Blog Writer | United States Association for Body Psychotherapy

Moving the Self Psychotherapy Center, a thriving insurance-based practice, is seeking Maryland clinically licensed mental health professionals to work as associates (independent contractors) in the centrally located Bowie (Maryland) office. Two part-time positions are currently open, with the opportunity to build to full-time. Psychologists, Psychiatrists, Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioners, Clinical Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists, and Professional Counselors are welcome to apply.

The ideal therapist would be well trained in psychodynamic theories and body oriented psychotherapy. Must be familiar with mindfulness, developmental psychology, trauma work, and family systems. Experience in the Creative Arts Therapies, Multicultural Counseling, and Psychodynamic Brief Therapy a plus. Ideally, the candidate would be able to work with clients across the age span, be available at least twelve clinical hours per week, on multiple afternoons and some evenings (weekend availability a plus). The most critical skills will be an interpersonal approach to therapy, warmth, and the ability to establish and maintain a therapeutic alliance, a sense of humor imbued with kindness and respect, the ability to maintain healthy and firm boundaries, as well as the effective use of self. The ideal candidate would also demonstrate strong organizational and professional skills, electronic health records management proficiency, and the ability to work independently within the context of a group practice.

Moving the Self Psychotherapy Center is a growing multi-disciplinary practice offering individual, couples, family, and group therapy working with children, adolescents, and adults.

See our website at www.movingtheself.org

Inquiries and applications are welcome.

Email resume with a statement of interest to:

Patrizia Pallaro at

somatikapp@gmail.com

Dear Friends & Colleagues,

I’d like to share an upcoming workshop I will be teaching this August, sponsored by CMER (Center for Movement Education & Research). This two-day immersion will explore the healing power of movement as active imagination.

This course is open to clinicians, and teachers and practitioners of body-orientated healing work. It is also designed as a Dance/Movement Therapy Approaches course for students who are preparing for Alternate Route certification.

I hope you’ll consider joining us and please feel free to share this information with others.

With best wishes as summer comes into full bloom.

Warmly,
Tina

August 22, 2015 – August 23, 2015
Wildcat Studio, Berkeley, California

Sponsored by the Center for Movement Education and Research’s (CMER) Alternative Route Training in Dance/Movement Therapy

Authentic Movement is a depth-oriented therapeutic approach, bridging body and psyche through natural movement, augmented by drawing and writing. Beginning with the contributions of Mary Whitehouse, we will engage Jungian concepts and their evolution into Authentic Movement, and explore more recent developments in the practice related to group and individual therapy.

This course is open to practicing professionals and is also designed as a Dance/Movement Therapy course for students who are preparing for Alternate Route certification, meeting 15 hours (one credit) of the Theories and Methods requirements for students in pursuit of Alternate Route Training with the goal of becoming a registered Dance/Movement therapist (R-DMT). This course has been approved by the American Dance Therapy Association to meet requirements for the Alternate Route R-DMT credential.

This course also meets the qualifications for 15 hours of continuing education credit for MFTs, LCSWs & LPCCs as required by the California Board of Behavioral Sciences.

Sessions will include structured warm ups and ‘starting points’ that engage embodied clinical themes, as well as questions such as:

What is active imagination, and how does it facilitate transformation?
How does moving & witnessing practice enhance healing and development?
How do we become more sensitive to the movement expression of the client’s body and of our own embodied response?
What supports the integration of sensing, emotion, movement, images, words, and symbolic expression within the healing relationship, touching on brain function?
How might you integrate Authentic Movement and structured, creative movement explorations in your therapy practice?
In what ways can we develop leadership skills in creating a safe container, initiating structured warm ups, discerning effective “starting points”, and engaging in sensory-grounded reflection on the process?
What is the efficacy of Authentic Movement practice for different clinical populations, in multicultural settings, and in the larger global community?

This course will reflect on the history of Authentic Movement, including Jungian theory, elements from neuroscience, discussion of the readings, and clinical applications of Authentic Movement in dance/movement therapy. In the process we will address therapeutic elements such as providing a safe container, identifying projections, establishing appropriate interpersonal boundaries, listening and observational skills, empathy, and the somatic underpinnings of the transference-countertransference relationship.

Through the practice participants can continue to develop their ability to be present, with oneself and with another, in a more vital, increasingly conscious relationship, inviting a level of perception of self and other that can evoke deep respect and empathy.

To Register:

To register for this workshop visit CMER’s enrollment page

Where: Mendocino, California • August 8 + 9, 2015

Awaken your Body-Dream-Process and be guided by an innate higher intelligence.

Neurobiology shows us, that we access more of our neuronal network and brain capacity when we dream – narrowing our experience to the paradigm that we call our Self and our beliefs when we are awake. As we go back to engage with our dreams we can expand this identification and unlock our tremendous creative potential.

Dreams embrace different realities simultaneously, offering information about our health, our intra-psychic reality, our personality, as well as questions of relationships. Dreams address our souls journey, our collective consciousness and open us to transpersonal realms.

As a Core Evolution Somatic Therapist and trainer Cornelia Gerken is uniquely skilled to work with what lies below the surface of our awareness. Our bodies, like our dreams, are portals to our unconscious. Both speak a different language, one is symbolic, the other kinesthetic and felt. In this process we do not interpret dream symbols but come to understand the dream-messages through an embodied experience.

The Body-Dream-Process™ expands dream-work by exploring through our bodies and somatic awareness, personalized movement, gestures and mindfulness and light trance. It is a powerful and integrative approach and connected to our personal and collective evolution.

Cornelia offers tools that are easy to learn to apply, so you can unlock the gift a dream offers you for a lifetime.

Venue: Mendocino, California

Times: Saturday, August 8; 10 am – 1 pm and 3 – 6 pm
Sunday, August 9; 10 am – 4:30 pm

Price: US $220.

For registration please contact: corneliagerken (at) gmail.com

Holmes, J. (2014). The Therapeutic Imagination: Using Literature to Deepen Psychodynamic Understanding and Enhance Empathy.
Reviewed by: Michael Fiorini, New York University

If one were to summarize the perspective extolled within The Therapeutic Imagination, it would inarguably be that imagination is the key to effective psychotherapy. Imagination, here, is of the sort that is applied to empathetic definition, understanding, and potential conception of the thoughts and feelings of others. The book further explores the idea that those well versed in different forms of literature are resultantly gifted with a broad emotional and psychological framework they can use to understand the existential experiences of clients. Taking these principles into constant consideration, different forms of literature and select authors are looked at and explained as illustrative of certain central principles in therapy and psychological expression. Functioning as a sort of expansive thought experiment, the book attempts to define the necessary and essential aspects of therapy and explain them through literature. Concurrently, it argues that the ability to perceive fully the psychological and emotional ramifications of certain mental illnesses and therapy, one needs to be aware of outside conceptions. Throughout, the book points to understanding the thoughts and feelings of authors and poets as an avenue furthering more empathic clinical work.

Well-sourced and highly cognizant of the historical and contemporary foundations of psychiatry and psychotherapy, The Therapeutic Imagination is as much a theoretical work in its own right as it is a consolidation of what is already known about the therapeutic process. It can then be seen as a guide trying to reframe existing knowledge through relating necessary factors in therapy work with emotional and existential narratives derived from poetry and fiction. The process for explanation the book uses is broken into three parts. The first concerns the imagination of therapists, the ability for them to understand and express their own thoughts and feelings internally. The second is concerned with narrative style and how it plays a role in conveying the transformational and storytelling aspects of psychotherapy. The third part heavily draws upon literary accounts as illustrations of numerous psychiatric conditions. With the use of poetic examples, the final part shows the failure of psychiatry to serve its patients without the incorporation of psychodynamic creativity and imagination.

