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Redefining mindfulness in therapy & in everyday life

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Bruce Gibbs: Finding the right distance from our experience

We explore a concept that is very important to Bruce Gibbs, finding the right distance from our experience. We talk about how the right distance varies with the context, for instance how it is different in meditation and in Focusing. And we talk about what finding that distance entails. Bruce Gibbs, Ph.D., has explored consciousness, […]

A focus on trauma-informed mindfulness

The Relational Implicit podcast is now located on the Active Pause website. Our focus is on redefining mindfulness based on trauma-informed therapy and the Polyvagal theory. This change reflects the experiential and intersubjective nature of what we do as therapists. We are not providing impersonal “treatment” to people we are observing as detached observers. We are […]

Ken Benau: Shame, Pride, and Relational Trauma

The following conversation with Ken Benau serves as an introduction to shame and pride-informed psychotherapy with adult survivors of relational trauma, the theme of his book, Shame, Pride, and Relational Trauma: Concepts and Psychotherapy. Ken Benau, Ph.D. earned his doctorate in clinical psychology with a subspecialty in adult psychotherapy at Georgia State University in Atlanta, […]

An experiential inquiry into the nature of inquiry

In this conversation, our intention is to share with you what we like about the notion of “inquiry,” and to do so by giving you a flavor of what we mean by it. Dr. Marjorie Schuman is a clinical psychologist who teaches, writes about, and practices mindful psychodynamic psychotherapy. Serge Prengel is the editor of […]

Lawrence Berger: A quest for meaning

We start this conversation from the perspective that human beings are self-interpreting animals, and go on to explore what gives us a sense of meaning. Lawrence Berger has been practicing mindfulness for many years while developing a philosophy of attention in his academic pursuits. He was formerly a business school professor at the universities of Iowa and Pennsylvania, […]

Jacqui Lewis: Fierce Love

We talk about bringing a quality of fierce love to our life, as a person and as an agent of change. The Rev. Jacqui Lewis, Ph.D. is Senior Minister for Public Theology and Transformation at Middle Church in New York City. She uses her gifts as author, activist, preacher, public theologian toward creating an antiracist, […]

Jeffery Smith: How psychotherapy works

Jeffery Smith describes a 5-step pathway to go beyond the fragmentation of the different schools of psychotherapy and define how psychotherapy works. He discusses: (1) What psychotherapy treats (at 0′ 13″) (2) Entrenched Maladaptive Patterns (at 5′ 28″) (3) The learned fear paradigm (at 16′ 06″) (4) Requirements for change (at 29′ 12″) (5) How […]

Salvador Moreno-Lopez: Sensing into life as a musical improvisation

We talk about metaphors that Salvador Moreno-López uses to understand and orient interaction in psychotherapy and daily life, such as the music of the speech and a jazz duo. Dr. Salvador Moreno-López, Ph.D., Universidad Iberoamericana, in México City. Certified Focusing Instructor and Certifying Coordinador for Mexico of the International Focusing Institute. Has been a professor […]

Embodied spirituality: a felt sense of something larger

In this 9-minute video, Serge Prengel describes an embodied perspective on how we experience a sense of being (part of) something larger. Published November 2021.

One-minute embodied mindfulness practice: Fingers & spine

See the audio recording below the text. Today, I am going to describe to you a one-minute practice. Now, when I say one minute, it could be 50 seconds or five minutes. We’re not timing it. You sit on a bench or a chair, with your feet touching the ground. If you are on a […]

Cherionna Menzam-Sills: Exploring pre- and perinatal experiences

This conversation starts with a guided, experiential exploration. Then we talk about early developmental experiences, with a perspective informed by trauma therapy and mindfulness. Cherionna Menzam-Sills, Ph.D., began teaching Embodied Embryology through somatic movement in 1997 as part of her doctoral studies in Pre- & Perinatal Psychology, which led to her teaching at Naropa University […]

Elliot Jurist on the process of mourning

Elliot Jurist and I had planned to have a recorded conversation about his perspectives on the human mind. Ten days before our conversation, his father passed away. So we talked about the process of mourning and how it relates to the human condition. Elliot Jurist, Ph.D., Ph.D. is Professor of Psychology at The City College […]

Jan Winhall: Treating trauma & addiction with the Felt Sense Polyvagal model

In this conversation, Jan Winhall describes how therapists can respectfully understand addiction and treat trauma responses with deep embodied listening. Jan Winhall M.S.W. F.O.T. is a psychotherapist, teacher, and the author of Treating Trauma and Addiction with the Felt Sense Polyvagal Model. She is an adjunct lecturer in the Department of Social Work, University of Toronto. […]

Peter Afford: A neuroscience perspective on the felt sense

In this conversation, we discuss the felt sense as the experience of living (i.e., interacting) from a neuroscience perspective. Peter Afford has been practicing and teaching Focusing for years. Based in London, he is a Coordinator for TIFI and a founder member of the British Focusing Association. He also works as a counsellor and therapist […]

Ron Purser: Beyond McMindfulness

In this far-ranging conversation, we talk about the limitations of “McMindfulness” and discuss what it feels like to explore a new sense of self in the context of interaction. Ronald Purser, Ph.D. is the Lam-Larsen Distinguished Research Professor of Management at San Francisco State University. His latest book, McMindfulness: How Mindfulness Became the New Capitalist […]

So, just human… Just human… So, for me, that is in contrast to those times when we talk about something transcendent, something like religious ideas, ideologies, and something out there that gives meaning… Whereas — just human — we are at the center of meaning [as something essentially subjective]. So, just human… Just human… As […]

Monica Gomez Galaz & Özlem Mavis: A felt sense of faith

In this conversation, we explore faith as a human experience. That is, it need not be attached to any religious narrative. We talk about finding faith organically in the midst of darkness and doubt — far from the contrived positivity of “have faith!” Monica Gomez Galaz is a Focusing Coordinator in Mexico City. She is […]

Annie Bloch: Focusing as a simple & powerful meditation practice

Annie Bloch has been practicing meditation and Focusing. She talks about Focusing as a direct connection with our inner wisdom. Annie Bloch is a hunter- gatherer-gardener in the fields of systems thinking, cognitive sciences, and psychotherapy. French and half American, on a dual path: Buddhist and Jewish. Published June 2021.

Mark Schenker on addiction, part 1: What is addiction

Mark Schenker defines addiction and talks about his integrative model. Mark Schenker is a licensed psychologist with 40 years of experience working with patients with substance use disorders. Dr. Schenker has written “A Clinician’s Guide to Twelve-Step Recovery” (Norton, 2009) and the chapter “Addiction Treatment Settings” for the APA Handbook of Clinical Psychology (APA, 2016). […]

Suzanne Noel: What Sustains Me

Suzanne Noel talks about what sustains her: swimming, riding a motorbike, and connecting with others. Suzanne Noel is a Certifying Coordinator for the International Focusing Institute.in New York. She developed Recovery Focusing (the crossing of the 12 Steps for addictive process with Felt Sensing), out of which she developed her H.O.W. We Heal model for groups. […]

Bruce Gibbs reflects on his experience with meditation & Focusing

Bruce Gibbs talks about what his practices of meditation and Focusing have in common, what is different about them, and how they can enhance each other. Bruce Gibbs, Ph.D., has explored consciousness, both academically and experientially, for many decades. He has practiced Yoga, Vipassana, and Zen meditation. He teaches Focusing and meditation, has developed a […]

Merete Holm Brantbjerg: What Sustains Me

Merete Holm Brantbjerg talks about the deeply satisfying bodily experience of finding what sustains her. Merete Holm Brantbjerg developed Relational Trauma Therapy, a psychomotor and systems-oriented approach. She is an international trainer, group leader, and therapist based in Denmark. See her website. See other conversation with Merete Holm Brantbjerg. Published March 2021.

