Body Centered Therapy
Service and Fees
Philosophy and Intention
We plan but life is a series of unexpected events. Some of these events bring great joy and others bring great sorrow. Life transitions and traumas sometimes cause us to lose our way. We live in a busy, demanding, anxiety provoking society that encourages us to be consumers of chronic diversions and indulgences, many which lead us down a path of additional anxiety that results in rumination, worry, poor choices, maladaptive patterns, substance overuse, and various addictions. We seek escape and the possibilities are endless. Our brains did not evolve for this busy world of plenty and sometimes the result is an inability to live our lives fully with meaning and agency. As a society, we are driven by pleasure at the expense of happiness and our equilibrium is shot. The balance is tipped to fuel more anxiety and unhappiness, and in our effort to relieve our discomforts we have only invited more. Our culture rewards striving, but it is often this striving that suffocates the very things we hold dear and renders us stuck, repeating the same patterns that hold us back. It is my goal to support my clients to examine this game, understand the toll it takes, and learn to disengage from it.
The intention of my work is to help people rediscover the happiness that somehow got away from them. Sometimes we need support to do this and to navigate and tolerate the feeling of discomfort that comes with change and growth. It takes pluck to make change, but it is the willingness to learn to adapt that really counts. I teach and support my clients to develop the psychological flexibility, emotional regulation, insight, and honest reflection needed to adapt and build the awareness and skills necessary to move toward living a healthy life of value and meaning.
Body Centered Therapy
My approach to therapy is body-centered. There is a bi-directional pathway of communication called the vagus nerve between the brain and body, and body centered interventions have been proven effective in reducing and even eliminating the symptoms of many mental health conditions. I incorporate diverse interventions from Tai Chi, Qigong, Yoga, Yoga Nidra, Thai massage, and balance to facilitate awareness of the body and the messages that are being sent along this pathway of communication. I have studied and applied these interventions for decades and I find them to be indispensable in my work with clients. I draw from dozens of body-centered interventions, many that I have created myself, and there is something for everyone.
Incorporating body centered interventions in therapy has been a game changer for my clients. My experience has been that people have more effective and faster outcomes in therapy when they begin to explore and understand, through movement, that the mind and body are designed as a whole. I teach my clients to embody their mind as they create change and discover what’s possible. Change comes from awareness more than effort, and because awareness lives in the body, it is critical to actually experience it rather than just talk about it from the confines of a chair. Research has proven that an innate intelligence resides in the body and I teach my clients how to tap into this misunderstood and underutilized resource.
Over the years, I have realized that the medical model of mental health care does not adequately address the complexity and richness of the human experience. Diagnostics contain important information but tend to focus on what is wrong, and I am more interested in learning what is right. To counterbalance the inherent limitations of the medical model, I incorporate the mind-body connection, overall functioning and well-being, and the interconnectedness of the whole person within their environment. The principals that I work with, in addition to traditional psychotherapy, are broad and include philosophy, modern neuroscience, and health education.
Background and Qualifications
When I was young, I was anxious and underprepared for life. I headed off to college rather clueless, and like many students, I was asked to declare a major. My real passion was wanderlust but that wasn’t a degree, so I chose pre-law and within a year it was impossible to ignore my very low enthusiasm and corresponding low grades. I decided that the closest thing to wanderlust was a BA degree in International Studies and I liked it so much that I completed a Master’s degree as well. After finishing my degrees, I spent several years roaming the world, undoubtedly my best education and one that shaped who I am. Among my many adventures, I lived in Peru and traveled throughout Central and South America and eventually made my way to China where I taught English for two years at a university in the southwest. While living in China, I took an interest in contemplative arts and the ancient disciplines that enhance physical, mental, and spiritual awareness, practices that I continue today. It turns out you can learn a great deal from exploring the world.
I returned to the U.S. and tucked into a career in research in behavioral medicine at Stanford University. I still consider it a lucky accident that I was given the opportunity to be a part of the research advancing the understanding of behavioral health, neuroscience and the brain, and the concept of well-being. I was struck by the potential for change and personal growth and it inspired me later to return to school for a Master’s degree in Social Work. I could have chosen a number of graduate paths in mental health, but I chose an MSW because of the significant depth and breadth of training, the focus on strengths and dignity, and the foundational belief that meaningful change is always possible.
I decided to pursue licensure and began my clinical training in refugee torture treatment at Survivors of Torture, International, here in San Diego. This experience was life changing. I received incredible supervision and training in acute stress, trauma, and PTSD, and I learned the human capacity for healing. I taught body-centered techniques in group therapy and I witnessed outcomes more effective than talk therapy alone. I continued my clinical experience in oncology at Sharp HealthCare where I used the healing arts room to support cancer patients in various stages of diagnosis, treatment, survivorship, and end of life. Working in oncology taught me the meaning of a life well lived. Each clinical opportunity brought additional learning and insight, but it was my final clinical work in hospice that enlightened me. I sat with countless patients who shared with me their deep regret that they had run out of time without living the life they had intended. This experience was profound and it continues to inform me and how I practice as a therapist, especially my belief that time is the commodity that matters and what we do with our time is very consequential.