The Therapeutic Imagination, as a result of its focusing on multifaceted internal and intangible aspects of the psychotherapeutic process, might best serve as supplemental reading for individuals first learning how to conduct effective therapy. There is a definite slant towards student readers here, although the book by no means limits itself to that audience narratively or in attention to detail. Professional readership will also find the book useful for its captivation of the parts of therapy inexpressible outside of the artistic viewpoint. In exploring the imaginative capacity needed for the therapist to deepen their understanding and work with clients, those therapists experiencing difficulty in their work might find new meaning behind it. Because it sometimes reads like a textbook (speaking the author’s background in writing textbooks for psychotherapy), there is an intermittent dryness to some parts of this narrative, however this can be forgiven as these parts add greater theoretical and scientific background to the author’s discussion. While the certainty with which some of the concepts are discussed might be off-putting for those not already artistically inclined, the book nonetheless brings forth a wealth of interesting ideas that many will find highly intellectually stimulating.

Jeremy Holmes has worked for 35 years as a consultant psychiatrist and medical psychotherapist in the National Health Service (NHS). Currently, he is a visiting professor at the University of Exeter in the United Kingdom, conducting lectures nationally and internationally. An avid writer, his most recent works include The Oxford Textbook of Psychotherapy, Storr’s The Art Of Psychotherapy, and Exploring In Insecurity: Towards an Attachment-Informed Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy.

Holmes, J. (2014). The Therapeutic Imagination: Using Literature to Deepen Psychodynamic Understanding and Enhance Empathy. New York, NY: Routledge.
ISBN: 978-0-415-81957-2.
Hardcover. 200 pages. Includes index and references.

Here is a little taste of what I teach at Seattle School of Body-Psychotherapy. A great benefit of living in this time is that we have access to practices from so many different orientations. I love being able to integrate my work and studies from many different areas of my life into the curriculum here. These practices bring us into deeper contact with our real Self and the creative Life Force which can never die, always seeks expression, and awakens us to walk with awareness that everything is Alive!

Thank you for listening, SSBP is excited to be collecting registrations for our new class that begins in October.

This is to let you know about the new conversation in the “Somatic Perspectives on Psychotherapy” series. This month, it is with Marti Glenn.

The “Somatic Perspectives” series is edited by Serge Prengel, LMHC. Every other month, there is a new conversation. Each conversation lasts approximately a half hour. You can listen to it on the website, or download it as an MP3 audio file. You can also read it as a PDF transcript (available on the same page).

Marti Glenn, PhD, Co-Director, the STAR Foundation, offering intensive retreats for healing early trauma. She is founding President of Santa Barbara Graduate Institute with graduate degrees in somatic psychology, prenatal-perinatal psychology and clinical psychology. A pioneering psychotherapist and trainer for three decades, she was also professor of clinical psychology, integrating body psychotherapy with affective neuroscience, attachment, and trauma. Dr. Glenn serves on several non-profit boards and has chaired numerous professional conferences, including APPPAH and Neurons to Neighborhoods: Preventing and Healing Trauma. She co-produced the broadcast quality documentary, Trauma, Brain, and Relationship and has appeared in such documentary films as What Babies Want; What Babies Know; Reducing Infant Mortality and Improving the Health of Babies. She continues to train mental health professionals with a focus on relationship and the experienced body, weaving neuroscience, polyvagal theory, epigenetics, trauma and attachment into clinical practices. She is a frequent speaker at conferences world-wide.

See: http://somaticperspectives.com/2015/07/glenn/

Hanson, R. (2011). Just One Thing: Developing a Buddha Brain One Simple Practice at a Time.
Reviewed by: Michael Fiorini, New York University

Just One Thing: Developing a Buddha Brain One Simple Practice at a Time is a step by step guide aimed towards improving psychological well being in all aspects of personal, social, and emotional life. The book incorporates a mildly Buddhist-influenced perspective as it guides readers through a series of techniques aimed at improving the quality of human experience. Mindfulness is central to the narrative throughout, and steps are broken down so that the book, which is primarily concerned with self-help, can be as useful and accessible as possible. No single part or step is necessary here, either. The book stresses that one need not bog themselves down in the semantics and particularities of the provided guidelines and instructions if they feel there is a better means of achieving the book’s goals. There is also an intermittent psychological and neuroscientific presence and occasional explanation for the mindfulness process taught. Engaging the self to positively impact neuroplasticity through repetition and practice is the end goal, and through following the book, a diverse audience might benefit from its techniques and conceptual approach.

The driving point in Just One Thing is that small changes in daily routine can have a large positive impact on stress, health, and overall emotional life. In its own words, the book aims to help you “be good to yourself, enjoy life as it is, build on your strengths, be more effective at home and work, and make peace with your emotions.” The way this is achieved is through the practice of the book’s series of fifty-two mindfulness exercises. Separated into five parts, the sections cover being good to yourself, enjoying life, building upon strengths, engaging the world, and being at peace, respectively. The design of the book is such that the basic exercises build upon one another so that when read in order readers become more engaged in their emotional awareness. The model followed here is aimed towards expanding conscious awareness and bears some degree of similarity to cognitive behavioral therapy. Since the narrative and presentation styles are designed like a self-help book with less overt psychological or scientific explanations, the book is accessible to a diverse crop of readership. Professionals will find the book especially useful for its different methods for increasing mindfulness that might help them direct their own instructions during therapy with clients. The lessons included are crucial to improving the human experience on a basic level while also avoiding being too dry or heavy handed in new-age thinking. This might help some readers to reinvigorate their therapeutic practice and reconsolidate goals. That there is a definite neuroscientific influence present in the book furthers its broad clinical efficacy.

A self-help book that combines the underlying principles of CBT with a new-age influenced outlook on mindfulness, Just One Thing is promising in its potential application. While at times quite simple, it is the book’s boiled down elements and easy to read style that make it most effective. Not meant to be followed strictly and not expecting the kind of dedicated consistency other contemporaries demand, it is made for the average reader to pick up and use as needed. Not dedicating more than a few pages per lesson makes this style maintain its point. Those who already have a background in mindfulness training will find this book helpful in honing goals and outcome expectancies, and those who do not will benefit from the gradual building process that it presents. Readers open to doing so will find that, even after a short read, they will be shown useful and practical techniques for the present moment.

Rick Hanson, PhD, is a neuropsychologist and Affiliate of the of the Greater Good Science Center at the University of California. He has been invited to speak at numerous universities, including Oxford, Harvard, and Stanford. He is also the author of Buddha’s Brain.

Hanson, R. (2011). Just One Thing: Developing a Buddha Brain One Simple Practice at a Time.
Oakland, CA: New Harbinger.
ISBN: 978-1-60882-031-3.
Paperback. 224 pages. Includes references.

Dear Clinical Colleagues,

Thank you for considering this request to participate in a clinical research survey that explores the use of body-based somatic awareness, and somatic intervention techniques by licensed clinicians (clinical social workers, psychologists, psychiatrists, counselors) in the treatment of patients/clients who suffer from trauma-related conditions. This research is being conducted in partial fulfillment for my doctorate degree at Smith College School For Social Work.

Anecdotal evidence suggests that some clinicians are adapting, and utilizing body-based somatic awareness and somatic interventions in their treatment with individuals diagnosed with PTSD, and/or other forms of traumatic stress.

Please collaborate with other colleagues to contribute your clinical knowledge and experience by taking part in this important research. As a fellow clinician, I know you are likely very busy. This survey is brief (10-15 minutes), and your clinical experience is vital to this research.

The power of relationships cannot be underestimated, and I believe the success of this research depends on asking for your help to reach as many clinicians using somatic interventions as possible. Please forward this email/survey invitation to your colleagues. This survey is being distributed nationally and internationally.

http://Clinician_Use_Of_Somatic_Interventions_Survey_MPCurry.formstack.com/forms/mpcurry_doctoral_survey

With gratitude,

Mary Curry, LCSW, Doctoral Candidate

How useful is the 50th anniversary edition of The Phenomenology of Dance to USABP members?