Gregory Kramer about Buddhism & psychotherapy

In this conversation, Gregory Kramer compares the perspectives that psychotherapy and Buddhism have on dealing with human suffering. Gregory Kramer teaches, writes, and is the founding teacher of the Insight Dialogue Community. His primary focuses are sharing a relational understanding of the Dhamma and teaching Insight Dialogue, an interpersonal form of Buddhist insight meditation. He […]

Susan Rudnick: Mindfulness within a broader context

Susan Rudnick talks about mindfulness within the broader context of Buddhism and the Zen tradition. Susan Rudnick LCSW is a Focusing-oriented therapist in private practice in Westchester NY. She has a long-term practice in Zen Buddhism, and recently has been integrating this consciousness with her roots in Judaism. In her seventies, she wrote and published […]

Thinking As Movement

Evelyn Fendler-Lee and Serge Prengel have been exploring creative ways to think about thinking in such a way that it opens up new horizons. This process involves sharing some of what comes up as we proceed. We feel that the sharing broadens our exploration as it stimulates further thoughts in you. For a transcript, see […]

Gregory Kramer: A Whole Life Path

Gregory Kramer talks about integrating Buddhist wisdom with our everyday life. Gregory Kramer teaches, writes, and is the founding teacher of the Insight Dialogue Community. His primary focuses are sharing a relational understanding of the Dhamma and teaching Insight Dialogue, an interpersonal form of Buddhist insight meditation. He has been teaching worldwide since 1980. In […]

Michael Changaris: The power of mindful touch

In this conversation, Michael Changaris talks about how crucial touch is to our sense of self and our well-being. He refers to research as well as examples in clinical practice and in everyday life. The conversation concludes with an invitation to a simple way to experience this in your life. Michael Changaris, PsyD. is the Chief Clinical […]

Francesca Maximé: Embodied anti-racism

Francesca Maximé talks about how to find mindful, embodied responses to racialization and racism. Francesca Marguerite Maximé is a Haitian-Dominican Italian-American embodied antiracism educator, somatic psychotherapist, award-winning poet/author, certified mindfulness meditation teacher. She also hosts the ReRooted podcast on Ram Dass’s Be Here Now Network focusing on neuroscience, trauma healing, social justice, and the creative arts. […]

Jan Winhall: Making meaning

Jan Winhall and Serge Prengel talk about making meaning. Or, rather, feeling it, sensing into it. Jan Winhall, M.S.W., R.S.W., F.O.T., is a psychotherapist in Private Practice and Director of Focusing On Borden, a centre for teaching Focusing and Focusing Oriented Therapy. Jan is the author of “Addiction From The Bottom Up: A Felt Sense […]

David Allen: The implicit pressures that shape our clients

To be effective, therapy has to address the implicit pressures that shaped our clients and continue to shape them. This includes the implicit messages people derived from their upbringing (e.g. parent implicitly encouraging child to act out while explicitly not doing so). This also includes the social milieu which exerts implicit pressure for them to […]

Richard Gillett: The high cost of divisiveness and how to deal with it

Richard Gillett is the author of It’s A Freakin Mess: How to thrive in divisive times. Here, we talk about how personal and social divisiveness manifests and its huge costs to our physical and mental well-being. We talk about how to change the pain of polarization, and how we feel so much better and become […]

How to depolarize political conversations

Political conversations tend to bring out activation and polarization. This is not a reason to avoid them. To avoid falling into the pitfalls of polarization, use a mindful approach that fosters curiosity. Instead of defending a position, make it your goal to know more about each other through the discussion. This talk describes a format that helps […]

Merete Holm Brantbjerg: A gentle, resource-oriented approach to stress & trauma

Merete Holm Brantbjerg talks about working with low energy states and our “invisible parts” in the context of Relational Trauma Therapy. Merete Holm Brantbjerg developed Relational Trauma Therapy, a psychomotor and systems-oriented approach. She is an international trainer, group leader, and therapist based in Denmark. See website. See also: – PDF of ROST presence skills. – A […]

Merete Holm Brantbjerg: A gentle exploration of stress

In this conversation with Merete Holm Brantbjerg, we explore experientially what happens in our body when we get stressed. See PDF transcript of this conversation. Merete Holm Brantbjerg developed Relational Trauma Therapy, a psychomotor and systems-oriented approach. She is an international trainer, group leader, and therapist based in Denmark. See her website. See also Merete Holm Brantbjerg […]

Harbert Rice: How a felt sense functions in a group

In this conversation, you will learn how a felt sense functions in a Quaker Meeting’s gathering circle. Harbert describes how his work with Gendlin’s philosophy and Quaker practice came about in a Quaker meditation as a felt sense to map Quaker language into Gendlin’s language. He looks at the underlying commonality between Focusing and Quaker […]

Victoria Ramos: Dance with the Divinity which is you (a guided meditation)

“In this guided meditation, I will share with you how you can experience each breath as a gift from the Divine. The tradition is Shaivism Tantric Yoga, and just my own yoga physical practice. But yes the origins are Yogic. But the awareness of smell etc can be credited to SE. Or Shakti. Maybe it […]

Deb Dana: How the nervous system affects our daily life

The nervous system is where our experience begins. In this conversation, Deb Dana describes how it works and how it affects our daily life. There is a PDF transcript of this conversation. Deb Dana, LCSW, specializes in treating complex traumatic stress and lectures internationally on the ways Polyvagal Theory informs clinical interactions with trauma survivors. […]

Bruce Nayowith explores experiences of connection

In these two short conversations, Bruce Nayowith explores his inner experience in 2 situations: (1) making contact with others while connecting with a young part of himself; (2) a situation in which an energetic connection was felt at a distance. Since 1987, Bruce Nayowith has been Focusing and exploring other processes that encourage the unfolding […]

Judyth Weaver: What Sustains Me (2020)

Five years after the original conversation we had about what sustains her, Judyth Weaver follows in 2020. Judyth O. Weaver was awarded the USABP Lifetime Achievement Award in 2018. As a modern dancer she went to Japan in 1965 to study Kabuki and Noh and then entered a Zen Buddhist monastery. Back in the U.S. […]

Judyth Weaver: What Sustains Me (2015)

Judyth Weaver talks about her life force (2015). See also 2020 follow-up conversation. Judyth O. Weaver was awarded the USABP Lifetime Achievement Award in 2018. As a modern dancer she went to Japan in 1965 to study Kabuki and Noh and then entered a Zen Buddhist monastery. Back in the U.S. in 1968 she studied […]

Eric Wolterstorff: Society under sustained stress

In this conversation, Eric Wolterstorff draws on a systems approach to describe how the pandemic has elicited a “stress chain reaction.” He sees a parallel with the model mapped by Murray Bowen in the context of family dynamics. He also talks about how to dampen the chain reaction each time it passes through you. See […]

Faith as a human experience

Here, I am not talking about faith in God or in religious beliefs. I am talking about the human capacity for the experience of faith. See audio recording at the bottom of the page. When you hear the word faith, you probably think about religious belief. Or maybe, faith in God, not necessarily to a […]

Dave Berger & Joshua Sylvae: How COVID-19 is affecting our work as therapists

In this conversation, we talk about how the coronavirus and social distancing are affecting our work as therapists. We discuss practical details, such as how we use video-conferencing, as well as putting things in a larger context. Dave Berger, MFT, PT, LCMHC, MA, SEP is a senior faculty member of the Somatic Experiencing Trauma Institute […]

Stephen Porges: Finding meaning in the midst of the Coronavirus crisis

In this 3-minute video, Stephen Porges talks about finding meaning in these difficult times: “Perhaps this challenging period is directing us to what our real goal in life is. And that is to relate to others, to connect.” See PDF transcript – See also 日本語のPDF. Stephen W. Porges, Ph.D., is Distinguished University Scientist at Indiana University, where he […]

Connecting during COVID-19 : Reach In & Reach Out

During these difficult times, you can help other people, and help yourself, by reaching out. In this 4-minute video, Stephen Porges talks about listening and connecting. See also PDF transcript and 日本語のPDF. How you can do it See the short video describing Active Listening. Stephen W. Porges, Ph.D., is Distinguished University Scientist at Indiana University, where he […]

Volunteer to help people support each during the COVID-19 crisis

With the pandemic, people have to avoid unnecessary contact. Social distancing dramatically affects people’s ability to find comfort in connection. We cannot directly give emotional support to all who need it. But we can teach people simple tools they can use to support each other. See what you can do about it below the video. […]

Greg Cootsona: Finding Grace, Finding Space

In this conversation, we explore the notion of grace. We talk about it from a spiritual perspective: the Christian spiritual tradition which is Greg’s anchor, as well as other spiritual traditions. We also explore down-to-earth experiences, such as being a drummer, interacting with other people, structuring one’s day… In so doing, we map out a […]

Stephen Porges: Countering the effects of social distancing

Social distancing and separation are a big part of what is needed to deal with the pandemic. In this short conversation, we talk about how to counter their effects: we still need to be sensitive to our nervous system’s need to socially engage and connect. Below the video, you will find a transcript. You can […]

Active Listening: How to compensate for social distancing

With the pandemic, we have to avoid unnecessary contact. So we need to make the most of what little contact we have: When you can’t go broad, go deep. This is the spirit in which I describe an approach called Active Listening, in the 7′ 30″ video below. See the transcript below the video. See […]

Washing hands as a mindful practice

This 4-minute talk suggests a way to approach washing hands for the coronavirus as a mindful practice. For a transcript, see my article on Medium: Washing hands as a mindful practice. Published March 2020

Karyne Wilner: The plastic body

This conversation is part of exploring the Somatic Implicit. Karyne Wilner talks about how cell life and neuroplasticity of the brain and body can be enhanced through work with the bioenergetic field. Dr. Karyne Wilner is a licensed, clinical psychologist who practices in Connecticut and Rhode Island. She is director of the Core Energetics Academy, a […]

