering the wisdom years and all that you’ve learned and lived becomes now your Powerful Harvest to start a new life. I encourage the women who feel the calling to fill out this questionnaire and schedule a discovery call with me.
How do you help women move beyond a medicalized view of hormones and instead experience menopause as a meaningful rite of passage and season of personal power?
Because you have to tend to it holistically: body, mind and spirit. The hormone shift is also bringing a transformation that is bringing information and is informing your whole self. If we jump to taking hormones and we don’t tend to the spiritual aspect, we are missing the big opportunity to grow and experience the gold that comes with it. I am not against taking hormones at all, and I believe every woman should make an informed decision, do her due diligence from a place of power and not from fear. We need to acknowledge the cycle ended and with an ending emotions are stirred and we are scared to feel these emotions. Without addressing this we won’t grow, we won’t know ourselves we will continue to live in automatic and disconnected. You can take the hormones and also acknowledge the changes, just please don’t let this become a medical journey only, make it a personal, meaningful spiritual journey as well.
Through your partnership with Wellness Mindset TV and Miami Dade College TV, you’re bringing emotional wellness into the public conversation. Why is community-based mental health advocacy such an important part of your work today?
Because when you enter this stage in your life, you also start to think about a legacy. What you want to leave behind when you are not here and how you can also share the lessons learned to the young generations that are facing new challenges. I think there is something very powerful for younger adults when they see an elder interested in them. I am a media producer, before I started my journey in the holistic wellness space I was involved in producing TV commercials, wellness content for a holistic TV channel and also events like concerts and fashion shows.. partnering with Miami Dade College TV to produce Wellness Mindset TV is a fantastic way to spread the message of Mental health as they are a vibrant community, the largest college in the nation with over 100 k students and 300 career pathways. Giving the students some tools to better navigate life and understand themselves as they will be the leaders of tomorrow and the future can be bright if we have happy people. NAMI (National Alliance of Mental Illness) shared the data that more than 65% of all adult mental illnesses start at the age of college you can watch it on Comcast channel 78 or on MDCTVs youtube.