This book is clearly not a book about therapy, body-oriented or otherwise. It may nevertheless be of considerable interest to dance therapists as well as body-oriented therapists in general by providing an experience-based analysis of movement and dance, and hence thought-provoking reflections on movement and dance. The book’s finely detailed descriptive analysis of movement is complementary to the graphic analysis of movement that constitutes Labananalysis. In addition to its finely detailed descriptive analysis of movement, the book concerns itself with dynamics, rhythm, and expression, each in separate chapters, and elaborates in experiential ways Susanne Langer’s philosophy of art as a matter of “form symbolizing feeling.” In particular, though Sheets-Johnstone diverges methodologically from Langer’s analytical approach, following instead the rigorous methodology of phenomenology, The Phenomenology of Dance prospers greatly from her insights into how the qualitative dynamics of movement in dance come to symbolize forms of human feeling.

The 50th anniversary edition also includes a lengthy new preface that addresses what Sheets-Johnstone sees as present-day issues in research studies and writings on movement and dance, most notably but not exclusively, the lack of recognition of kinesthesia as a sense modality, and with it, a lack of attention to the qualitative realities of movement. Sheets-Johnstone furthermore shows the value of dance to be dance in and of itself. She thus shows that dance is not a means to lofty goals of education, but that an education in dance–and hence the study of movement–is of prime value in and of itself.

In her first life, Maxine Sheets-Johnstone was a dancer/choreographer, professor of dance/dance scholar. That life has continued to inform her life as a philosopher and interdisciplinary scholar in near 80 articles in humanities, art, and science journals, and in nine books, all of which attest in one way and another to a grounding in the tactile-kinesthetic body. She has several articles in psychotherapy journals, among which Body, Movement and Dance Psychotherapy, American Journal of Dance Therapy, Psychotherapy and Politics International, and Philoctetes (the latter a journal co-sponsored by the New York Psychoanalytic Institute), as well as articles on movement and dance and on animation in journals such as Phenomenology and the Cognitive Sciences and Continental Philosophy Review.

She has given guest lectures and keynotes in the states and abroad and is scheduled in 2016 as a guest speaker at the International Human Science Research Conference in Ottawa, the European Association Dance Movement Therapy Conference in Milan, and the European Association of Body Psychotherapists Conference in Greece. She was awarded a Distinguished Fellowship at the Institute of Advanced Study at Durham University in the UK in the Spring of 2007 for her research on xenophobia, an Alumni Achievement Award by the School of Education, University of Wisconsin in 2011, and was honored with a Scholar’s Session at the Society for Phenomenology and Existential Philosophy Conference in 2012. She has an ongoing Courtesy Professor appointment in the Department of Philosophy at the University of Oregon.

The Phenomenology of Dance International Flyer

See also: Maxine Sheets-Johnstone’s interview for SomaticPerspectives.com:

http://somaticperspectives.com/2010/05/sheets-johnstone/

The USABP interns do a miraculous job supporting the International Body Psychotherapy Journal and lending a hand to Somatic Psychotherapy Today. One role they assume, under the guidance of Jacqueline Carleton, PhD, is to read and review genre related to our field for the Resources column in SPT. My experience working with the USABP interns the past 5 years has been one of mutual respect and a willingness to learn. And, they are voracious readers who write in-depth reviews with an academic slant as well as personal reflection and experience.

They turned in so many stellar reviews for 2015 releases that SPT created a Special Summer Book Review issue to highlight their extensive work and share these books with our readers. The reviews offer insight into the content, structure, format and worth of these books—why you might be interested in reading them, what you might learn by doing so, and is it worth your time and money to buy the book.

We offer this special review to members of the USABP, the EABP, and the SPT Community as a thank you for your continued support, as a time saver, and as some fun beach reading. What book will you pick up next?

I’m reading Hakomi Mindfulness_Centered Somatic Psychotherapy: A Comprehensive Guide to Theory and Practice, edited by Halko Weiss, Greg Johanson and Lorena Monda. Yep, I have a review by a USABP intern and I want to read the book and interview the authors to share their reflections on writing this book.

Stay tuned for more in the fall

Nancy

Hanson, R. (2009). Buddha’s Brain: The practical neuroscience of happiness, love, and wisdom.
Reviewed by: Anny Reyes, New York University

Neuroscience is being widely used to explain concepts and ideas that were once separated from science, such as religion, spirituality, and contemplative practices. Experts in these fields are utilizing basic neuroscience such as neuroanatomy, neurophysiology, and evolutionary biology to explain concepts and applications to their areas of expertise. Understanding our mind, how it functions, and how we can gain control over it has been one of the world’s most preeminent challenges. Some of the greatest philosophers, Descartes, Aristotle, and Locke, dedicated their lives to understanding the mystery of the mind and its relationship with the 3-pound organ that controls every mechanism in our body, the brain.

In the introduction Hanson outlines the format of the book, its purpose, and how it could be put into practice. He explains how neuroscience research supports the idea that you could use your mind to change your brain and ultimately change your life. The book is then divided into four parts: the causes of suffering, happiness, love, and wisdom, which are the central themes of Hanson’s Buddhist beliefs and framework. The first part of the book provides a comprehensive background on basic brain anatomy, brain mechanisms, and how our brains give rise to emotions. Hanson also provides evolutionary explanations for emotions and our reactions to everyday situations and to life’s more traumatic experiences. The research was relevant and the explanations as to the causes of suffering were very straightforward.

However, the later chapters follow a less evidence-based framework. This is an area where experts in a field outside neuroscience must be cautious not to make conclusions based on assumptions or personal opinions. Neuroscience follows an empirical framework and anything that’s not scientifically proven is not taken at face value, therefore when using neuroscience research to explain certain concepts, only evidence-based explanations should be provided. Overall the book is moderately well researched, some chapters more than others. Despite the lack of relevant research in certain parts of the book, Hanson provides a great overview of the different concepts and practices related to the three themes of the book, happiness, love, and wisdom.

Hanson, R. (2009). Buddha’s Brain: The practical neuroscience of happiness, love, and wisdom. ISBN: 978-1-57224-695-9.
Paperback. 251 pages.
Contains references, forward, and preface.

Integral Breath Therapy is a revolutionary therapy that uses the breath to explore, heal and integrate the multidimensional aspects of the human psyche. Based on ancient Eastern disciplines as well as modern Western methods, this holistic modality uses breathing techniques to clear out physical, mental and emotional blocks or stresses.

Integral Breath Therapy is a body-mind modality. With this approach we bridge the gap between thoughts and feelings, between the body and the mind. By going underneath the “story” or repetitive dramas in life, belief systems are revealed along with the reason for their existence. The awareness of these patterns and how they affect one’s life is crucial to creating a future that is different from the past.

Bridging the Gap Between Body & Mind

Become a certified Level 1 Integral Breath Therapy Facilitator

Learn to use the power of trance state to accelerate your clients’ personal growth

Experience your own deep healing & awakening

Rest and rejuvenate in 550 acres of beautiful forest

The Integral Breath Therapy facilitator training is a six day focused program
designed for professionals looking for personal as well as professional
transformation. This training is designed to teach the therapeutic skills
necessary to integrate Integral Breath Therapy into your existing modality.

About the Training
6 Day Certification for Therapists, Counselors, Social Workers, Nurses,
Hospice Workers, Yoga Instructors, Educators, and Coaches

Investment: $1095
$895 if registered by 9/8
Retreat fees: $425-$725
Trainers
Holmes Conference Center
Agape Building, Holmes, NY

This training will take place at the Holmes Conference Center in the beautiful glass
room in Agape Center. Besides adding new skills to your professional repertoire, this
training is designed to facilitate your own deep personal healing and growth work. The
natural setting of Holmes, with forests, lakes, cliffs, and peaceful walks in the woods,
is the perfect place for your own rejuvenation.