Marcella Calabi: Enjoying a mindful conversation

We start talking about language. As we speak from the felt sense, it becomes a conversation about incorporating a mindful attitude into a conversation. And an invitation to enrich our lives with mindful conversations. Marcella Calabi helps people find their voice and live from it. She is an outside-the-box thinker with training in music, negotiation/mediation […]

Kirk Schneider: Exploring the polarized mind

This conversation started as Serge Prengel interviewing Kirk Schneider. Very quickly, Kirk became the listener, guiding Serge into an experiential exploration of polarization. We touched upon the personal and embodied impact of the polarized mind (or fixation on a single point of view to the utter exclusion of competing points of view), as well as […]

Bill Epperly: Awakened living

In this wide-ranging conversation, Bill Epperly discusses his sources of inspiration and renewal as well as the role of vulnerability in awakened living. The conversation ends with a discussion of how to be an awake, mindful person in today’s chaotic, unbalanced world. Bill offers a practice that can help us remain grounded in the present […]

Leslie Ellis: The creative power of dreamwork

In this conversation, Leslie Ellis talks about how working with dreams engages client and therapist in a co-creative process from which much can emerge. Dr. Leslie Ellis is a teacher, author and psychotherapist. She is currently offering online dreamwork instruction based on her book, A Clinician’s Guide to Dream Therapy (publication date: August 2019). She […]

Sharon Stanley: Conversation about climate change

In this conversation, which is part of a series on society issues, we explore Climate Change from a perspective informed by somatic psychotherapy. Dr. Sharon Stanley has educated thousands of psychotherapists in Canada, the USA and Israel in the principles and practices of somatic psychotherapy. Sharon has served on graduate level faculties including the University […]

Carmen Joanne Ablack: A polyphonic endeavor

Carmen Joanne Ablack, President of the European Association for Body Psychotherapy (EABP) talks about the association as a polyphonic endeavor. Carmen Joanne Ablack holds BA Hons in Psychology and Sociology, PG Diploma in Body Psychotherapy, and an MSc in Leading and Managing Health and Social Care (Advanced Professional Practice). She is an individual, group, couples and relationships psychotherapist, trainer and […]

Loch Kelly: Effortless Mindfulness

Loch Kelly talks about effortless mindfulness, and how he sees access to awakening as the next natural stage of human development. Loch Kelly, M.Div., LCSW, is an author, meditation teacher, psychotherapist, and founder of the 501c3 non-profit, Open-Hearted Awareness Institute. Loch teaches in a non-sectarian human being lineage using an adult education style based in […]

David Mars: AEDP for couples

In this conversation, David Mars Ph.D. gives us an experiential sense of AEDP for Couples. Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy for Couples is a cutting edge approach that combines affective neuroscience and attachment research into a love-inspiring way for couples and the therapists who treat them to find refreshing, healing and restorative ways to bring about […]

Edgardo Riveros Aedo: The emergence of the new

In this talk, Edgardo Riveros Aedo gives a spontaneous demonstration of the kind of inner dialogue that makes it possible for something new to emerge. The video is in Spanish. Even if you don’t speak Spanish, I suggest you look at it (at least part of it): It is a beautiful demonstration of the process of […]

Feeling the sense of connection: Conversation with Lisa Dale Miller

This is a continuation of the previous conversation with Lisa Dale Miller… but it can be listened to without listening to the first one. Here, we explore the experience of having a sense of connection. Lisa Dale Miller, LMFT, LPCC, SEP is licensed to practice integrative psychotherapy in California, New York, and Oregon and is a […]

Mindfulness & connection: Conversation with Lisa Dale Miller

This conversation is an exploration of the shared pause: What happens when we pay attention not just to thoughts and ideas, but also to the experience of being in conversation. Lisa Dale Miller, LMFT, LPCC, SEP is licensed to practice integrative psychotherapy in California, New York, and Oregon and is a Somatic Experiencing® Practitioner (SEP). Lisa has […]

Sharon Stanley: What sustains me

Sharon Stanley talks about what sustains her: the delight of just being alive, and how she gets in touch with that. Dr. Sharon Stanley is a psychotherapist, educator and writer living on Bainbridge Island, Washington. As a long time student of Dr. Allan Schore, Sharon has integrated a number of somatic practices for healing trauma […]

Stacy Reuille-Dupont: Using Exercise Science to Bridge Understanding in Therapy

In this conversation, we talk about a blending of disciplines – – specifically, using exercise science to bridge understanding in somatic psychology interventions. The goal is to bring together the science of the physical body with the science of the emotional body to go beyond symptom reduction and reconnect the self and body. Stacy Reuille-Dupont, […]

Sharon Salzberg: The process of mindful change

In this conversation, Sharon Salzberg talks about how mindfulness helps us gain clarity on what we want to change, why we do what we do, and other aspects of the process of mindful change. Sharon Salzberg is a pioneer in the field of meditation, a world-renowned teacher and New York Times bestselling author. She has […]

Gregg Henriques: A framework to integrate objective view & personal view

In this conversation, Dr. Gregg Henriques explains the Tree of Knowledge System and describes how it provides a way to think about the universe from an objective scientific view and a personal lifeworld view. It achieves this by dividing the universe into four different planes of existence, Matter, Life, Mind and Culture, and the discussion […]

Steve Katz: Blood, Sweat & Smiles

Steve Katz, a founding member of Blood, Sweat & Tears, jokingly asks in his memoirs: Is Steve Katz a Rock Star? In this conversation, we focus on what it is that has been sustaining him. Steve Katz was a founding member of Blood, Sweat & Tears, which won three Grammies and sold millions of records worldwide. […]

Salvador Moreno-Lopez: How to use the bodily felt sense

In this talk, Salvador Moreno-Lopez describes a journey of discoveries and surprises: “How I found that using my bodily felt sense helps me orient in my daily life and my work, with much more certainty and precision than I would using only logic and reason disconnected from bodily feelings. This is a great gift of life, […]

Deb Dana: The Polyvagal Theory in psychotherapy

This conversation is about using the Polyvagal Theory in clinical practice. Deb Dana talks about how a focus on experientially understanding the role of the autonomic nervous system helps to creatively involve clients in their healing process. Note: See Deb Dana’s talk on the nervous system as a resource for clients. Deb Dana, LCSW, specializes […]

Seth Zuiho Segall: Mindfulness in context

In this conversation, we talk about putting mindfulness and Buddhism in context — the contexts in which they evolved, and in which they are currently practiced in the Western world. Seth Zuiho Segall is a Zen priest in the White Plum Asanga and Zen Peacemaker Order lineages. He is a retired clinical psychologist who served […]

Alaine Duncan & Kathy Kain: Restoring inner balance

Combining Eastern and Western trauma physiology, Alaine Duncan and Kathy Kain introduce a new map for body-oriented clinicians to help restore balance in their clients. Using concepts from Acupuncture and Asian Medicine (AAM) alongside descriptions of the threat response from Western bio-behavioral science, they describe common physical symptoms, emotional presentations, and paths for healing for […]

Judith Blackstone: The embodiment of fundamental consciousness

In this conversation, Judith Blackstone describes the experience of living within one’s body and uncovering a fundamental dimension of consciousness pervading one’s body and the environment as a unity. She explains how this experience deepens our sense of intimacy and contact with other people at the same time as it deepens our contact with our […]

Andy Fisher: Ecopsychology

This conversation is a wide-ranging exploration of the new field of ecopsychology. It includes discussions of how the lived body and Buddhist psychology figure in this field, as well as the radical implications of reconnecting our minds to nature. Andy Fisher, PhD, is a major figure in ecopsychology, having tracked and reflected on the development […]

Terry Marks-Tarlow: Embodied creativity & the courage to face uncertainty

Terry Marks-Tarlow, PhD, has been a practicing clinician since 1985 and a practicing yogini since 1979. She specializes in deep transformation and issues surrounding creative production and believes that all effective psychotherapy is inherently creative. In this conversation, she and Serge Prengel discuss how the embodied creativity and meditative aspects of everyday life dovetail with […]

Marjorie Rand: What Sustains Me

Movement has been important to Marjorie Rand for al her life, personally and professionally. in this conversation, she talks about an accident that refocused her. Marjorie L Rand Ph.D. has had a private practice of Integrative Body Psychotherapy in Manhattan Beach and Newport Beach CA for 42 years. She has co-written, or contributed to 4 […]

Janina Fisher: Integrating somatic approaches to trauma with ‘parts’ language

Trauma often inculcates fears of body awareness and incapacitating shame that complicate the use of somatic approaches. As Janina Fisher explored how to help such clients with befriending their emotional and body responses to trauma, she began to develop a way of helping them to understand themselves as fragmented and to become more aware of […]

