Life Moves Through
Online Somatic Healing Group
This group runs on Tuesdays in short series through out the year. You can join in at the start of any series, anytime you desire. The hope is that you will choose to stay with the group over time. As you continue, you will become more familiar with the people and the processes. We would love to welcome you in. There are longer series where we learn info, and there are shorter “Integration & Connection” series that are more free form and where you get to know each other more, get to ask questions, and where we can explore whatever is needed in the moment.
Next Up: 6 Week Series
Many Rivers - PART 2 - All are welcome to join this series - even if you were not in the part 1, I would love to have you join. We will continue exploring each channel of SIBAM and volunteers will also do some mini sessions with me so that you get to watch how exploring these channels help us move through, integrate, and heal.
In this series, we will use the Somatic Experiencing concept of SIBAM to process, explore, and help heal trauma. SIBAM is an acronym for: Sensation, Image, Behavior, Affect, and Meaning. These are the different rivers of experience. The mind has a story of what happened or what is happening - this is usually what we are most aware of. However, pieces of the story also live in the body, emotions, and in images.
Each week, we will explore your experience through a different channel Working with these different elements of experience is essential in healing trauma and also serves as a re-connection to the wholeness of experience, a sense of presence, wonder, and wholeheartedness.
Many Rivers
Tuesdays
3:00 - 4:20 pm Pacific
6 Weeks
January 14th - February 18th
Live or Recorded
Click here to enroll
Then: 3 Week Integration & Connection Series
Each topic of this group will be create the foundation for each person to process what is present for them. Each person will be invited to share, and exercises will be shaped both by the curriculum and by the present needs of the group.
The Story of this Group
I am so excited to for this next evolution of this group!
I started holding this space in 2020. I had wanted to create a group like this for a long time. Situations of the 2020 “stay at home” made it clear that the time had come. Since then, I have refined this group, letting it expand from “trauma first aid” to being a container for deeper work. Both are always present. And–even as people begin having more options outside in the world–this group still severs a valuable role. From the comfort of your home, you can connect deeply with your self, the practices, and the support of the group.
With this evolution, I am making the group sustainable and on-going. Rather than longer 8 week groups, I have divided the material into shorter series. This allows for less of a commitment and, also allows for participants to be a part of the group on-going throughout the year. Dividing the content up into these sections also allows process to become as important as the tools. From the very beginning, you will be invited to share what you are going through and use the topics of the group as support. The tools and concepts are valuable. However, the people you are with, and what is unfolding in your life, are the most important things. The biggest truth of somatic work is that we are human and we need each other.
You are invited to join in at any point along the way. No need to do the topics in order.
You can join for a topic that is interesting to you, you can do every topic through out the year, and you can even do the same topic several times and each time will invite you into a deeper access.
Somatic practices and social connection help us shift out of stress and overwhelm and into states of healing and meaning. You may be needing support to navigate challenges that come from present situations. You may also be looking for support in healing trauma (PTSD, cPTSD), anxiety, depression, addiction, stress, or complex medical conditions. This group is not meant to replace other forms of treatment, but rather to be an addition and a place that can tend to your nervous system and soul. The practices and information explored in this group can be helpful in finding strength, compassion, understanding, and empowerment.
This group is good for people wanting support to work with symptoms of stress and trauma and also for anyone interested in engaging with life with more connection to the body, soul, and sense of wonder. Somatic work is the key to working with trauma, but it is not just about trauma. It is an invitation to become more fully alive and integrate any parts that had been set aside.
The group setting gives financial relief for anyone whose work or ability to work has been compromised. It also amplifies healing as we hold space for each other and benefit from witnessing the process of others. Groups also bring the benefits of expanding personal capacity and agency as each person gets to learn information that they can use for their own navigation. Keeping with somatic principles of accessibility, this group makes somatic practice affordable.I would love to have you join.
What is “Somatic?”
