Our deepest emotions - heart-breaking, gut wrenching, mind numbing- are experienced and expressed in our bodies. Understandings and practises drawn from somatically focused therapeutic approaches can help us address what may seem in the moment unbearable and overwhelming in ourselves and those with whom we work.
In this interactive and experiential workshop, we will explore some very practical and immediate measures for dealing with the impact of powerful emotion in the moment and over time. These include the cosmic shrug, the restorative sigh, and other embodied techniques such as grounding, centring, and boundary setting, along with an exploration of their underlying neurophysiological and relational basis.
I will also Introduce 2 original formulations as they apply in the context of bereavement: The Spectrum of trauma affected experience: from unbearable, through unimaginable, unthinkable, unspeakable, to engagement The Four phases of Pulsation: free pulsation, blocked pulsation, frozen pulsation, shattered or fragmented pulsation.
Course Content
Presenter
Michael Gavin retired as a Radix Body Psychotherapist, and Somatic Trauma Therapist in 2016 after 30 years in practice. He was External Clinical Supervisor at London Underground’s Counselling and Trauma Service (2007- 16). He now offers individual mentoring sessions, and trainings integrating contemporary psychotherapy with eastern energy approaches (Qigong and Advaita Vedanta).
