Are you ready for change that is REAL?
It’s come to the point now where you you know in your heart it’s time to let go. You know you can’t deal with your pain and heartache alone, but where do you turn for the help that you need? With so many paths to healing and growth, it can be so confusing: Which path is the right one for me? And perhaps just as importantly, where is the right place to do this important “work”? I admit, these aren’t easy questions to answer. And to be frank, not ones I can answer for you. But what I can do is help you to find the direction you may seek.
What I can also do is share my experience with two healing practices that have not only worked really well for me, but over the years have worked beautifully for my clients. Of course I’m biased here, but the information I’m about to share is real and true.
Each in their own way, psychotherapy and Yoga are effective healing practices. Each will support you in transitioning and transforming into the person you truly are inside. Each will raise your self-awareness, heal your pain and usher in a new level of contentment. In their own way, each will enhance your self-confidence, so you can step into the world and live your life, your way. Of course real change that lasts doesn’t happen overnight. It bears no resemblance to picking up a fast food meal at a burger joint. Rather, its rhythm is slow and steady. And for the trauma survivor, it needs to be this way.
YOGA THERAPY
There’s a branch of Yoga known as Yoga Therapy. It uses Yoga philosophy and practices to effect positive change in a mental, emotional, physical or spiritual condition. ‘Yoga for the Wounded Body’ is one such therapy experience, especially designed for the trauma survivor. Through the breath, the movement of the body, reflection and silence, it will allow you to relax deeply, make friends with your body, re-connect with yourself again, and in the course of doing so, heal, grow and feel good again from the inside out. It’s a superb form of therapy.
PSYCHOTHERAPY
Psychotherapy too is a superb form of therapy. It uses the power of words, reflection, personal insight, imagery, as well as newly acquired knowledge to effect positive change and growth. It works within the ‘container’ of a safe and grounded relationship. This relationship is by itself, therapeutic. And it’s vital for the trauma survivor. Wounding typically happens within the context of relationship. We want to prevent any further wounding from happening, particularly on the healing path. When deciding on where and with whom you’ll be doing your healing work, please consider this important factor. Your psychological well-being is on the line.
Psychotherapy will help you to return home to the REAL you. It will help you to reclaim your own perceptions of yourself and the life you’ve been living. You’ll cultivate a fresh understanding of you and restore your sense of acceptance of the person you are inside. It will support you in finding the lessons and wisdom in your own experiences. And it will also support you in finding new ways of living your life more authentically. For the trauma survivor in particular, therapy will teach you how to regulate your emotional experience without drugs, or crutch of any kind. It will provide you with a place to be seen, for your pain to be healed, and as crazy as it may sound, to make meaning out of what has happened in your life, if you feel ready to do so. Psychotherapy offers a rare form of support in our fast paced divisive society, particularly if you’re feeling paralyzed by fear, and if you know in your heart you can’t do this alone. Psychotherapy works well if you’re open to talking about yourself. You may not be totally comfortable with it yet, but you’re open to it, and have the courage to “go there”.
PSYCHOTHERAPY & YOGA
Without a doubt, those clients I’ve worked with over the years who’ve used psychotherapy and Yoga, together, have made steady, meaningful progress on their healing journeys, in ways that have appeared faster than those who’ve worked with each modality separately. I think of it as a brilliantly choreographed dance between the mind and body, process and integration, that’s been beautiful to behold, and that over time, has ushered in a new experience of contentment for the people I’ve had the pleasure of working with.
But whether you choose to work with psychotherapy and Yoga together, or individually, each in their own way will help you to finally let go, find relief from your pain and heartache, and come back home to the REAL you.
WHAT’S NEXT?
For the trauma survivor, coming into the present moment is too often a no-go zone. We simply have trouble being there, or rather, here.
The focus of my work is on how we experience the present moment – and coming to feel a welcoming acceptance of whatever we find.
The work I do zeros in on three foundational areas:
- Building a bridge to our self,
- Bringing our attention to the contents of the bodymind,
- Uncovering a peace we can feel.
Given the serious nature of the work, my preference is to go deep and get into it, rather than to skate superficially along the surface.
What this means is I only work with 3 or 4 clients a month. I prefer to work with people who are serious about devoting time and energy to themselves and their evolving inner world. It’s important work after all.
If you feel ready to begin, here’s a link to a brief questionnaire I’ve nicknamed the Peace Map. One size doesn’t fit all when it comes to healing the heart. This is how we’ll zero in on where you’re at, what you’re struggling with, and carve out your unique pathway to contentment. Simply fill out the form and send it along. It’ll also help us to set up a time to talk.
Experience
To provide context for the work we’ll do together, here’s a brief overview of the scope of my professional experience to date:
- 25+ years of clinical experience working effectively with people from a variety of socio-economic and cultural backgrounds,
- Considered by some to be a pioneer in the field of integrating Yoga theory and practice into mainstream mental health care,
- Assisted over 3000+ therapy clients with a wide range of psychological conditions, including psychological trauma, depression and anxiety, to live more effective and meaningful lives,
- Delivered therapeutic Yoga groups to 500+ clients struggling with the effects of psychological trauma. Groups supported individuals in a variety of ways including, learning how to relax, how to deal with distressing emotion and how to feel at home in their bodies. In addition, 2,000+ Yoga students have attended my relaxation focused public classes,
- Clinical Supervisor and Exam Adjudicator for graduate students in a university Counselling Psychology program,
- Respected and trusted by clients.
The therapy I offer is focused on supporting you in addressing those troubling areas identified in the Peace Map. I will bring all of my knowledge and skill to our time together, as we attend to your personal areas of concern.
Sometimes resolution comes quickly. To be honest, often times it does not. I tend to work with people who want to take the time to make sense of the chaos and confusion within, find meaning in it all, and at the end of the day find their unique pathway to their experience of contentment.
After all, real change that lasts doesn’t happen overnight. It bears no resemblance to picking up a fast food meal at a burger joint. Rather, its rhythm is slow and steady. And for the trauma survivor, it needs to be this way.
Investment
For best results, sessions are arranged on a regular basis.
Each individual session is $140.CDN.
I will bring supplementary materials* to our time together when needed, carefully selected for you to enrich your healing journey.
To really heal from the effects of trauma, we need the inherent power of a secure relational environment, where we feel safe enough to turn our attention back to our REAL self and to speak our truth. After all, we were wounded in relationship to another. It is through relationship we will find liberation from that wounding.
If you feel ready to begin, here’s a link to the brief questionnaire. Simply fill out the form and send it along. It’ll also help us to set up a time to talk.
“The obstacles of your past can become the
gateways that lead to new beginnings.“
Ralph Blum, Cultural Anthropologist
*Supplementary materials can take many forms including book titles, articles, film titles, creative journaling,body centered exercises, practices from the world of Yoga.
