Body-Centered Psychotherapy in Missouri & Colorado

Psychotherapy is an opportunity to practice honesty, presence, explore relational dynamics, feel your feelings, express yourself & much more…

In your first session we’ll talk about your goals & intentions for therapy & what modalities & therapy approaches appeal to you.

As follows, you will find brief descriptions of the modalities I offer. They can be combined & curated to your needs.

buddha statue next to clear pond with goldfish

CONTEMPLATIVE PSYCHOTHERAPY

My style of Psychotherapy emphasizes the mind-body relationship, integrating mindfulness practice & working to interrupt challenging patterns in the mind, body & emotions. We’ll work with how your mind might be struggling with anxiety/panic, boundaries & limiting beliefs. Awareness in the present moment provides the essential framework for curiosity & gentleness in the process of change. More about it here.

Close-up of a pine cone in a cup, held by Buddha statue

SOMATIC PSYCHOTHERAPY

In sessions I direct you, experientially, in tracking body sensation, the movement of emotion, thoughts, breath & posture to attune to & integrate what is needing attention. At the same time, there is the potential to create a container for the body to inform pace & yield into the present moment.

Learn more about Somatic Psychotherapy here.

Close-up of green ginkgo leaf with water droplets on it, on a white background.

EXTENDED-SESSION PSYCHOTHERAPY

I offer Somatic Psychotherapy as extended 90-minute sessions, curated to your needs. Options include somatic practices, fundamental movement & learning how to pace energy for sensitive nervous systems & much more…

My signature Mapping Your Body is informed by Body-Mind Centering, Body-Mind Psychotherapy, Fundamental Movement (Developmental Somatic Psychotherapy) & Sensorimotor Psychotherapy. more information here.

candles in gold bowls, lite

GRIEF COUNSELING

I began my career in end-of-life care & have over a decade of experience in hospice, dementia care & grief counseling. I strive to help people understand that grief is a natural human process & is not simply sadness, but includes an array of emotions as well as body responses.

Loss is inevitable, but the extent to which you suffer with loss is not pre-determined. Grief left unattended can devolve into despair & endless sorrow.

Close-up of a dandelion seed head with numerous delicate, wispy seeds radiating outward.

PARTS INTEGRATION

I first learned “parts work” through mentorship with a Shamanic Journey-work teacher who taught me Soul Parts Retrieval & since have added & adapted Internal Family Systems & Somatic Psychotherapy to create a primary focus on parts-mapping & body-mapping.

Parts-mapping helps cultivate self-compassion as well as disengaging denial of difficult emotions. Please note: I do not offer “formal” IFS work as it does not suit my approach.

hands in terra cotta colored sand

SANDTRAY FOR ADULTS

I am trained in child-directed play therapy & although I no longer see children in my practice, it’s a joy to offer Sandtray to adult clients.

Sandtray is an Expressive Arts Therapy that is wonderful for connecting with the unconscious, parts & body-mapping, working with fundamental movement & tracking conflicting emotions.

orange tabby cat tucked into bed

INSOMNIA INTERVENTIONS

For those who are suffering with sleep challenges, I offer a range of assessment & modalities, including: Contemplative Psychotherapy to help with negative thought associations with bedtime & Somatic relaxation techniques for “tired & wired” nerves. Psych-education related to ADHD & Autism sleep differences is integrated with techniques as we define your mix of sleep challenges & determine what else might be needed…when warm milk is just not cutting it!

the foundations of my approach

  • “Nothing in the world is as soft & yielding as water. Yet for dissolving the hard & inflexible, nothing can surpass it. The soft overcomes the hard; the gentle overcomes the rigid.”

    — Lao Tzu, Tao Te Ching

  • Loving Kindness

    Sometimes we are not very skilled at being gentle & kind to ourselves. Often the opposite is the norm, which results in a barrage of self-aggressive thoughts riddled with "shoulds."

    It's impossible to experience joy from this place of self-judgement. We can't fake it. Loving ourselves is not fluffy, unimportant stuff. It is the most essential ingredient to living a life of purpose & connection.

  • Mindfulness & Embodiment

    Mindfulness has become a commonly used term that in some ways has become watered-down due to overly broad use. Mindfulness is our effort to turn our attention & awareness to the present moment in an intentional way.

    This includes mindfulness of what our thoughts & mind are doing, as well as mindfulness of body, breath, movement & posture.

    Combining mindfulness of body & mind can create what we call an "embodied" way of being…feeling “whole.”

  • Curiosity

    Curiosity creates the space for exploration & disarms judgement & assumptions. As such, it is very effective for exploring fear & problematic beliefs.

    Curiosity is often a gateway to playfulness, light-heartedness & creative expression, which is beneficial in therapy & life.

  • Emotional Intelligence

    If emotional intelligence is not modeled for us as we develop & grow we simply do not learn how to clearly name how we feel.

    We may assume that some emotions are unacceptable to others around us & begin to suppress our feelings.

    Emotional intelligence begins with knowing how to identify feelings & to learn to attune to yourself.

  • Non-Pathologizing Approach

    Mental Health diagnosis has many flaws. Diagnostics can be helpful & sometimes harmful. While some folks benefit from a diagnosis, others do not or are mis-diagnosed.

    Whatever your situation, it’s important to me that I do not pathologize you, but rather help to offer effective guidance & frameworks to support psychological, emotional & relational well-being. You are not “broken.”

  • Neurodiversity-Affirming

    Neurodiversity-affirming therapy acknowledges the challenges Autistic people & AHDers’ experience. Strategies are customized to meet an individual’s unique circumstances, respecting inherent neuro-different attributes.

    We also use the terms & language that resonate for you. Come as your are…self-diagnosed or otherwise.

    This is not about making neurodiverse individuals conform to neurotypical standards. That practice has caused a lot of harm, historically & is inappropriate in neurodiversity-affirming psychotherapy.

  • Healthy Risk-Taking

    I want to express that I do not propose a solution where you always feel “safe” forever & are never overwhelmed again.

    We don not grow in our comfort zone, but the key is to begin taking “healthy” risks…I often talk about this as “working your edge.”

    The edge of your capacity is where growth happens. it is an art to not push yourself over that edge, but also not to avoid the expansion your need.

    Playing small may keep you safe, but it’s not living….it’s hypo-arousal.

getting started with psychotherapy…

Follow the link & schedule your 50 minute intro session. I offer a reduced rate of $100 for the first session, so we can get a feel for if working together is a good fit. If you cannot find a time that works for you, message me via my contact page.

A first session is an opportunity to see if you like the way I work & we’ll talk about your needs & how to proceed from there.

You can indicate if you would like to meet online or in-person in Columbia, MO.