In my private practice, I focus on trauma, PTSD, severe anxiety disorders, OCD, and grief, illness, and loss. I am a life-long learner and I continue to seek advanced training opportunities. It is exciting to see the breakthroughs in the neuroscientific understanding of behavior, the brain, and the power of the mind, but it is always my clients who teach me the most.
Qualifications
1. Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) in good standing with the California Board of Behavioral Sciences. CA License #118086.
2. Advanced clinical training in trauma, PTSD, anxiety disorders, OCD, and grief, illness, and loss.
3. Behavior change counselor and health educator at Stanford University School of Medicine for 15 years.
4. RYT Yoga instructor with specialized training in gentle yoga, adaptive yoga, and Yoga Nidra.
5. Tai Chi and Qi Gong practitioner and instructor for 25 years.
6. Thai massage Level 1 certificate from Slava Kolpakov, LMT, NMT, in Encinitas, California.
My Inspiration and Influence
Steven Porges, PhD – A pioneer in developmental psychophysiology and the creator of the Polyvagal Theory which describes the link between psychological experiences and the physical manifestations in the body. This theory explains how the autonomic nervous system, particularly the vagus nerve, shapes our emotional responses, social behavior, and ability to self-regulate, and how individuals who experience trauma can lose the resilience to return to a state of safety.
Lisa Feldman Barrett, PhD – A revolutionary researcher in clinical psychology and cognitive neuroscience, she rejects the classic view that emotions are universally pre-programed. Her research shows that emotions are unique experiences from our individual environment and our personal history. Her breakthrough research demonstrates that the brain’s most important job is not to think; it is to manage the complex systems of the body.
Ellen Langer, PhD - The first woman to be tenured in psychology at Harvard, she is considered the mother of positive psychology. She is a trailblazer in social psychology and she examines mind-body unity and demonstrates how our thoughts and perspectives have the potential to profoundly shape our well-being. Core to her belief is the idea that we are not bound by our past experience or conventional wisdom. She was one of the first researchers in the United States to understand and implement mindfulness in her research.
Steven Hayes, PhD – The creator of Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (ACT), an evidence-based therapy that promotes building psychological flexibility. The goal of ACT is to create a meaningful life while also accepting the pain that inevitably goes along with it. In this approach, effective action is guided by our deepest values.
Marsha Linehan, PhD – The creator of Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), an evidence-based therapy focused on dialectics, the idea that two seemingly contradictory things can both be true. In DBT, the dialectics primarily concern the balance of acceptance and change. Mindfulness, emotion regulation, distress tolerance, and interpersonal effectiveness are the focus of skill building in an effort to avoid extremes in thinking and behavior.
Daniel Kahneman, PhD – This psychologist was the winner of the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences in 2002 for his work that challenged the rational model of judgement and decision making. Dr. Kahneman described the two systems that that drive how we think, one which is intuitive and emotional and the other which is slower and deliberate. Both systems are valuable but it is important to understand the difference and how we can avoid the pitfalls of employing the wrong system for the circumstance. His groundbreaking work has been applied across numerous fields of study.
Anna Lembke, MD - A Stanford University psychiatrist and medical director of the Stanford Addiction Medicine Clinic, and an expert in behavioral and substance overuse and addiction. Her most recent book, Dopamine Nation, explores how the relentless pursuit of pleasure leads to pain and how finding contentedness requires keeping dopamine in check. She has received numerous awards for her research and clinical innovation in treatment.
Buddhist Psychology – I teach and incorporate the concepts of surrender, equilibrium, restraint, mindfulness, and compassion. These practices support the fundamental purpose of Buddhist psychology which is lasting well-being no matter the changing circumstances of life. Regardless of what you want to work on and which therapeutic interventions I use, I will almost always dip into a concept from Buddhist psychology.
Service and Fees
I have designed my private practice studio to align with my body centered style of practice and my desire to reduce the feeling of a sterile office. I maintain a small case load, and I offer the time and attention needed to help my clients make transformational change. I show up for my clients with authenticity and wholeheartedness and I prefer to see my clients in person because my method requires physical presence. Nonetheless, I understand the need for flexibility and I make virtual visits available for established clients when needed. For a number of reasons, including privacy concerns, I do not bill insurance. My fee is $250 per hour. Please reach out if you would like a free consultation or if you would like to schedule an appointment. Consider investing in yourself, and exploring what you are capable of and how to get there.