Shinzen Young about embodiment, mindfulness, and the future of science

In this conversation, Shinzen Young talks about embodiment, mindfulness, and the future of science… and the natural connection between these. Hope you enjoy. Shinzen Young is an American mindfulness teacher and neuroscience research consultant. His systematic approach to categorizing, adapting and teaching meditation, known as Unified Mindfulness, has resulted in collaborations with Harvard Medical School, […]

Nancy Eichhorn: Somatic Psychotherapy Today

Nancy Eichhorn talks about the magazine she founded 8 years ago, Somatic Psychotherapy Today. Who is Nancy Eichhorn? “I am a writer, editor, and teacher. Writing has always been my way to be me, to voice my experiences, my perspectives, my dreams, and my desires. Sitting with a blank white page, sensing the expanse before […]

Steven Hayes: Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (ACT)

In this conversation, we talk about Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (ACT) within the broader context of the human condition. Steven C. Hayes is Nevada Foundation Professor in the Behavior Analysis program at the Department of Psychology at the University of Nevada. An author of […]

Jeff Warren: Being Human Takes Practice

Jeff Warren talks about exploring consciousness from the perspective of how to live a more fulfilled life… approaching this exploration with a spirit of adventure. Jeff Warren is a writer and meditation instructor. His primary subject is practice – meditation practice, movement practice, life practice – made relevant and exciting and (sometimes) ridiculous. He is […]

Carmen Joanne Ablack talks about EABP

This podcast would not exist if it weren’t for the European Association for Body Psychotherapy (EABP) and the US Association for Body Psychotherapy (USABP). So we want you to know EABP & USABP. In this conversation, Carmen Joanne Ablack, President of EABP, talks about EABP. Carmen Joanne Ablack holds BA Hons in Psychology and Sociology, PG Diploma in […]

Chris Walling talks about USABP

This podcast would not exist if it weren’t for the European Association for Body Psychotherapy (EABP) and the US Association for Body Psychotherapy (USABP). So we want you to know EABP & USABP. In this conversation, Chris Walling, President of USABP, talks about USABP. Dr. Chris Walling, PsyD, MBA, C-IAYT, an award winning researcher and licensed clinical […]

Jeffrey Morrison: What it is like to be Focusing

Focusing is a mindful process of inner exploration. In this conversation, Jeffrey Morrison shares what it is like to be Focusing based on a recent Focusing session. This is of interest to Focusers, but also to non-Focusers who are curious about the process of Focusing. As Jeffrey is experienced in both mindfulness meditation and Focusing, […]

Alice Ladas: Early coping strategies: another kind of addiction

In this conversation, Alice Ladas describes a workshop focused on identifying coping strategies in a way that respects people’s humanity instead of pathologizing them. While there is no transcript for this talk, there is a write-up by Alice Ladas on the same topic, as well as the 2 lists mentioned in the talk. See: – Workshop […]

Alice K. Ladas: What Sustains Me

Alice’s creativity and vitality have always been amazing. As a pioneering therapist, researcher and feminist, she put the G Spot on the map of public consciousness. At 97, she maintains a private practice as a psychologist in New Mexico. I reconnected with her in early November at the USABP conference in sunny Santa Barbara. This […]

Eva Gold on Buddhist psychology & Gestalt psychotherapy

In this conversation we talk about the convergences of Buddhist psychology/mindfulness with Gestalt therapy as well as how they are different in their emphasis and ultimate aims. This creates the ground for discussing the benefits of an approach that integrates the two—a Buddhist psychology informed Gestalt therapy (BPGT). This conversation is also available in video […]

Michael Soth on the therapeutic relationship

In this conversation, we talk about the therapeutic relationship as a bodymind process between two people who are both wounded and whole. This conversation is available as a video, as well as audio only, and as a printable PDF transcript. Michael Soth is an integral-relational Body Psychotherapist, trainer and supervisor, with more than 30 years’ […]

Rob Foxcroft on listening

In this conversation, we uncover some of the many layers of listening, inspired on Rob’s new book. In addition to the video below, there is also a printable PDF transcript. What about listening? Here are three ways to think about it. First: How any religion has a boundary. There is an ‘us’and a ‘them’. And […]

Stefan Deutsch: A theory of love as foundation for therapeutic intervention

In this conversation, Stefan Deutsch talks about his theory of love as nourishment, the evidence for it, and how it applies to clinical practice. After escaping communist Hungary with his parents, Holocaust survivors, Stefan Deutsch grew up in NYC, graduated Hunter, CUNY, then NYU for Movement Therapy. He is a certified Gestalt psychotherapist with a […]

Harville Hendrix & Helen LaKelly Hunt explore “the space between”

In this conversation, we talk about the “space between”, i.e. the space of relationship, and how Imago therapy helps clients make sense of it and change their relationship. There is also a partial transcript as a printable PDF. Harville Hendrix, Ph.D. and Helen LaKelly Hunt, Ph.D believe that how we interact with each other, in […]

Evelyn Fendler-Lee on intuitive thinking & the creative process

In this conversation, we explore a creative thinking process known as Thinking At the Edge (TAE). However, there is no need to actually know this process, or to know Focusing, in order to follow the conversation. This is because this conversation is a reflection on the nature of intuitive thinking and how the creative process […]

Pat Ogden: How body posture and movement can influence well-being

In this conversation, Pat Ogden talks about how we can use our own movement and body to enhance our psychological health. This conversation is available as a video, as well as audio only. Pat Ogden, PhD, is a pioneer in somatic psychology and the Founder of the Sensorimotor Psychotherapy Institute (SPI), an internationally recognized school specializing […]

Abhijit Naskar: A different take on meditation

We all agree that meditation is very important, but what exactly is meditation? Abhijit Naskar invites us to think in terms of functionality as opposed to tradition. Not that there is anything wrong with traditional meditation practices… but we may be unnecessarily limiting our options. In this conversation, we talk about finding ways to develop […]

Kathrin Stauffer reflects on sex & power

This discussion takes place in the context of the current (late 2017 and early 2018) sexual harassment scandals going around many professions. Kathrin Stauffer starts her reflections on these developments by some thoughts about the nature of power and her own relationship with it. Kathrin Stauffer PhD, Body and Integrative Psychotherapist (UKCP), was born and […]

Monica Gomez Galaz: Being human, today, moment by moment

In this brief conversation with Monica Gomez Galaz, we touch upon what it’s like to be human, in a down-to-earth way, moment by moment, as we are in touch with our vulnerabilities. Monica is a Focusing coordinator in Mexico City. She says: I have been Focusing for the last eight years and became a Certified […]

Rae Johnson on Embodied Activism

In this conversation, Rae Johnson talks about how the body is implicated in social justice work, and how to engage our bodies in the process of activism. Rae’s approach incorporates key ideas from many social justice theorists and somatic practitioners, and distills them into three key areas: (1) doing your own work, (2) working for […]

Hilary Bradbury & Bill Torbert: Eros/Power

In this conversation, we explore how people deal with power, and the goal of mutuality in relationships. This conversation is available as a video, as well as audio only, and as a printable PDF transcript. Hilary Bradbury is a scholar-practitioner focused on the human and organizational dimensions of creating healthy communities. A professor of organization studies […]

Susan Rudnick about sexual abuse, the need for connection & power

Susan Rudnick’s comments about the sexual abuse of women by powerful men derive from Karen Horney’s formulation of the Real Self, as she articulated it in Neurosis and Human Growth. Even if we are severely alienated from that Real Self, it is still there, and we do continue to have human need for authentic connection to ourselves […]

Rae Johnson about sexual harassment as abuse of power

This conversation with Rae Johnson was inspired by the recent spate of accusations of sexual harassment. We talk about it as not about sex and gender, but about power. The conversation is also available as a printable PDF transcript. Rae Johnson, PhD, RSMT is a somatic scholar/practitioner working at the intersection of embodiment studies and social justice. […]

Barnaby Barratt about male sexuality

Is biology destiny? Freud asked this question in the context of discussing women’s abilities and roles. Now, in the wake of a seemingly endless streak of abuse scandals involving prominent men, it may be legitimate to ask whether male sexuality is inherently aggressive. This is the starting point for this conversation with Barnaby B. Barratt. […]

Jennifer Tantia on embodied research methodology

In therapy, we deal with embodied experience. Shouldn’t research also have an embodied approach? This conversation is available as a video, as well as audio only, and as a printable PDF transcript. Jennifer Frank Tantia, PhD, MS, BC-DMT, LCAT is a somatic psychologist and dance/movement psychotherapist, specializing in trauma and medically unexplained symptoms. She teaches research […]

