If you’ve experienced trauma – and we all have, at some level – your body may be holding onto the memory, keeping you in a protective crouch. This defense can be effective at keeping your body from further harm, but the unmetabolized grief and trauma from the past can block you from taking risks and experiencing aliveness in the present.
While “talk therapy” does not include working with the physical presence of the body and is therefore incomplete in its approach, Somatic Psychology works with the body, mind and spirit, bringing all aspects of the Self into harmony. If you’re feeling stuck with traditional psychotherapy, you might find the focus on how your body tells the story to be fascinating and scary. I will bring gentle attention to this aspect of your subconscious to help you transform and finally release the story that is making you feel stuck. In this way, the innocence of the open, vulnerable child can be brought forward, safely. The experience of wonder is your birthright, and therapy can help you reclaim it. I also work with a boxer/terrier mix, Huxley. (Who lives in wonder, as in: “I wonder when I can eat again?”) He is a tremendous source of comfort in the room. If you are allergic to dogs, just let me know.
Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy (KAP)
Ketamine was originally used as an anesthetic in the 1960’s. Science has recently (in the last 10 years) been studying Ketamine as an effective tool to help Treatment Resistant Depression (TRD). It has been shown that Ketamine even after the first dose, helps new dendrites in the brain to form. Dendrites help create new neural pathways which increases neuroplasticity in the brain. Having new neural pathways in your brain helps stop rumination, rigid thinking and low mood. The experience of Ketamine varies from person to person but in general patients report feelings of deep peace and equanimity. Many see colors or shapes and find the music being played during the session to be mesmerizing and deeply moving. Some have the experience of meeting with elders that have passed, offering them support and care. Some visit past traumatic events but with the distance that the medicine offers, find they are able to process the memory without feeling so much fear. Typically a session is 2-3 hours long which includes an hour for integration. During integration we discuss themes that arrived during the ketamine journey and how that relates to their stated intentions of the work. Many people find ketamine to be a useful tool to assist in processing grief and trauma more rapidly than psychotherapy alone. For TRD it is recommended to have 4-6 sessions to help the brain to develop new neural pathways to assist in feelings of low mood and rumination. Learn more about Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy below:
https://www.webmd.com/depression/features/what-does-ketamine-do-your-brain
Not everything is as scary as it seems.