You will learn:

About the breath and its relationship to life, death, and disease
The history of Breath Therapy and its contemporary applications
About Breath Therapy as physical, psychological, and emotional process
To identify and use “breathing patterns” as a diagnostic tool
About the Mind-Body Connection to health and healing
To appropriately facilitate physical and emotional release
The basics of pre- and perinatal psychology to heal birth Issues
The importance of Emotional Anatomy and emotional development
To reprogram beliefs through the Bio-Computer
The Trauma vs. Shock model for healing dissociation
To identify and release chronic holding patterns and body armor
To incorporate imagery and Inner Child work
To create space and support for the natural healing process
And much more

MORE INFORMATION – CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FULL FLYER DETAILS

Goldstein, A. (2011). When Sex Hurts: A Woman’s Guide to Banishing Sexual Pain.
Reviewed by: Michael Fiorini, New York University

When Sex Hurts: A Woman’s Guide to Banishing Sexual Pain is a medically informed self-help book directed at women who suffer severe and long term pain during sex, as well as general genital pain during contact with afflicted areas. Drawing from both a medical and psychological framework, the book breaks down the many reasons a person might be experiencing such pain. It makes clear that pain during sex is exceedingly common and often not well-understood or diagnosed, even by professionals. It also emphasizes that sex does not need to be painful, which is on its own a powerful notion for those who have always experienced such symptoms. Especially of note here is that the book is designed for women without any medical or psychological background, and a significant portion of what is covered is aimed at teaching, alleviating fears and insecurities, and helping readers develop comfort with their bodies. Primarily focusing on the medical and physical spectrum of the various potential and common causes of pain, the psychological influence of trauma, insecurity, intentions, communication, and comfort with sexual partners are present here but are not as emphasized narratively. For those therapists who wish to expand their own knowledge of the phenomenon, the book will bring them up to speed on the newest medical and psychological considerations in diagnosis and treatment.

When Sex Hurts is structured in three parts, essential background information, the root of the problem, and when pain is gone, each reflecting the healing process as part of a continuum. Readers first get an overview of the problem, the commonality of it, what forms it might take, and reasons it might be there. The book then moves on to discuss pain more generally and how to think about it medically and personally. The third chapter covers how best to address pain and symptoms you may have with your doctor, what terminology you should know, and explains that seeing different doctors might be necessary if what’s occurring isn’t being addressed effectively. The following chapter discusses how to contain damage to your relationship, with different avenues of communication and understanding discussed, as well as how to maintain a healthy romance in spite of pain. The next several chapters discuss the various specific causes of sexual pain, which comprises the majority of the book’s contents. Disorders, infections, the effects of childbirth, pelvic and nerve pain, and psychological influences among other things are covered here. It is all very detail-oriented in a way that is easy to digest for average readers. The final part of the book discusses how to pick up the pieces of your life once the pain is alleviated, and deals largely with interpersonal relationships, prognoses, and how to adjust into a truly fulfilling sex life.

Because it is such a pervasive factor in the lives of many women, it is highly likely that having an understanding of the problem of sexual pain will be useful for therapists and their clients. Because this is an issue that might come up in therapy, the problem warrants greater understanding so that informed guidance can be given. The portion of the book dedicated to the potential psychological roots of sexual pain are, admittedly, lacking in comparison to the far more expansive sections on medical and biological problems. In part, this is due to the authors being medical doctors, and also due to sexual pain having been inappropriately considered a primarily psychological problem for the last several decades. This is something the authors make clear does more harm than good and allows avoidance of effective steps towards symptom improvement. Ultimately, the book is significant because of the good that it can do for those women who experience this kind of pain and are not getting informed or proper advice on how to think about and address it. What that might entail informatively for professionals depends on their practice, and individual therapeutic considerations.

Andrew Golstein, MD, is the president of the International Society for Study of Women’s Sexual Health. Caroline Pukall, PhD., is a leading researcher of female sexual pain and dysfunction, and works as an associate professor at Queen’s University. Irwin Goldstein, MD, has performed patient care and research for sexual dysfunction for thirty years. All three also co-authored the influential textbook Female Sexual Pain Disorders, considered groundbreaking work on the topic.

Goldstein, A. (2011). When Sex Hurts: A Woman’s Guide to Banishing Sexual Pain. Cambridge, MA: Da Capo Press.
ISBN: 978-0-7382-1398-9.
Paperback. 250 pages. Includes glossary, notes, index, and references.

During a recent evening class at Seattle School of Body-Psychotherpy we were experiencing a little creative relief from the more difficult Core Energetics curriculum we were learning during the day. We were exploring the healing potential of the Imaginal Realm through Dream Theater. One of the students volunteered her puzzling dream of teaching yoga in the military where her students were dressed in army uniforms and donning military behavior. Through a dramatic re-enactment of the dream, a whole lot of laughter, and some feedback from the players, we were all able to experience the magic of tapping into larger forces of healing potential all around us.

The last day of the week another student brought our yoga teacher an extraordinary gift. More than 6 months previously he had seen a crowd funding campaign quite out of the range of his normal interests that he ended up contributing to. Although he had no idea what he would do with it when he received it, for many months he wondered when he would finally get the merchandise that he paid for in supporting the new company. When our yoga teacher chose to work on this particular dream in class he had a hunch it would be coming soon and sure enough, when he got home that night there was a package waiting for him.

The student had invested in these wonderful, joyful and kind of ridiculous “Yoga Joe’s”. Yep, you read it right! On the last day of class he gave our yoga teacher a quirky gift that reinforced the concept I was teaching of the Golden Thread, the “attentive noticing of the Soul” where we seek to follow the inspirational patterns that run through our lives and beckon us to live our truest self.

I think we all found this to be a perfect synchronicity, an inspiring and playful nod from the universe for our time together!

Aylee Welch, LICSW

(206) 910-9766

www.bodypsychotherapy.us

www.bodypsychotherapyschool.com

Lanius, U. F., Paulsen, S. L., & Corrigan, F.M. (2014). Neurobiology and Treatment of Traumatic Dissociation: Toward and Embodied Self.
Reviewed by: Anny Reyes, New York University

One can agree that research findings on the neurobiological underpinnings of psychopathology could help aid in forming successful interventions and treatments. However, there is a gap between science and practice. It is difficult to find a comprehensive integration of both research and clinical interventions in many psychopathological conditions such as traumatic stress syndromes and dissociation disorders. Dissociation is often explained in a dichotomous fashion, either in a psychoanalytic context or purely neurobiological, with no implications of a common ground. Neurobiology and Treatment of Traumatic Dissociation provides 22 chapters of integrative research and clinical applications written by various experts in the fields of affective and cognitive neuroscience, animal research, psychology, and psychiatry, among others.

The text is divided into two parts: the first part is focused on the neurobiology of dissociation and the second is dedicated to treatment and interventions. The first part of the book is aimed at providing the neurobiological framework behind traumatic dissociation that informs clinical practice and treatment. One of the main goals of the authors is to provide well-grounded research that could further advance the understanding of traumatic dissociation and create the missing dialogue between researchers and clinicians. The material in the first part of the book is very dense in neurobiology, neuroscience, and neuroendocrine terminology, which could present an obstacle for clinicians who do not have any neuroscience background. However, the authors provide explanations and definitions of many of the general concepts explored and they make occasional references to clinical terminology and treatment. It is noteworthy that the book is targeted at clinicians and researchers who are looking to further expand their expertise in traumatic dissociation.

The second part of the book is focused on treatment and integrating the research previously discussed. For each concept explored several options for treatment and intervention are provided, along with case examples and vignettes. The authors focus on the theoretical background of the treatments and not on step-by-step guidelines. Therefore, further reading is recommended if a clinician is interested in incorporating these interventions into their clinical practice. The editors did an exceptional job at putting together a comprehensive source of emerging research in the neurobiology of traumatic dissociation and stress.

Lanius, U. F., Paulsen, S. L., & Corrigan, F.M. (2014). Neurobiology and Treatment of Traumatic Dissociation: Toward and Embodied Self.
ISBN: 978-0-8261-0631-5.
Paperback. 510 pages. Includes: Index. Keywords: traumatic dissociation, neurobiology, integrative research.

See the new Hakomi book from W.W Norton:

Hakomi Mindfulness-Centered Psychotherapy; A Comprehensive Guide to Theory and Practice
Edited by Halko Weiss, Greg Johanson, and Lorena Monda, with chapters by Ron Kurtz and the Hakomi faculty

The authoritative text on Hakomi methods, theory, and practice.