Stephen Batchelor about his journey & Buddhism

This conversation is available as a video, as well as audio only (below video). Stephen Batchelor” width=”150″ height=”150″ />Stephen Batchelor is a writer, translator, teacher and artist. Born in 1953, he was ordained as a Buddhist monk at the age of twenty and spent ten years training in the Tibetan Geluk and Korean Sŏn orders. […]

Sarah Peyton talks about transforming the way we relate to ourselves

In this conversation, Sarah Peyton shares practical advice on how we can improve the way we relate to ourselves, grounded in an understanding of the underlying brain functions. This conversation is available as a video, as well as audio only (see below). Sarah Peyton, Certified Trainer of Nonviolent Communication, teaches people how language changes relationship […]

Marjorie Schuman: Inquiring deeply, finding wisdom in problems

Marjorie Schuman is a psychoanalyst who has practiced Buddhist mindfulness meditation and relational psychotherapy for over three decades. She says: “Early on in my practice, I realized the profound truth that this very moment is the perfect teacher, as Buddhist teacher Pema Chodron famously said. I knew intuitively that there was wisdom in problems and […]

Linda Ciotola about the Mindful Witness role

Linda Ciotola talks about a mindfulness approach the she practices and teaches: the Mindful Witness role. This conversation is available as a podcast and as a printable PDF transcript. Linda Ciotola is a Certified TEP: trainer-educator-practitioner of psychodrama, group psychotherapy, and sociometry; and an accredited Certified Trainer in the Therapeutic Spiral Model ™ of psychodrama used specifically […]

Kristen Ulmer: Extreme skier tells us to shift into fear

Once hailed as the best extreme skier in the world, Kristen Ulmer has come to value fear. She has learned that fear is not here to cause us problems. In fact, the only true issue we face with fear is our misguided reaction to it (not the fear itself). So we need to rebuild our […]

Kathy McGuire: How to listen in a deeper way

Originally, I had contacted Kathy McGuire to interview her on the topic of empathy. As we talked about what this might entail, we decided to practice what we preach: We did not rush into doing the interview, and we took time to process what we wanted to accomplish through this project. As a result, the […]

Dirk Marivoet: Ethics and embodiment

In this conversation, we explore ethics and embodiment. This conversation is available as a video, as well as audio only, and as a printable PDF transcript. Dirk Marivoet is the director of the Institute for Bodymind Integration in Ghent (Belgium). He studied Core-Energetics under John C. Pierrakos, MD; Postural Integration®, Energetic Integration and Pelvic-Heart Integration […]

Russell Delman: Beginner’s Mind

In this conversation, we explore the concept of “Beginner’s Mind” in a down-to-earth way. This conversation is available as a video, as well as audio only, and as a printable PDF transcript. Russell Delman’s dedication to the study of awareness and human potential began in 1969 as a college undergraduate. The main influences on his teaching […]

Donna Varnau: The Practice of Embodied Presence

This recording is about the “Practice of Embodied Presence”, guidelines for connecting directly with the personal and sacred wisdom of your body. If you are caught up in the thoughts and feelings of the fight, flight, freeze body, you are already recycling the past. If you learn how to tune into your presencing body, you […]

Jan Winhall: Creating intentional communities

In this conversation, we explore both the underlying reasons for needing to gather in community; and how that harkens back to our family of origin and the many issues that challenge our capacity to sustain connection. We specifically refer to Focusing-oriented communities, but the conversation is meant to be of interest to all people interested […]

Manju (Peter Gill): What Sustains Me

This conversation with Manju (Peter Gill) is about his experience of what happens when he takes time to pause and notice how it feels to be in the world. Manju (Peter Gill) is one of the UK’s foremost Focusing trainers – teaching since 2004, and leading retreats, workshops and classes for more than twenty years. […]

Tobias von Schulthess: Improvisation as a way of life

Improvisation means that there is something, which we can’t see because we are so occupied with our plans. To improvise means be aware of the moment and its resources. The resources are mainly nonverbal. The room, our body, the sound of the voices, the rhythm of our dialog and our environment and our imagination are […]

Linda Ciotola: Mindful Eating

Linda Ciotola talks about how she practices and teaches mindful eating. This conversation is available as a podcast and as a printable PDF transcript. Linda Ciotola is a Certified TEP: trainer-educator-practitioner of psychodrama, group psychotherapy, and sociometry; and an accredited Certified Trainer in the Therapeutic Spiral Model ™ of psychodrama used specifically for working with trauma survivors. […]

Richard Schwartz: Dealing with our inner conflicts

Richard Schwartz describes how we can understand ourselves better if we think of our inner conflicts as arguments between parts of ourselves. He outlines the kind of mindful interaction through which we can assume effective leadership of these conflicting parts: We learn to compassionately listen to their deep needs underneath the bluster. There is a short demo […]

Peter Levine: Understanding memory

This conversation with Peter Levine is about different types of memory. We talk about trauma, but also about the fluid notion of self that goes together with this understanding of memory. This conversation is available as a video, as well as audio only, and as a printable PDF transcript. Peter A Levine, PhD – is a forerunner in […]

Russell Delman: Thanksgiving & gratitude

In this 6-minute video, Russell Delman shares his perspective on how we can find gratitude within ourselves, even under difficult circumstances. Russell Delman’s dedication to the study of awareness and human potential began in 1969 as a college undergraduate. The main influences on his teaching are over 40 years of Zen meditation, his close relationship […]

Karen Liebenguth: Mindfulness in nature

Karen Liebenguth talks about how she practices mindfulness in nature. This conversation is available as a video, as well as audio only, and as a printable PDF transcript. Karen is a qualified coach, a Focusing practitioner and an accredited mindfulness teacher. She works with individuals and organisations to foster personal development and specialises in working with […]

Barbara Dickinson: Creative interaction & listening

We think of mindfulness as a solitary or inner pursuit. What about what happens in interaction? In this conversation we are talking about how to approach human interaction as a form of mindfulness where we are noticing our innate reactivity and gaining access to a more evolved part of ourselves, and how in doing so […]

Stephen Porges: Mindfulness & co-regulation

In this conversation, we explore a paradigm shift and its implications. “The whole history of the study of mental and psychological processes has been so focused on the individual’s responses, yet the individual’s responses are being framed and interacting through a connectedness with others.” The Polyvagal theory developed by Stephen Porges “forces an attention away […]

A gentle sense of resilience: Caterina Carta reflects on what sustains her

In this video, we spend a mindful moment with Caterina Carta as she reflects on flowing with life and dealing with life’s challenges, her illness and chemo, what we mean by meaning, and what it’s like to feel a sense of connection to something larger. Caterina Carta works as High School teacher and Focusing-oriented counselor […]

John Christopher: About well-being

In this conversation, we explore the notion of well-being and explore dimensions of well-being that have been neglected by mainstream psychology. In particular we consider the role of embodiment and spiritual surrender in well-being and try to link this to mindfulness, stress physiology, social inequalities in health. See also printable PDF transcript. Dr. John Christopher […]

Kjell Rudestam: Constructivism, modern physics, & psychotherapy

In this conversation, we explore constructivism, modern physics, and the conceptualization and process of psychotherapy. Psychotherapy can be viewed as a “destabilizing dance” between a therapy and patient who are part of an unstable interactional system. It seems to operate within a constructed world of “meaning making” and focuses on “stories” or “attributes” of “things” rather than […]

Eric Zimmer: Mindful choices

In this conversation, Eric Zimmer talks about mindful choices, and the parable that inspires him: A grandfather is talking with his grandson and he says there are two wolves inside of us which are always at war with each other. One of them is a good wolf which represents things like kindness, bravery and love. The […]

Mary Charlson: Expectancy, mindfulness and chronic illness

In this interview, Dr Charlson talks about her work with mindfulness interventions to improve outcome in chronic illness. While these situations are obviously more extreme than the situations many of us are faced with in everyday life, her work suggests that some mindful practices may improve our ability to make the difficult changes we need, […]

Steven Hoskinson on Organic Intelligence & trauma

Steven Hoskinson, MA, MAT, is the Founder and Chief Compassion Officer (CCO) of Organic Intelligence® and the 501(c)(3) nonprofit Organic Intelligence Outreach Institute. Steve created the Human Empowerment And Resiliency Training (OI HEARTraining®) based on Organic Intelligence, which is a positive psychology, fractal method known for its implicit exposure approach to trauma. Since 1999, Steve […]

David Rome: Conversation about contemplative thinking

In this conversation, we talk about ‘Contemplative Thinking’: How it differs from what we usually describe as ‘thinking’, and how it fosters creativity. In case you want to come back to specific explanations of this process after listening to the podcast as a whole, see: – Description of the 3 phases: From 18’45” to 20’50” […]

