**Viral News Snippet:**

Viral News Snippet:

“Burnout to Breakthrough: Life Coach on Why the Simi Valley Fire is a ‘Purge for the Soul’”

As flames tear through Simi Valley, forcing thousands to evacuate, one life coach is turning tragedy into a viral mental health moment. “The fire is a metaphor for everything we refuse to let go,” says Dr. Elena Torres in a now-viral Instagram reel from her emergency shelter bunk. “We hold onto toxic jobs, dead-end relationships, and outdated versions of ourselves. This fire? It’s a forced purge. You don’t get to pack your past. You only get to carry your present.”

Torres, a former wildfire survivor herself, is advising evacuees (and her 2M followers) to use the disaster as a “reset button.” Her three-step “Ash to Action” plan: 1) Write down the one thing you hope stays standing—that’s your true priority. 2) Let the rest of your anxiety burn away. 3) Use the smoke delay at work to draft a resignation letter or start that side hustle.

“People are texting me, ‘My house might be gone, but I finally have clarity,’” she says. “The smoke clears, and so does the fog in your mind.” Critics call it tone-deaf. But Torres’ hashtag #PhoenixFromTheFlames is trending, with evacuees posting videos of themselves burning old journals and love letters. “Everything else,” she says, “is just fuel for a better fire.”