Hakomi is an integrative method that combines Western psychology and body-centered techniques with mindfulness principles from Eastern psychology. This book, written and edited by members of the Hakomi Institute― the world’s leading professional training program for Hakomi practitioners―and by practitioners and teachers from across the globe, introduces all the processes and practices that therapists need in order to begin to use this method with clients. The authors detail Hakomi’s unique integration of body psychotherapy, mindfulness, and the Eastern philosophical principle of non-violence, grounding leading-edge therapeutic technique in an attentiveness to the whole person and their capacity for transformation.

W.W. Norton publishers
http://books.wwnorton.com/books/detail.aspx?id=4294987203
Or call 800-233-4830 ext. 314.

Barnes and Noble:
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/hakomi-mindfulness-centered-somatic-psychotherapy-halko-weiss/1120390652?ean=9780393710724

Amazon web link:
http://www.amazon.com/Hakomi-Mindfulness-Centered-Somatic-Psychotherapy-Comprehensive/dp/0393710726/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1432259500&sr=8-1

Canada: Amazon.ca:
http://www.amazon.ca/Hakomi-Mindfulness-Centered-Somatic-Psychotherapy/dp/0393710726/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1432695203&sr=8-1&keywords=hakomi

Malkina-Pykh, I. G. (2015). Effectiveness of rhythmic movement therapy: Case study of subjective well-being. Body, Movement and Dance in Psychotherapy, 10(2), 106-120.

The following study was to assess the effectiveness of Rhythmic Movement Therapy (RMT) in improving Subjective Well-Being (SWB) in a non-clinical population. Subjective Well-Being is defined as a person’s declared well-being based on their perceived satisfaction with life or happiness. According to the literature review, body-oriented interventions are still in the early stages for demonstrating increases in SWB. RMT is defined as a psychological intervention that is rooted in body-oriented psychotherapy, dance movement psychotherapy, and rhythmic gymnastics. In the research design, subjects were divided into a low to medium SWB level group and a high SWB level group. Group 1 was randomly assigned to 10 RMT groups and 5 control groups. The RMT intervention consisted of 16 once-a-week sessions of 45-50 minutes. Several questionnaires were collected from 273 subjects. The questionnaires that were used to assess SWB were: the Integral Index of Social Well-Being (IISW), Personal Orientation Inventory, the General Locus of Control Scale of the Locus of Control Inventory (LOC), the Neuroticism Scale from the Eysenck Personality Inventory, the Toronto Alexithymia Scale, the Body Image Test, the Personal Perfectionism Scale (PPS), the Sociotropy Scale of the Personal Style Inventory, and the Symbol Personality Test. Results indicated improvement in SWB level in subjects from the RMT group compared to the subjects of the control groups.

What I liked about the study is that based on all of the personality variables used to measure SWB, there were significant associations between SWB and neuroticism, high self-directedness, external locus of control, low levels of alexithymia, low body image dissatisfaction, low sociotropy and low perfectionism. In this case, I felt the researcher operationalized the concept of SWB quite well. However, I thought that it would have been useful to provide test-retest reliability and alpha coefficients for all tests used in the study in order for readers to understand why such instruments were selected. I also appreciated that the researcher demonstrated all of the statistical analyses performed on the data and that the data demonstrated improvements that were statistically significant between all variables. The researcher mentioned that there were some limitations to the study such as providing only a partial explanation for the influence of personality on SWB; that the statistics used do not prove causality; that the IISW test did not include a family domain which SWB studies argue is one of the most important domains; the study sample is small; and that the effectiveness of RMT is not compared to other methods of treatment.

What is significant about this study for the field of body psychotherapy is that body-oriented therapy, such as RMT, can positively influence one’s level of happiness in life and that this is now being demonstrated by research. I appreciate that the author mentions not only do such interventions increase SWB at individual levels, but such interventions stimulate the development of increasing SWB at public policy levels. I feel that our field needs more studies that show the effectiveness of body-oriented therapies and as the author recommends, that such interventions be compared to other therapies and that longer studies with follow-ups are needed to better assess the effectiveness of treatments. I truly believe that body-oriented therapy is on its way to becoming the standard of doing therapy where the body is seen as a necessary component to treatment for psychological recovery and well-being. As Jack Lee Rosenberg stated years ago, it will one day be “unethical to do therapy without a somatic perspective” (as cited in Caldwell, 1997, p. 6).

Caldwell, C. (1997). Getting in touch: The guide to new body-centered therapies. Wheaton, IL: Quest Books.

Sharon Stopforth, MSW, RSW has been a counselor for 15 years specializing in anxiety, depression, addiction, abuse and trauma. Sharon is a Certified Integrative Body Psychotherapy practitioner and is currently working on her Ph.D. to further research in the field of body psychotherapy.

Stepping Out of Your Comfort Zone and Other Acts of Courage

August 30–September 4, 2015 @ Kripalu

Healing, growth, and personal empowerment require a willingness to engage the unknown and go to your edge. This workshop is an invitation to take risks, dig deeper, challenge misconceptions, move energy, express feelings, reveal truth, and live more courageously.

Each of us developed physical and psychological adaptations that allowed us to navigate childhood, but which now block energy and keep us from being our real selves. Explore how those adaptations keep you stuck in predictable ways of thinking, feeling, and acting. Strengthen your capacity to feel more alive, using Core Energetics body-centered techniques, including

Expressive movement
Body reading
Breathing, grounding, dyad, and group work.

This program creates a safe container in which to express a full range of feelings, open your heart, and experience deeper connections to yourself and others.

Get Flyer

More Details on Kripalu site: http://kripalu.org/program/view/OCZ-151/stepping_out_of_your_comfort_zone_and_other_acts_of

Gokhale, E. (2008). 8 Steps To A Pain-Free Back: Remember When It Didn’t hurt.
Reviewed by: Michael Fiorini, New York University

At first glance, 8 Steps to a Pain-Free Back would appear to be a fairly straightforward book about methods for back correction. To think this would not be entirely incorrect, as the bulk of the book’s contents and the point behind its principles revolve around posture correction to alleviate back pain. Where the book diverges considerably from contemporary guides is in explaining the origins of and corrections for back pain. The book is written by Esther Gokhale, an anthropologist with a background in integrative therapy. The perspective she undertakes came after studying the postures and physically involved routines of various cultures around the world. Her point in the book is that the rampant chronic back pain observed in western cultures and modern societies stems from our poor posture, and that our change in posture is related to specific sociocultural practices. It should be noted that the book is exclusively interested in explaining this phenomenon in biological, physical, and anthropologic terms. She observes that among certain cultures with seemingly more physically intense daily routines, various postures play a role in avoiding spinal strain. The book operates as a graphically detailed guide to adjusting posture and movement to improve or eliminate back pain, taking techniques from around the world in tandem with one another to accomplish this.

Because the central focus of the book is to improve back pain, each of the eight steps mentioned in its title explain through written guides and visual aids how to change posture and body orientation. Before this, the book shows how notions of proper posture in western society are incorrect and what biological ramifications our existing conceptions have on spinal and physical health. It then goes on to explain the immediate benefits of change for the body, and details how to approach the forthcoming lessons. The lessons themselves are organized by forms of posture change followed by the scenarios readers would practice them in. It starts with stretch-sitting, then stretch-lying on your back, stack-sitting, stretch-lying on your side, using your inner corset, tall-standing, hip-hinging, and glide-walking. It also includes at the end some optional exercises, diagrams of basic human anatomy, and a list of the sources used. In each step, as postures and techniques are explained, they are also accompanied by helpful and detailed diagrams that are simple to follow. Alongside this, numerous anthropological observations are given to explain how and when posture differences developed. This is also done with consciousness towards how posture changes over the lifetime and with outcome expectancies following correction, making the dialogue fairly cohesive for readers of any age.

Those readers looking to improve their posture and physical well-being will find 8 Step to a Pain Free Back intrinsically helpful through the techniques it incorporates and the presentation style that it employs. The written and diagrammed instructions are specific and detailed, and there is a strong biological and physical therapy influence in the solutions proposed. Additionally, having suggested corrections that come from an anthropologic framework may speak more to readership involved in studying and practicing in the social sciences. As a result, this book may have greater efficacy within this particular population of readers versus other books that use similar techniques but which lack the same theoretical explanations and narrative. This is, at its core, a book on posture correction, but for those interested in mindfulness and body therapy techniques, the book may be useful in expanding knowledge in this subject.