Beatrice Blake: Mindful Listening Partnership

In this video conversation with Beatrice Blake, we talk about how to think out of the box: Instead of just relying on linear logic, how we can use all of our resources in a mindful way. We hope you are inspired by this conversation to experiment with a Mindful Listening Partnership. In addition to the above video, […]

Leslie Becker-Phelps: What we know and do in therapy

The starting point for this conversation was an article about a situation where therapy had unintended consequences. This led us to find a moment to discuss what it is that we know, and how we can act on it, not just as therapists, but also as human beings. Leslie Becker-Phelps, PhD is a licensed psychologist […]

Andrew Cook: Embodiment and dissociation

In this conversation, we explore dissociation and embodiment. It helps to think of dissociation as a natural “skill” that is necessary for us to be able to multitask – e.g. in such simple things as walking whilst not paying attention to our legs. In order for that dissociation to not become semi-permanent, we should naturally cultivate […]

Neal Brodsky: Embodied expressive therapy with children

Neal H. Brodsky, LMFT uses expressive therapies to help adults, young people, and families create lives they love. He is licensed in Marriage & Family Therapy and certified in both Core Energetics and Embodied Couples Work (Exceptional Marriage Approach.) Neal was originally trained in Film and Television and is particularly adept in helping clients visualize […]

Dwight Hurst: Mindfulness and the human condition

As you listen to this conversation, we hope you heave as much fun as we had meandering through various topics related to mindfulness and the human condition. Dwight Hurst is a psychotherapist, writer, and podcaster who lives in Utah. He lives with 3 cool children, one cool wife, and a cool but nervous little dog. […]

Mette Mouritsen: Stress & resilience

This conversation is part of an ongoing exploration of stress, resilience, and mindfulness. Here, we talk about stress, how it comes about, and how it can be a gateway for growth. This is part of an invitation to all of us to explore this Mindful Place. Mette Mouritsen is living in Denmark. She has been […]

Greg Madison on Focusing & existential therapy

Greg Madison, PhD, is an existential psychologist and psychotherapist active in various academic and professional communities across Europe and internationally. He has written the books, The End of Belonging and Existential Migration and co-edited three books on Focusing-Oriented Psychotherapy and Existential Therapy. He continues to write articles on contemporary topics related to experiential-existential psychotherapy, participatory […]

George Makari: The dilemmas of the embodied mind

Modernity has been structured around fracture lines, like the mind-body problem, the nature nurture problem, free will versus determinism, and secularism or faith. We explore these issues with George Makari. Historian and psychiatrist George Makari is the author of the widely acclaimed Revolution in Mind: the Creation of Psychoanalysis, which received the Gradiva Prize and was […]

Sonia Sequeira: Mindfulness & sound meditation

In this conversation, Sonia Sequeira talks about mindfulness, with a special focus on sound meditation. Sonia Sequeira, PhD is a neuroscientist and clinical researcher. She manages the investigational drug development program at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) in NYC and leads the Institute for Meditation Sciences in cutting edge research on meditation practices. She […]

Suzanne Noel: Humanizing alien feelings

In this conversation, we explore Suzanne’s experience in dealing with difficult feelings and transforming them. This is a short conversation (7 minutes), also available as PDF transcript illustrated with drawings by Suzanne. Get printable PDF transcript. See also: I realized what I wanted to kill was my feelings, not myself, by Suzanne Noel. Suzanne Noel is […]

Linda Carlson: The healing power of expectancy

Dr. Linda Carlson holds the Enbridge Research Chair in Psychosocial Oncology and is Full Professor in Psychosocial Oncology in the Department of Oncology, Cumming School of Medicine at the University of Calgary. She has published over 150 research papers and book chapters in the area of psycho-oncology. In 2010, she published a patient manual with […]

Ifat Eckstein’s chapter for What Sustains Me

Feeling At Home, by Ifat Eckstein A chapter from the upcoming book, What Sustains Me. Free download. Note: The PDF takes a moment to come up. Read this PDF on your computer, phone, or tablet. Here’s how to read it on your iPad. With more than 20 years experience of working as a couple & family therapist, for […]

Roberto Larios: The synchronization of mammals

In this conversation, we explore what it is that predisposes us to experiencing a sense of shared connection in a group, and relate it to the mammalian brain, and the synchronization of mammals. About Roberto Larios Aguilar: Originally he was a Medical Doctor in the area of General Surgery, he quit and, as he began to […]

Michelle Weldon: Integrating mindfulness & psychology

Michelle Lee Weldon blends Yoga, Psychotherapy and Neurosculpting® to help her clients create sustainable change by re-wiring new patterns and habits into their daily routines. She is a guest lecturer in several Yoga Teacher Trainings across the country, a national presenter in the field of mindfulness and is the co-creator of Neurosculpting® Yoga. In addition […]

Dirk Marivoet: Bodymind Integration

Dirk Marivoet is the director of the Institute for Bodymind Integration in Ghent (Belgium). He studied Core-Energetics under John C. Pierrakos, MD; Postural Integration®, Energetic Integration and Pelvic-Heart Integration under Jack Painter, PhD (and has been a certified trainer/supervisor since 1999). He has also worked extensively with native shamanism both in Europe and North America. […]

Bruce Nayowith: An introduction to Subtle Activism

In this conversation, Bruce Nayowith talks about Subtle Activism at an experiential level. As Dr David Nicol describes it, Subtle Activism is applying the wisdom of our inner work to the collective dimension, for collective transformation, rather than the personal domain. Another of his quotes: “Subtle activism can be understood as a set of practices that allow […]

Dirk Marivoet: What Sustains Me

In this conversation (September 2015), Dirk Marivoet talks about getting an embodied experience of life…a sense of your own rhythm and pulsation….a sense of your orientation in the universe you live in… and an understanding and integration of the lessons that lie in the encounter…thus dreaming and weaving yourself into a life while being dreamt and […]

Aline LaPierre: Integrating the intelligence of the body

Aline LaPierre, PSYD, MFT, is the coauthor of Healing Developmental Trauma: How Early Trauma Affects Self-Regulation, Self-Image, and the Capacity for Relationship, and she has published numerous articles in peer-reviewed somatic journals. She was on the faculty of the somatic doctoral program at Santa Barbara Graduate Institute for 10 years. A graduate of Pacifica Graduate […]

Keren Ohayon: Taking my place in the world

This conversation is about sustaining as much as it is about emerging. It reflects an ongoing internal conversation about declaring my place in the world and negotiating, how much space I have within to take this world in, to live in it, to dip and swim in the river of life. It invited several years of exploration […]

Marti Glenn on making time and space for healing

Marti Glenn, PhD, Co-Director, Quest Institute, 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, […]

Exploring the Shared Field

Bruce Gibbs, Andrew McDonald, Bruce Nayowith and I have been meeting regularly to explore the Shared Field. In this conversation, we discuss some of our findings. Bruce Gibbs, Ph.D, has been doing Focusing for 35+ years. His years doing management consulting were heavily influenced by his Focusing practice. He is also a long-time meditator and […]

Tor Wager on understanding the Placebo effect

Dr. Wager is a Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience and a faculty member in the Institute for Cognitive Science at the University of Colorado, Boulder. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Michigan in cognitive psychology in 2003, and served as an Assistant and Associate Professor at Columbia University from 2004-2009. Since 2010, he has directed Boulder’s Cognitive […]

Erica Goodstone: What Sustains Me

In this conversation (April 2015), Erica Goodstone talks about rising to a challenge, and knowing when to let go. See published chapter that evolved from this conversation. Dr. Erica Goodstone helps men and women heal their relationships through love. As a Licensed Mental Health Counselor, Marriage Counselor, Sex Therapist, Body Oriented Psychotherapist and Personal Life […]

Dominick Romano: What Sustains Me

In this conversation (April 2015), Dominick Romano talks about love, hope and doubt. Dominick Romano: “I was born and raised in a little town in North Central New Jersey. My parents and grandparents were extremely unconventional for ones coming from a country influenced so much by the traditions, beliefs and rituals of the Roman Catholic […]

Michael Picucci: What Sustains Me

In this conversation (April 2015), Michael Picucci talks about the experiences of having an inner guide, and of feeling contentment. Michael subsequently wrote an article inspired by this conversation. Dr. Michael Picucci, PhD, MAC, SEP, brings decades of investigation and experience to his practice of Psychotherapy, Focalizing and Consulting. His professional expertise spans a wide-range […]

Flavia Cymbalista: Uncertainty, making decisions and investing

Dr. Flavia Cymbalista is an Uncertainty Specialist. Uncertainty is the thread that runs through her academic work in Finance, her practical work with decision-making and her lifelong interest in how we know what we know. In the last 12 years, Flavia has taught hundreds of finance professionals and business people around the world how to […]

