Individual Therapy
I believe that change happens through the experience of relationship. For that reason, my aim is to be a real person—not a distant, objective observer—who is genuinely interested in how our relationship is unfolding.
Often, we find that what comes up in the therapeutic relationship connects not only to what’s currently happening in one’s life but also to what has already happened in one’s past. Therapy can provide opportunities to unearth those deeply held memories and patterns, and experiment with new ways of feeling, experiencing and relating.
In this way, the therapeutic relationship can become a place where new experience emerges to serve as a model for what is possible in your life and relationships—an experience of safety and trust, authentic self-expression, intimacy, vitality and openness.
I offer ongoing individual psychotherapy and private somatic coaching intensives to support you in…
Deepening Your Connection with Your Self
- Enhancing Self-Esteem & Cultivating a Healthy Body Image
- Integrating Mind, Body, Spirit & Emotion for a More Grounded & Centered Life Experience
- Embodying Your Spiritual Path
Finding Your Life’s Path
- Negotiating Cultural Identities
- Coming Out – Sexual Identity and Orientation
- Navigating Life’s Transitions
- Discovering Your Calling
Navigating Success
- Creating Work/Life Balance
- Overcoming Stress & Anxiety
- Creating More Collaborative Work Relationships
- Cultivating an Embodied Leadership Style
Cultivating Healthy Relationships
- Communicating Authentically with Ease
- Setting Healthy Boundaries
- “Fighting Fair” & Using The Gifts Inherent in Conflict to Deepen and Invigorate Your Connections
- Deepening Intimacy with Yourself & Others
Reclaiming Life After Trauma
- Managing Overwhelming Emotions
- Learning to Trust Yourself & Others
- Experiencing Joy, Freedom and Vitality in Your Body and in Your Life
Inviting Eros Into Your Life & Intimate Relationships
- Infusing More Passion into Your Sex Life
- Reclaiming the Sacred in Sexuality
- Nourishing a Deeper, More Embodied Sensual Self
My approach
In this work, I am always striving to listen…not just to the words, but to the whole Self—body, mind, heart, and spirit. My approach to psychotherapy blends somatic, relational, psychodynamic, attachment-oriented and socio-cultural perspectives.
The first question that people often ask when I describe my work is, ‘What is a somatic psychotherapist?’ That is a great question! The word “somatic” comes from the Greek word, “soma”, which means “living body”. The somaticist, Thomas Hanna, re-defined the word to mean “the body experienced from within, where we experience mind/body integration”. As a somatic psychotherapist, I believe that the body is a source of wisdom, and I value bodily experience as an integral part of the Self.
For many of us, it is through our bodily senses that we experience both ourselves and the world around us. My work invites us to slow down enough to listen to what the body has to tell us. One way that I do this is simply by attuning to and inquiring into sensation and bodily experience, with the same care and attention that I might apply when listening to your spoken words.
Other times, movement and gesture become rich sources of exploration. Movement can sometimes emerge spontaneously, and at other times we engage in somatic “experiments” to explore existing patterns or to develop and practice new skills.
In addition, I work with a gentle, non-invasive approach to hands-on work informed by Generative Somatics and Jin Shin Acupressure. Hands-on work can be a direct way to process and repattern places in the body that are holding traumatic experiences or that reinforce ways of be-ing that no longer serve you. When hands-on work is offered, it is always optional, and does not involve massage or the removal of clothing. You are encouraged to think about or modify it, change your mind, ask questions, or stop at any time.
Active engagement at the somatic level, whether through somatic awareness, movement or touch, provides the basis for an integrative approach to healing and transformation—an approach grounded in a belief in our inherent wholeness.
In addition to a somatic orientation, my work is deeply informed by a socio-cultural perspective. Each of us is informed by race, culture, ethnicity, class, gender, sexual orientation, relationship status, ability status, immigration status, languages spoken and unspoken, regional identity, spiritual or religious identity, age, and the list goes on.
My commitment as a therapist is to hold the complexities of the experiences that shape us with care, curiosity and integrity—to know that no matter who we are, our histories (personal, trans-generational, and societal) shape us in ways both known and unknown. As a culturally-aware therapist, I acknowledge and make room for the ways that socio-cultural influences impact your experiences, not only out in the world, but in the therapy room as well.
If this sounds like a fit for you, I invite you to call to schedule a consultation today at (510) 496-6010.