Esther Gokhale, L.Ac., has had a lifelong interest in integrative therapies. She has studied biochemistry at Harvard and Princeton, and later acupuncture at the San Francisco School of Oriental Medicine. Following her own experiences with crippling back pain and the ineffective treatments for it, she decided to find a more lasting solution. After studying at the Aplomb Institute in Paris, she performed long running anthropological research in Burkina Faso, Brazil, India, Portugal, and elsewhere to to develop the Gokhale Method, which she currently teaches and is most known for.

Gokhale, E. (2008). 8 Steps To A Pain-Free Back: Remember When It Didn’t hurt. Palo Alto, CA: Pendo Press.
ISBN: 978-0-9793036-0-9.
Paperback. 228 pages. Includes appendix, glossary, bibliography, and index.
Key words: back pain, physical therapy, anthropology, chronic pain, first-person, posture

When: Sunday May 17th in Manhattan 2-4 PM

— Please share with clients, parents, parent coordinators and school contacts.

This Playshop for children ages 8-10 will include expressive art-making and movement, opening young people to themselves in a safe, nurturing environment. We help children find their CREATIVE “CORE” or “Center of Right Energy” that leads to wonderful changes and growth.

Attendance is limited to 10.

Note: This event is led by two seasoned therapists whose practices go beyond talk therapy, including the Dynamic Play Therapy work of Dennis McCarthy and body-centered Core Energetics to address individual and family needs such as: social and emotional growth, school adjustment, attention issues, self-regulation, anger/aggression, sleep problems, separation and divorce in family, adoption, sibling conflict, family medical challenges, video/media overuse, and developmental issues.

For tickets:

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/dynamic-playshop-for-kids-with-expressive-art-and-movement-sunday-may-17th-in-manhattan-tickets-13708716139

Warmly, Neal

Neal Brodsky LMFT, CCEP

Courtois, C. (1999). Recollections of Sexual Abuse: Treatment Principles and Guidelines.

Reviewed by: Michael Fiorini, New York University

Recollections of Sexual Abuse: Treatment Principles and Guidelines is a widely encompassing diagnostic manual for practicing clinicians to assist, frame, and guide in the treatment of sexual abuse recollection. The book first covers the past and contemporary (as of 1999) historical context of sexual abuse that is remembered after the fact. From there, it details relevant knowledge pertaining to recollected sexual abuse and outlines that information for application in the clinical setting. It establishes a practical and theoretical framework for clinicians to work through and places it along a continuum of tailored treatment. Extensive research is cited throughout the book as well, and from a research perspective it can be extremely useful as a tool for guiding future or current research. A multifaceted approach, it is designed so that even those without any background in treating this particular kind of disorder will, by the end of the book, have an intricate knowledge of recollected sexual abuse and how it differs dynamically from her forms of affect, recollections, and abuse clinically. For those who already have some knowledge of the topic but wish to further expand what they know and can use in treatment, the book is equally invaluable.

Recollections of Sexual Abuse seeks to outline what is currently known about recollections of sexual abuse, how to consider it clinically, and how to treat it. All of this is done through a strict scientific and research foundation. The book first frames how the phenomenon has been handled in the past within the psychological community and details the adverse ramifications mishandling it had for how sexual abuse and clinical treatment were approached on a macro scale. It then frames the present context and the controversies behind false memories. After the socio-historical portion of the book, the structure of the rest of the book becomes topical. It explores trauma and memory interactions, child sexual abuse and memory, the philosophy and principles of practice and the evolving standards of care, and the evolving consensus model of post-trauma treatment focused on symptom relief and functioning. After this, the book centers largely on clinical guidelines. It covers guidelines for risk management, for assessment and diagnosis, for working with memory issues, and explains countertransference issues and a treatment decision model within a framework for different clinical memory scenarios. The book closes with extensive appendices and references that comprises a quarter of the book’s total content.

Essentially an expansive textbook for explaining the clinical intervention and consideration of sufferers of sexual abuse recollection, Recollections of Sexual Abuse contains a wealth of information for professional clinicians of all levels of experience in the topic. Detailed, conscious, and considered in its means of framing clinical scenarios and underlying goals in treatment, the book could be considered required reading for those working with patients who have reported experiencing recollected sexual abuse. Strictly clinical and very dense, it can serve as a jumping off point for the treatment process and for those looking to expand their expertise in treating traumatic experiences either real or imagined.

Christine Courtois, PhD, is a psychologist in private practice and serves as clinical director of The CENTER: Post-Traumatic Disorders program in the Psychiatric Institute of Washington. She conducts national and international workshops on the treatment of incest and of forms of sexual abuse and trauma. She has also authored Healing the Incest Wound: Adult Survivors in Therapy and Adult Survivors of Child Sexual Abuse. Appointed a member of several APA investigate groups studying child abuse and family violence, she was also the recipient of the APA award for distinguished professional contributions to applied psychology as a professional practice in 1996.

Courtois, C. (1999). Recollections of Sexual Abuse: Treatment Principles and Guidelines. New York, NY: W. W. Norton.
ISBN: 978-0-393-70397-5.
Paperback. 437 pages. Includes appendix, index, and references.
Key words: sexual abuse, rape, recollection, memory, trauma, diagnostic tools, treatment guidelines

New Understandings and Strategies to Minimize and Transform OCD; A Healing Workshop for People with OCD

Sunday June 7th : 10 am- 3 pm
(we will break for an hour for lunch)

15 W 86th Street (b/w Central Park West/ Columbus)
New York, NY 10024 (SAJ; Social Hall)

Cost: $ 60

To register please email Stacey Klein at StaceyLK22@gmail.com (Space is limited)

OCD symptoms can take over your life and make you feel like something in you is broken. This is not so. You CAN heal. You are not alone and OCD need not be a stigma but can be understood as a way that you have learned to structure your experience and cope with the difficulties of being a human being. There are many tools and approaches that can work even if CBT has not been helpful to you.

In this experientially focused workshop, through awareness exercises (individually and in pairs) you will gain new understandings of your experience and symptoms and learn to expand your ability to tolerate uncertainty so you begin can heal. You will be introduced to tools drawn predominantly from body and movement oriented psychotherapies (somatic and gestalt therapy) combined with CBT (Cognitive Behavioral therapy), Buddhist Psychology and mindfulness approaches to help you manage and chip away at your symptoms. We will also discuss directions for structuring your recovery (including ways of reconfiguring and changing “exposure” treatments so they are gentler and more manageable).

This workshop is open to anyone who is interested in developing greater awareness of their sensations, feelings, thoughts, movement and relationship patterns and willing to participate in and share their experiences in the context of a safe confidential setting.

You will :

Be introduced to a variety of innovative and effective tools for breaking up old patterns, tolerating feelings and living more flexibly to help set OCD aside
Learn about the healing impact of connecting with your body to alleviate OCD symptoms and live in a more empowered way
Learn tools you can draw from when in the thick of an OCD episode
Learn to understand your experience from a compassionate perspective which promotes healing

Stacey Klein, LCSW is a somatic psychotherapist in private practice in Manhattan. She specializes in the treatment of anxiety, phobias and OCD. Stacey has developed an effective integrative and holistic model for treating OCD and has had success in helping many people recover and live more spontaneously and fully. For more information go to http://www.therapyinmanhattan.com

An Introductory Body-Psychotherapy Workshop

for Professionals and people interested in opening their capacity for joy in their life

Saturday & Sunday June 27 – 28, 2015 $275.

$150. of your workshop fee will be credited toward your tuition to Year One of the School if you register for fall 2015

Provides 13 1/2 CEU hours through NASW

Traditional psychotherapy works toward congruence in a person’s thinking, emotions, actions, and life choices. Body-oriented therapy understands that the body is also profoundly affected by our life experiences. Identifying and releasing attitudes and old images held in our physical structure adds an important component to therapy. This promotes lasting change, allowing for free flow of life energy from within us so we can more fully realize our life, our joy.