Rae Johnson: What Sustains Me

In this conversation (March 2015), Rae Johnson talks about the embodied experience of oppression, what she does to understand it and express her understanding of it in ways that can transform this experience. Rae Johnson, PhD, RSW, RSMT is the Associate Chair of the Somatic Studies specialization in the Depth Psychology program at Pacifica Graduate […]

Jac Conaway: What Sustains Me

In this conversation (March 2015), Jac Conaway talks about approaching life with a spirit of scientific inquiry. Jac Conaway: “After a stint in the Peace Corp and about 5 years as a space scientist with NASA’s earth resources branch, I switched careers completely and graduated as a Bionergetic therapist and then a Core Energetic therapist. […]

Lorena Monda on Hakomi and Oriental Medicine

Lorena Monda, MS, DOM, LPCC, is a practicing psychotherapist (since 1979), a Doctor of Oriental Medicine, and a certified qigong teacher. She is a trainer for the Hakomi Institute and on the faculty of the AOMA Graduate School of Integrative Medicine in Austin, Texas, where she teaches courses in clinical communication integrating Hakomi skills. Lorena […]

Sandy Kinnee: What Sustains Me

In this conversation, Sandy Kinnee talks about being drawn to looking in a different way. Sandy Kinnee is an artist whose work figures in the collections of many museums, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art. He lives in Colorado Springs. See website. The painting with the red drip on the back is Arabesque, Number 13A, […]

Paul Linden: Body awareness & emotional self-regulation

Paul Linden is a specialist in body awareness education, a martial artist, and an author. He is the developer of Being In Movement® mindbody training, and co-founder of Aikido of Columbus / Columbus Center for Movement Studies. He holds a Ph.D. in Physical Education, a sixth degree black belt in Aikido and a first […]

Al Pesso: What Sustains Me #2

In this conversation (January 2015), Al Pesso talks about what moves him, and has provided sustenance in his personal and professional life. See also printable PDF of unedited transcript of this conversation. See also: published chapter that evolved from this conversation. Albert Pesso, co-founder with his wife, Diane Boyden-Pesso, of PBSP, Pesso Boyden System Psychomotor […]

Gregory Hickok: The myth of mirror neurons

Gregory Hickok, Ph.D. is Professor of Cognitive Sciences at UC Irvine, Founder, Director Emeritus, and current Fellow of the UCI Center for Cognitive Neuroscience & Engineering, Founder and Director of the Center for Language Science, Fellow of the Center for the Neurobiology of Learning & Memory and the Center for Hearing Research, and past Chair […]

Ilene Serlin: What Sustains Me

In this conversation (November 2014), Ilene Serlin talks about her experience of spirituality. Ilene A. Serlin, Ph.D, BC-DMT is a psychologist and registered dance/movement therapist in San Francisco and Marin. Past-president San Francisco Psychological Association, FellowAPA, past-president Division of Humanistic Psychology, she taught at Saybrook University, Lesley University, UCLA, the NY Gestalt Institute and the […]

David Rome: Mindful Focusing

David I. Rome is a teacher, writer and editor focusing on applications of contemplative methods in personal and social change. He has directed development of the Garrison Institute’s Transforming Trauma initiative as well as programs applying contemplative methods in K-12 education and environmental change work. Earlier, he was senior vice president for planning and development […]

Michael Picucci: Focalizing

Dr. Michael Picucci, PhD, MAC, SEP, brings decades of investigation and experience to his practice of Psychotherapy, Focalizing and Consulting. His professional expertise spans a wide-range of disciplines as a Psychologist, Licensed Psychotherapist, Master Addictions Counselor, Sexologist, Somatic Experiencing Practitioner and Organizational Consultant. Recipient of the National Institutes on Health “Outstanding Leadership in Research Award,” […]

Ifat Eckstein: What Sustains Me #2

In this conversation (October 2014), Ifat Eckstein talks about her deep sense of connection. See published chapter that evolved from this conversation. With more than 20 years experience of working as a couple & family therapist, for the last 10 years I enjoy bringing the world of FOT to the therapeutic space, giving workshops, teaching […]

Pierre Morin: Health, Sickness & Process Work

Pierre Morin, MD, PhD, is president of the International Association of Process Oriented Psychology (IAPOP) and a founding faculty member at the Process Work Institute Graduate School in Portland, OR. He was a clinical director of Switzerland’s leading rehabilitation clinic for brain and spinal injuries. After moving to Portland, OR, he studied health psychology and […]

Simona Aronow: What Sustains Me

In this conversation (August 2014), Simona Aronow talks about her spiritual practice and how it relates to movement and body mindfulness. Simona Aronow, MEd, BC-ADTR, CMA, NCTMB, NCC, KMP facilitates movement for self awareness, expression and transformation. She brings to her healing work 35 years of experience as therapist, supervisor and educator. Simona is a […]

Ifat Eckstein: What Sustains Me

In this conversation (July 2014), Ifat Eckstein talks about “asking”, connection, and clarity. See published chapter that evolved from this conversation. With more than 20 years experience of working as a couple & family therapist, for the last 10 years I enjoy bringing the world of FOT to the therapeutic space, giving workshops, teaching various […]

Raja Selvam: Integral Somatic Psychotherapy

Raja Selvam, PhD, is a senior trainer in Peter Levine’s Somatic Experiencing (SE) professional trauma training programs and the developer of Integral Somatic Psychotherapy (ISP), an advanced approach for integrating body, energy, and consciousness into any psychological process, designed for experienced clinicians. Raja’s eclectic approach draws from bodywork systems of Postural Integration, Biodynamic Cranio-Sacral Therapy, […]

Inge Sengelmann: What Sustains Me

In this conversation (June 2014), Inge Sengelmann talks about spiritual practice as a lived experience beyond concepts and theories. See published chapter that evolved from this conversation. Inge Sengelmann is a clinical psychotherapist licensed in Florida and Colorado, a Somatic Experiencing® Practitioner, and a registered yoga teacher focusing her practice on the treatment of traumatic […]

Lisa Dale Miller on Mindfulness & Somatic Experiencing

Lisa Dale Miller, LMFT, LPCC, SEP is a private practice psychotherapist in Los Gatos, CA and author. She specializes in mindfulness psychotherapy and Somatic Experiencing therapy for the treatment of depression, anxiety, addiction, trauma, emotion dysregulation, chronic pain, and relationship distress. Lisa has authored a highly regarded new textbook on Buddhist psychology for mental health […]

Robert Moss: Clinical Biopsychology

Dr. Moss is currently working with the Bon Secours Health System in Greenville, SC. He will be joining the Washington Medical Group in Washington, DC, this fall. He is board certified in clinical psychology (ABPP) and neuropsychology (ABN). He had over 20 years in private practice in addition to academic positions, the last of which […]

Al Pesso: What Sustains Me

In this conversation (March 2014), Al Pesso talks about his sense of fitting within the natural order of things. and the felt sense of harmony that comes from that. See published chapter that evolved from this conversation. Albert Pesso, co-founder with his wife, Diane Boyden-Pesso, of PBSP, Pesso Boyden System Psychomotor and President of the […]

Robert J. Hedaya, M.D.: Whole Psychiatry

Robert J. Hedaya, M.D., A.B.P.N., D.F.A.P.A., developed the Whole Psychiatry methodology, which offers a comprehensive physiological and psychosocial approach to mental health and chronic physical illness. He evaluates and treats mind and body dysfunction by focusing on the detailed evaluation and bi-directional interactions between and among a person’s hormonal system, immune system, gastrointestinal system, nutrition, […]

Robin Kappy: What Sustains Me

In this conversation (February 2014), Robin Kappy talks about seeing beauty in art, in the world at large, and in people. Robin Kappy, LCSW is a certified Focusing Oriented Psychotherapist and supervisor. A skillful and empathic psychotherapist with years of professional experience, her specialties include the treatment of recent and early-childhood trauma, issues of creativity, […]

Susan Rudnick: What Sustains Me

In this conversation (February 2014), Susan Rudnick begins with a childhood memory of being exposed to nature, and how from then on, nature has sustained her, thinking that will be the topic. But then the conversation moves to the way she uses embodied presence to bring herself back into a memory, reflect, deepen understanding, connect […]

Pawan Bareja: What Sustains Me

In this conversation (January 2014), Pawan Bareja talks about the power of myth to inspire us. Pawan Bareja has practiced Buddhist meditation since 2001. She is a Spirit Rock Ritual Minister and Community Dharma Leader. In her private practice as Trauma Resolution Practitioner, she works with a diverse population of clients and includes mindfulness meditation. […]

Iain McGilchrist: The Divided Brain

Dr Iain McGilchrist began his academic career as a Fellow of All Souls College, Oxford, teaching and writing about English literature. In Against Criticism, he expressed his misgivings about the academic study of literature, especially its neglect of how individual, embodied beings encounter the unique, incarnate work of art. He studied philosophy, trained in medicine, […]