"Somatic" refers to the body. Somatic work integrates understandings of the nervous system, stress response, memory systems, emotions, social engagement, cultural and environmental factors. It can also include awareness of the psyche, spirituality, and energy. Rather than working only in the narrow channel of the cognitive mind, this paradigm invites us to welcome all parts of ourselves and our experience. This allows us to navigate healing and integration of the past and find states of coherence, connection, experience of wholeness, and awareness of life flowing forward. The foundations for this group are Somatic Experiencing and Depth Psychology, however it will draw in many somatic philosophies as well as soul retrieval. We will use somatic themes to guide us and also will have space for connection, sharing, and whatever is arising.
What is group like?
Each meeting is one hour and twenty minutes. It begins with time for questions and shares, then an experiential practice to help you land and connect to yourself. There will be a brief presentation and exploration of a topic, sharing, time for questions, and experiential somatic practices. Importance will be placed on each persons process and mutual support.
Each week, you will receive a follow-up webpage that expands on the topic we covered. It will also include a recorded practice that you can use between sessions.
Enrollment and Pricing
The introduction call is no longer required prior to enrolling for group. If you would like to connect personally to see if group is right to you, you are welcome to do an introduction call with Laura. The price is $25 for a 20 min call. You are also welcome to request and introduction or check in call at any time along the way for the same rate. If you do not want a call ahead of time, you are welcome to simply enroll.
For 3 week Integration & Connection Series, the regular rate for the 3 weeks is $75. You can also pay at a supporter rate of $120 to help support someone else. There is a sliding scale price of $30 and a scholarship price of $18.
Each group will run with a minimum of 6 people - so please enroll in advance to be sure I know you are interested.
For the 6 week topic series:
The regular rate is $210. You are also welcome to enroll at the supporter rate of $240 to help someone else. You are also welcome to take the sliding scale rate of $150, the sliding scale 2 price of $90, the partial scholarship rate of $60, and the full scholarship rate of $35. The scholarship full scholarship rate is NOT available for your first time enrolling, but if you deicide to continue, it will be there for you if needed. Also - once you have participated in group, if you ever cannot pay, just let me know. Please pay at the highest rate that is comfortable to you to ensure to help make spots available for those who cannot pay as much.
Email Laura at lifemovesthrough@gmail.com with any questions
Look for these upcoming topics:
Each topic of this group will be create the foundation for each person to process what is present for them. Each person will be invited to share, and exercises will be shaped both by the curriculum and by the present needs of the group. Groups alternate between series where we cover a
• Somatic Wisdom (6 weeks)
This series introduces you to a paradigm of trust and support of the wisdom body. It focuses on building connection within the group and a foundation of somatic awareness, stability, soothing, capacity, and choice. You will learn basic theories of the physiology of trauma and healing and practice exercises to help you begin to track activation and settling within the body and to become more curious about sensation rather than afraid. Many tools will be given to support soothing and settling.
Each week, we will explore a different element of trauma physiology and you will get to contemplate your current symptoms and life through that lens. Understanding the nervous system and seeing symptoms as the body’s efforts to survive helps depathologize, gives a perspective of hope, and may offer new ways forward.
• Somatic Wisdom: Integration & Connection (3 weeks)
We will explore ideas of the nervous system and trauma physiology and use processes that will help. Along the way, you will get more connected to the tools and ways of working, and also more connected with yourself and with the group. You are welcome in this group if you have done group before and/or if you are thinking about joining in the future. For those who were there for the last series, we will continue working with similar themes. For those joining in for the first time, you’ll be introduced to the concepts and become more familiar with the other people in the group. These Integration & Connection series give a chance to get to know each other better and to get to deepen practice with the tools.
• The Flow of Healing (6 weeks)
We will cultivate safety and resource within your own body and within the container of the group. From there, the dance of healing will begin. With more space and stability, you will become more able to explore both the trauma vortex (the states that are in need of healing) and the counter vortex (the states of healing and presence that begin to emerge.
