What you can expect from working with a Certified Hakomi Therapist (C.H.T.), as your guide in learning how to cope.
Stress seems to be all around us and within us these days. We don’t want it to overwhelm us and negatively impact our lives, but we are experiencing challenging times. Pandemics, Politics, and Protests are putting a strain on our relationships. More than ever, we need to be able to create a felt sense of safety within ourselves in order to create safety with others. Safety is the foundation of any solid relationship, including your relationship with your SELF.
Do you find yourself needing help coping with stress? Are you worrying about your future and the future of your loved ones, possibly the world? Are you having difficulty sleeping? Is concentration and focus difficult? You are not alone. Theses are “unprecedented times” and we need practical ways to cope so that we can have more of what we need and want as we move forward in our lives. And we will move forward!
It is time to learn how to TRANSFORM UNWANTED STRESS!
When I work with people in my psychotherapy practice UNWANTED Stress is often what people need help with the most. They want to “feel better” but don’t know how to get there. Stress causes us to feel out of balance or “off” in mind, body and spirit.
It is important, however, to understand that stress can be positive such as when it helps you avoid danger or meet a deadline. In general, stress is your body’s reaction to a challenge or demand. It can come from any event that makes you feel frustrated, angry, or nervous. Can you relate?
I have developed a way of working with Stress that includes observing HOW you perceive and respond to stress with attention to WHY this is happening as it relates to ideas you have about yourself (this is often connected to childhood and might be unconscious, but not always) and your world. In therapy, as we explore together your experience, eventually we are able to identify WHAT thoughts/behaviors may need to change (transform) because it is probably an outdated survival or stress response. (More about Survival Response in another Blog). Once we have identified the habitual patterns that contribute to your stress, then just PRACTICING SKILLS to cope in the moment of stress and shift direction is what is required to achieve LESS STRESS and MORE JOY!
You Can get There from HERE!!
Below you will find information in regards to Hakomi Mindful Somatic Psychotherapy which informs my work with clients. I have also learned and integrated other modalities and models of therapy in my overall practice, such as CBT, ACT, DBT, IFS, HeartMath and Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, but Hakomi is still what guides me. It truly is my first LOVE.
I invite you to read below to get a sense of how I work. (This is taken from the Hakomi Institute web-site): https://hakomiinstitute.com
- The Hakomi therapist will work to cultivate an attitude and atmosphere of loving presence, acceptance and safety. These factors are key to the practice of the Hakomi method.
- They will work within the Hakomi principle of nonviolence. This means they will not impose their beliefs, observations, or analysis on you.
- You will have the opportunity to learn experientially what is true for you. For example, in Hakomi psychotherapy, we discover the unconscious core beliefs that guide our conscious lives without our knowledge.
- The therapist will help you learn to work in mindfulness. In Hakomi psychotherapy, mindfulness helps to access core unconscious material quite rapidly and safely.
- Hakomi will help you to develop your understanding and experience of body-mind integration. It is a principle common to both holistic health and Hakomi that emotional stress is stored in the body and may manifest as chronic tension or illness.
If you are interested in talking with me further about your needs and challenges, I am offering a FREE CLARITY SESSION at this time through my web-site https://www.sunyataintegrativehealth.com During a Clarity Session we will talk together and I will help you discern if working with me at this time is something you would like to pursue. I encourage you to reach out and get the help you need. Thank you for reading my BLOG! More to come later!
Leslie Kay Maitri Canniff, LCMHC, LCAS, C.H.T.