Bruce Ecker: Transformational change & memory reconsolidation

Bruce Ecker, MA, LMFT, is co-director of the Coherence Psychology Institute, co-originator of Coherence Therapy, and coauthor of Unlocking the Emotional Brain: Eliminating Symptoms at Their Roots Using Memory Reconsolidation; Depth Oriented Brief Therapy: How To Be Brief When You Were Trained To Be Deep and Vice Versa; and the Coherence Therapy Practice Manual & […]

Pawan Bareja on Mindfulness and Somatic Experiencing

Pawan Bareja has practiced Buddhist meditation since 2001. She is a Spirit Rock Ritual Minister and Community Dharma Leader. In her private practice as Trauma Resolution Practitioner, she works with a diverse population of clients and includes mindfulness meditation. As a senior assistant in Somatic Experiencing trainings, Pawan has offered personal sessions and case consults […]

Ruella Frank: A somatic and developmental approach to psychotherapy

Ruella Frank, Ph.D., is founder and director of the Center for Somatic Studies, faculty at the New York Institute for Gestalt Therapy, adjunct faculty at Gestalt Associates for Psychotherapy and also teaches throughout the United States, Europe, Mexico and Canada. Ruella has authored chapters in various publications as well as the book Body of Awareness: […]

David Wallin on Attachment

David Wallin, PhD, is a clinical psychologist in private practice in Albany and Mill Valley, California. A graduate of Harvard who received his doctorate from the Wright Institute in Berkeley, he has been practicing, teaching, and writing about psychotherapy for nearly three decades. Attachment in Psychotherapy, his most recent book, is presently being translated into […]

Simona Aronow & Ilene Serlin: What Sustains Me

In this conversation (June 2013), Simona Aronow and Ilene Serlin discuss how spiritual practice and the practice of movement and body mindfulness can go hand in hand. Simona Aronow, MEd, BC-ADTR, CMA, NCTMB, NCC, KMP facilitates movement for self awareness, expression and transformation. She brings to her healing work 35 years of experience as therapist, […]

Maci Daye: A mindfulness-based sexual enrichment process for couples

Maci Daye is the creator of Passion and Presence®, a mindfulness-based sexual enrichment process for couples. Maci is a Licensed Professional Counselor, Certified Hakomi Trainer, Certified Master Career Counselor and Life Coach who lives in Atlanta, GA and Mallorca, Spain. Maci has graduate degrees in Education and Counseling from Harvard and Georgia State Universities, and […]

Rick Hanson on Buddha’s Brain and therapy

Rick Hanson, Ph.D., is a neuropsychologist and author of Buddha’s Brain: The Practical Neuroscience of Happiness, Love, and Wisdom (in 22 languages) and Just One Thing: Developing a Buddha Brain One Simple Practice at a Time (in 9 languages). Founder of the Wellspring Institute for Neuroscience and Contemplative Wisdom and Affiliate of the Greater Good […]

Serge Prengel on relational mindfulness & embodied experience

Serge Prengel, LMHC, is in private practice in New York City. He has been exploring embodied experience, relational mindfulness and proactive mindset. He was trained in Focusing, Core Energetics and Somatic Experiencing. His work also draws from Systems-Centered theory. Serge is a graduate of France’s Sorbonne University and HEC business school. He started and operated an ad agency […]

Patti Lentz on Physical Therapy and Somatic Experiencing

Patti Lentz is a physical therapist, yoga therapist and SEP in Albuquerque, NM. She also teaches physical therapists and yoga teachers internationally to recognize trauma symptoms in their clients and how to skillfully adapt treatment for them. She is insatiably curious….. about how things work, and what happens when they aren’t working so well. This […]

Michael Heller: How I use body psychotherapy with my patients

Michael C. Heller (born in 1949) is a psychologist who works on clinical and experimental research issues related to body and mind. His knowledge on this field has been summarized in his books: The Flesh of the Soul (2001, Peter Lang), Les Psychothérapies Corporelles (2008, De Boeck) and Body Psychotherapy (2012, W.W. Norton). He has […]

Tanya Slattery on Mindfulness & Somatic Experiencing

Tanya Slattery is a structural body worker and SEP in Philadelphia. She has always been drawn to working with her hands—she had started adult life as a ceramic artist. She shifted to bodywork more than 20 years ago, and credits inspiring teachers to give her a sense of working at the cutting edge of her […]

Judyth Weaver: Sensory Awareness

Judyth O. Weaver, Ph.D. in Reichian Psychology, began studying with Charlotte Selver in 1968, after returning from three years in Asia, most of them spent in a Zen Buddhist monastery. She is also certified as a Somatic Experiencing Practitioner, in Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy, Gestalt Therapy, and in Prenatal and Birth Therapy. She is a Rosen […]

Tina Stromsted: Jungian Analysis & Authentic Movement

Tina Stromsted, Ph.D., MFT, BC-DMT is a Jungian analyst, Somatic psychotherapist, and Board Certified Dance therapist. Past co-founder and faculty of the Authentic Movement Institute in Berkeley and a founding member of the Women’s Spirituality program at the California Institute of Integral Studies, she currently teaches at the C.G. Jung Institute of San Francisco, the […]

Frances Sommer Anderson on Using Somatic Experiencing in Psychoanalytic Practice

Frances Sommer Anderson, PhD, is a psychoanalyst and licensed psychologist in private practice in New York City. The body–disabled, disfigured, and in pain–has been the focus of her clinical work, beginning with a clinical psychology internship in physical rehabilitation medicine at Rusk Institute-NYU Langone Medical Center in 1974. Specializing in treating pain and other mindbody […]

Katy Swafford: Eidetic Imagery

Katy Swafford, PhD has worked in Eidetic Imagery for 20 Years. She has trained with the founder, Akhter Ahsen, PhD intensively and her practice is focused on developing applications for this comprehensive method. Dr. Swafford conducts training in Eidetic Imagery and is working to introduce this somatically based theory into academic environments as well. Eidetic […]

Lynn Somerstein: Yoga & Psychoanalysis

Lynn Somerstein, PhD, NCPsyA, LP, RYT, licensed psychoanalyst in private practice, is Executive Director of the Institute for Expressive Analysis. Dr. Somerstein is on the editorial board of the Psychoanalytic Review and the author of numerous articles about yoga, anxiety, attachment issues and psychotherapy. Dr. Somerstein is also an international speaker, and has presented her […]

Cedar Barstow: The Right Use of Power

Cedar Barstow, M.Ed., Certified Hakomi Therapist and International Trainer is the author of “Right Use of Power: The Heart of Ethics.” The ideas and examples in this talk are taken from this book and Cedar’s training programs in right use of power. The goal of right use of power, as the largest container for ethics, […]

Jack Rosenberg & Beverly Kitaen-Morse: Integrative Body Psychotherapy

Dr. Jack Lee Rosenberg is internationally recognized as a pioneer for his innovative approach to body psychotherapy, human sexuality, and couples counseling, teaching his approach throughout the United States, Europe and Canada He is founder and Clinical Director of the IBP Central and International Institutes. He has doctorates in dentistry and psychology. His master’s thesis […]

Leclanché Durand: Theater, Play & Healing

The interplay of acting, playwriting, directing and drama therapy has allowed Leclanché Durand a unique and privileged window into each of these forms of exploration and expression. She often feels like a pioneer of the human psyche in these several worlds, which call upon individual revelation. Leclanché Durand is an actress, a playwright, and a drama therapist. […]

Pat Ogden: Sensorimotor Psychotherapy

Pat Ogden, Ph.D. is the founder and director of the Sensorimotor Psychotherapy Institute, an internationally recognized school that specializes in training psychotherapists in somatic/cognitive approaches for the treatment of post traumatic stress disorder and attachment disturbances. She is a clinician, consultant, international lecturer and trainer, co-founder of the Hakomi Institute, and has been a faculty […]

Robert Hilton: Relational Somatic Psychotherapy

Robert Hilton, Ph.D has been in private practice in Orange County, California for 45 years and has taught courses at the University of California at Irvine and San Diego, and the United States International University in La Jolla. In 1972 he co-founded the Southern California Institute for Bioenergetic Analysis where he continues to be a […]

Kristen Ulmer: From extreme skiing to mindset training

Kristen Ulmer was a mogul skier on the US Ski Team, but is better known for being the best big mountain (extreme) and overall woman skier in the world as voted by the media and her industry peers. In 2000, the outdoor industry also voted her the most overall extreme woman athlete in North America. […]

Bodyfulness: Body awareness & embodied presence

In the video below, you can see somebody using the body as a resource in the process of making sense of things. Please keep in mind that the person in this video, Carol “Tandava” Henning, is an actor and dancer who sees belly dancing as a way to embody the sacred feminine. She has developed […]

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