This experiential workshop will give participants the opportunity to experience the basic premises of Body-Psychotherapy that originated with Wilhelm Reich and now integrates Core Energetics and contemporary approaches including somatic approaches, current neurobiology and trauma therapy. The workshop combines lectures with movement and experiential opportunities, creativity and spirituality enhance the journey.

Space limited so register now!
Aylee Welch, LICSW
(206) 910-9766
www.bodypsychotherapyschool.com

We are excited to announce an important training opportunity. Space is limited so please sign up soon!

The training will be conducted in Virginia and will include one of our best-trained and highly seasoned teams. Participants in the training will have a chance to be one of the treatment providers in a foundational study on SE.
This study will be conducted in collaboration with Attachment and Trauma Institute in Virginia. It has the real possibility to contribute its data to supporting the development of trauma informed care standards in the state of Virginia. This study could provide an important foundation for developing a body-oriented autonomic regulation model of trauma informed care within the state.

Furthermore, if successful, it could be adopted in state run agencies and hospitals and recognized by insurance panels within the state. The state of Virginia was recently nationally chosen as one of two states whose current trauma informed care systemic model statewide will be closely evaluated for its implementation, screening, assessment, applied treatment and outcomes. Outcomes will benefit treatment recommendations in medical and psychiatric hospitals in
both adolescent and adult units, statewide child welfare agencies and local community service boards. Cumulative outcomes gathered after two years will benefit the advancement of body based regulatory models of treatment for some of the most traumatized individuals in our society leading to national awareness.

Participants in this SE training will have the chance to be a treatment provider in this study. While being a treatment provider for this study is not required to participate in this training, those who do participate in this study will have increased training opportunities and receive a high level training experience.

This study will measure changes in trauma symptoms, symptoms of dissociation, general mental health symptoms and quality of life in children and adults. Providers who are willing to participate in the study will be trained on a 10-session treatment protocol.

Providers will receive referrals (5-10 per year) from the research team, who they will have the chance to work with for 10-sessions. During the 10-session treatment providers will receive regular ongoing case consultation.

Providers role in data collection will be minimal (letting the research team know that a client has started and completed treatment). All data will be held anonymously and there will be no way for researchers to connect the outcomes of the study to individual clients or practitioners.

The comprehensive training experiences will include:

1. An extra yearly training on a 10 session SE protocol that helps you develop specific skills to foster emotion regulation in your clients

2. Monthly small group case consultation by some of our best-trained and most seasoned assistants.

3. Regular referrals with ongoing case consultation support This study will assess changes in SE clients over the course of treatment. Providers in this study will also be given regular referrals from the SE study. This will give you as a training participant a unique opportunity to have treatment experience with ongoing case management support.

We will be studying three client populations: Adults with trauma, families with attachment and trauma, and our military.

If you or some of your colleagues work with any of these populations and are interested in studying the impact of SE on clinical treatment, please consider signing up or contacting your colleagues about this opportunity. In order to join the training one must have a degree in mental health or work in a medical profession. Those who have signed up for this training will be contacted by the research team via email. The email will include information about the study and how one can become a provider in the study, information about the procedures used in the study, the study protocol and the training process.

If you would like more information about the study before signing up for the training please feel free to contact the Somatic Experiencing Research Coalition Chair, Michael Changaris, PsyD at drchangaris@gmail.com
.
The beginning module I begins June 5-8.
You can review more details about the training or sign up on our website:
www.traumahealing.org

Or call the Somatic Experiencing Trauma Institute (SETI)
directly at(303) 652-4035
.
Please sign up for the training or refer respected colleagues today.

Space is in the training is limited.

You Don’t Have to Be Tossed Around By Your Emotions

Are your clients emotions ruling their lives? Would you like to have simple, yet concrete ideas to help them shift from being their feelings to being with their feelings? You probably know that those feelings – even the most challenging ones – can seem like the “enemy inside” sometimes, when they are really guideposts and indicators of something deeper at work on the path to profound life change. The practical, compassionate insights in Ann Weiser Cornell’s latest book, Presence: A Guide to Transforming Your Most Challenging Emotions, are roadmaps that can help you assist your clients in making that inner shift from emotion wars to a wider perspective that opens up their most empowered life possibilities and will lend you a helping hand too!
What’s Covered? Intense Feelings; Decisions & Frustration; The Trouble with Feeling Happy, Emotion Wars, Unfulfilled Desire & Relationships, Shame & Self-Criticism, Trauma, and more.
Whimsical and beautifully designed, Presence is chock full of short, easy-to-read segments that you can enjoy as bite-sized bits of wisdom even in those few moments between sessions. And it’s a wonderful referral tool for clients – easy to absorb concepts and information in an appealing format!
Accompanying 58 page workbook (pdf) and 12 guided exercises via MP3 are also available to help support the journey to wholeness.

Available May 13th. Find out more here: www.focusingresources.com/presencebook

Saint Arnault, D., & O’Halloran, S. (2015). Biodynamic psychotherapy for trauma recovery: A pilot study. International Body Psychotherapy Journal, 14(1), 20-34.

The following study was a longitudinal pilot study using pre- and post-tests of standardized surveys measuring depression, anxiety, physical and emotional symptoms, quality of life, social support satisfaction, and social conflict. Biodynamic interventions were delivered to eight women receiving domestic violence support services with SAFE Ireland, a domestic violence shelter. Women selected for the study were over the age of 21, in the recovery phase of their survivorship, scored high on the Kessler 6 distress inventory, and expressed interest in participating in the study through their case managers. Participants were treated over a 12 month period consisting of three two and a half day Biodynamic interventions, complemented by a three hour bodywork session. The intervention consisted of both a group intervention and an individual bodywork session six months apart. The goal of the research was to examine the feasibility and acceptability of Biodynamic interventions and to foster healing for women receiving domestic violence support. Findings indicated that women, even after having been out of violence for over four years, still experienced high amounts of distress. Findings also indicated that with Biodynamic interventions, women’s distress indicators significantly improved over time, along with vitality, use of social support, and social conflict. The only score that did not change significantly was social functioning.

What was really interesting about the study was that women who had been considered to be stable and functioning well in the community by having new relationships, raising children, and working or going to school, still had high mental health distress. This confirms what the authors expected at the beginning of the study from their review of the literature and the effects of complex trauma. The study also confirms that bottom-up approaches to therapy for complex trauma are needed to adequately resolve trauma symptoms. I appreciated that the authors advocated for more studies in the field of women’s mental health on services needed for women beyond the first year of leaving an abusive relationship. Another important suggestion from the authors was that the definition of healing needs to go beyond symptom reduction and needs to look at healing as including moving back into the social world.

The authors indicated that the limitations of their study included: a small sample size and the lack of a control sample. The authors suggested that future studies should include larger and more complex trials as well as comparison research studies with standard intervention strategies such as cognitive behavioral therapy. They also recommended learning what services women access and the benefits and limitations of those services to assist women with their healing to thrive after leaving an abusive relationship. While the authors state that several of the women had experienced prior childhood abuse and violence, it would have been interesting to look at the severity of each woman’s full trauma history and their recovery rates to get a better picture of the effectiveness of the trauma interventions.
This study contributes to the field of body psychotherapy in that it demonstrates the effectiveness of bottom-up interventions on trauma resolution and quality of life. I also appreciate that this study suggests how body psychotherapy can not only impact symptom reduction for survivors, but significantly improve relationships and foster integration for trauma survivors back into society as fully contributing members. I hope to see further studies in body psychotherapy that show the development of resilience and wellness that go above and beyond simple symptom absence.

Hello Friends!!

My business partner Aimee and I have just created our second t-shirt in a series of many to come, and we are really excited to share it with you! (pictures are attached at bottom of email)

“Don’t Just Wear it Live it” the ImBODYment clothing line is a concept Aimee and I created while building a Core community in Boston.

The idea? Both of us found ourselves wearing items of clothing or jewelry that reflected a state of being or concept that we wanted to embody.
We realized that the words on our shirts or hanging on our wrists could be taken further than just on own body. What if the words were actively pursued in our daily lives and brought out into our communities?

With that in mind we created ImBODYment. The idea is to offer you not only the t-shirt but the opportunity to explore the words on the shirt both for yourself and your community.

Beginning May 15th we will begin a month long explanation of Surrender. This includes emails, reminders, exercises, suggested readings, an interactive forum and a final exercise with suggestions and member inspirations on how to bring the concept out into your community as some kind of offering ie: workshop, contribution, talk, or donation to a charity.

We hope you will join us on this new endeavor. To purchase the T-shirt ($35.00) or the T-shirt PLUS exploration ($45.00) please email me directly at
Dianabuonocore@gmail.com

I will need your size, and quantities. At that point I will send you a PayPal request.

Please have your orders in by April 20.

Aimee and I wish you and yours an abundant Spring full of new growth and we hope to connect with each of you soon.

Warm Regards,
Diana Buonocore, CCEP
and
Aimee Falchuk, MPH, M.Ed

We are offering our Body Holds the Key: Guided Self Healing First Year 1st Wknd workshop AGAIN! Why ? Because we believe it is so powerful that if you learn
these simple tools, it can change your life!

If you have ever taken it and would like to take it again, you can at half price!

Transform your life and/or your clients lives, too. Learn the most efficient & effective way in one weekend to help others or yourself heal & grow.

Students completing Year I Weekend I will master the following basic GSH skills:

Learn the 5-Step Guided Self Healing Process for transformation
Discover how our difficulties are stories that we are trying to remember in order to heal and grow
Learn 20 energetic and spiritual practices you can take home and immediately begin to use. For ex., accupressure interventions to release fear, anger, shame, dissociation, creating boundaries, or interventions for releasing limiting beliefs, or for creating boundaries.
Discover how to access the deepest wisdom in your body and the inner knowing that has been there all along

This weekend can be taken alone or it can also be the foundation for the year long Guided Self Healing Training where we will discover and learn to work with the deepest universal themes that affect our lives

Saturday, April 25th, 2015 – Sunday, April 26th, 2015

Saturday & Sunday from 9:30a.m.to 6p.m.

Location: 115 Worcester Lane, Waltham, MA

Facilitated by Joan Beckett, LMHC, Guided Self Healing Trainer and Guided Self Healing Founder, Andrew Hahn, Psy.D.

Cost: This 2 day workshop is $500 if registered by April 17, 2015.

After April 17th, 2015, the cost is $550. If you have taken the Training before and would like to take it again, you can for $250.

This program is Approved by the National Association of Social Workers for 14 CEU’s for Clinical Social Work Continuing Education Contact Hours
Reservations: Contact the office of Guided Self Healing at 781.891.7448 or by email info@GuidedSelfHealing.org

Hakomi Experiential Psychotherapy integrates mindfulness and somatics into the therapy process with uniquely effective results. Hakomi is a body-centered psychotherapy. The body is viewed as a “map of the psyche” – a door that can be opened to reveal the entire character and belief system of the individual. The body’s structures and patterns become a powerful access route to core material.

This workshop is designed for therapists, counselors, social workers, healing professionals and students in these fields. We will experientially learn Hakomi skills and approaches that are immediately applicable, and the workshop also serves as the prerequisite for the Comprehensive Hakomi Training.

Find out more download the flyer: Mindfulness and Somatics in Experiential Psychotherapy: An Introduction to the Hakomi Method

SE offers a framework to assess where your client is “stuck” in the fight, flight, freeze, or collapse responses and provides clinical tools to resolve these fixated physiological states that underlie so many trauma symptoms. Our educational model is both theoretical and highly experiential, offering you effective skills for restoring nervous system regulation and resolving trauma that can be immediately integrated into your professional practice.

Chapel Hill, NC—March 20-23, 2015

How SE May Benefit Your Practice

Join the leading edge in trauma resolution. SE is becoming recognized as a
premier method for resolving trauma symptoms. Our graduates are increasingly
sought out for referrals based on their SE training.

Learn practical and effective skills that help resolve trauma without re-traumatization.
These gentle, powerful interventions will inspire and empower your clients, restoring
resilience and providing them with a greater capacity to enjoy life.

Have an extraordinary life experience. Many students find the SE training
professionally and personally transformative. Join our joyful and compassionate healing
community, and experience meaningful growth for yourself and those you serve.

Dave Berger, MFT, PT, LCMHC, SEP
SE Trauma Institute faculty member, Dave Berger, has practiced physical therapy and somatic psychotherapy for over 30 years. With graduate degrees from Stanford University and California Institute of Integral Studies, Dave has been a college professor and clinician presently seeing individuals and couples. He specializes in PTSD, anxiety, acute and chronic pain, spinal and movement problems. He has also developed and teaches BASE™ (Bodywork and Somatic Education™) for trauma therapists.

Author Archives: Blog Writer

Seeking Maryland clinically licensed mental health professionals!

Authentic Movement: Dance Therapy & the Moving Imagination

August 22, 2015 – August 23, 2015
Wildcat Studio, Berkeley, California

The Body-Dream Process™

The Therapeutic Imagination: Using Literature to Deepen Psychodynamic Understanding and Enhance Empathy

Seattle School of Body-Psychotherapy

Conversation with Marti Glenn

Just One Thing: Developing a Buddha Brain One Simple Practice at a Time

Clinical Research Survey – the use of body-based somatic awareness

About the 50th anniversary edition of The Phenomenology of Dance by Maxine Sheets-Johnstone

SPT’s Special Summer Book Review Issue, volume 5, number 3, 2015

Buddha’s Brain: The practical neuroscience of happiness, love, and wisdom.

Integral Breath Therapy Facilitator Training

When Sex Hurts: A Woman’s Guide to Banishing Sexual Pain

Dream Theater and Yoga Joe’s!

Neurobiology and Treatment of Traumatic Dissociation: Toward and Embodied Self

See the new Hakomi book from W.W Norton

Effectiveness of Rhythmic Movement Therapy: Case Study of Subjective Well-Being

Stepping Out of Your Comfort Zone and Other Acts of Courage

Stepping Out of Your Comfort Zone and Other Acts of Courage

Get Flyer

8 Steps To A Pain-Free Back: Remember When It Didn’t hurt.

Dynamic PlayShop for Kids 8-10 including Expressive Arts and Movement

Recollections of Sexual Abuse: Treatment Principles and Guidelines

A Healing Workshop for People with OCD

Seattle School of Body-Psychotherapy Presents Find Your Joy

Special Opportunity – Somatic Experiencing (SE) Training and Research Study

Presence – Releases May 13th

Available May 13th. Find out more here: www.focusingresources.com/presencebook

Biodynamic Psychotherapy for Trauma Recovery: A Pilot Study

“Don’t Just Wear it Live it”

The Body Holds The Key: Healing Trauma – Guided Self Healing

Saturday, April 25th, 2015 – Sunday, April 26th, 2015

Saturday & Sunday from 9:30a.m.to 6p.m.

Location: 115 Worcester Lane, Waltham, MA

Cost: This 2 day workshop is $500 if registered by April 17, 2015.

After April 17th, 2015, the cost is $550. If you have taken the Training before and would like to take it again, you can for $250.

Mindfullness and Somatics in Experiential Psychotherapy

Join the Leading Edge in Trauma Resolution

August 22, 2015 – August 23, 2015 Wildcat Studio, Berkeley, California

Stepping Out of Your Comfort Zone and Other Acts of Courage

Available May 13th. Find out more here: www.focusingresources.com/presencebook

Saturday, April 25th, 2015 – Sunday, April 26th, 2015

Saturday & Sunday from 9:30a.m.to 6p.m.

Location: 115 Worcester Lane, Waltham, MA

Cost: This 2 day workshop is $500 if registered by April 17, 2015.

After April 17th, 2015, the cost is $550. If you have taken the Training before and would like to take it again, you can for $250.

August 22, 2015 – August 23, 2015
Wildcat Studio, Berkeley, California