Each topic of this group will be create the foundation for each person to process what is present for them. Each person will be invited to share, and exercises will be shaped both by the curriculum and by the present needs of the group.
• The Flow of Healing: Integration & Connection (3 weeks)
We will work with the concepts of “trauma vortex” and “counter vortex” in a more personal way. If you are joining group for the first time, you will be introduced to these concepts and get to explore the experience of them. Those who are continuing on with group will deepen their practice and healing. As we dance through the vortexes, each person will learn to track discharge and notice signs of healing.
• Embodied Healing (6 weeks) This is a different and special series, and I think you will really enjoy! In world and moment where there is a lot of fear - we are going to lean into what supports us. We will explore and deepen our experience of resource (that which supports us) and counter-vortex (the healing that is happening. Opening to experiences of pleasure, goodness, comfort and strength is a revolutionary act all by itself. AND as we shore up these inner resources, you will be able to move through your daily interactions in a different way - supporting healing for yourself and others. Since healing involves pendulation, we will also hold space for grief and fear that are ready to be felt and discharged.
This series is 6 weeks long, but will be more in the style of an Integration and Connection series - the focus is more on experience, process, and connection to others in the group. The first week will be an introduction to each other and to the concepts. From there, each week we will work in a similar process that includes exploration of your embodied experience and also exploration through art and movement (that you can do within your ability). You do not need to be an artist or dancer! However all can bring in the expressions they desire and these processes will help you experience an embodied sense of healing. Along the way, you will deepen your ability to track inner awareness, expand your vocabulary for experience, and cultivate somatic resonance (a felt-sense of connection) with others. Whether you have experience in somatic process or are brand new to this exploration, you will enjoy this group.
• Many Rivers (6 weeks) (Fall 2024)
In this series, we will use the Somatic Experiencing concept of SIBAM to process, explore, and help heal trauma. SIBAM is an acronym for: Sensation, Image, Behavior, Affect, and Meaning. These are the different rivers of experience. The mind has a story of what happened or what is happening - this is usually what we are most aware of. However, pieces of the story also live in the body, emotions, and in images.
Each week, we will explore your experience through a different channel Working with these different elements of experience is essential in healing trauma and also serves as a re-connection to the wholeness of experience, a sense of presence, wonder, and wholeheartedness.
• Many Rivers: Integration & Connection - Demonstrations (3 weeks)
• Life Force & Boundary (6 weeks)
• Somatic + Cognitive
• A Return to Goodness
• Courage to Feel
Groups alternate between longer series where we study a topic and then shorter 3 week series where we work with concepts to connect more deeply. In these short 3 week series, you’ll get to know me and get to know each other. This is a great way to build safety and to deepen the work within the group. You are welcome in this group if you have done group before and/or if you are thinking about joining in the future. For this 3 week integration and connection series, please only join if you are able to be present and interested in participating in the ways that you are able. This is a chance to get to let others know you a bit more. For the longer informational series, content will be recorded, so you will be welcome to join even if you can’t make the time or prefer not to participate live.
Shares
It’s a little difficult to describe what group is like since it is experiential. When you have your intake call, I can answer any questions you have and help give you a sense of what it is like. Also - here are a few shares from past participants. These can give you a sense of what they journey is like.
“When I first discovered Laura’s somatic group I felt like I was at the end of my rope. My trauma and chronic illness felt like the center and controller of my life, and I could not see a way forward. My heart was crying out to be held; I could no longer walk through this dark labyrinth alone. Finding this group feels like a true blessing, gift, and privilege. Through this work I am reclaiming my body, my spirit, and my life.
There is an otherworldly aspect of trauma healing work; calling the soul back home is mysterious, often terrifying, and can even sometimes be playful and blissful. Laura is able to serve as a bridge to these vast dimensions with strength and grace. She teaches the scientific workings of trauma, the nervous system, and somatic healing to ground the group in a conceptual understanding. From there, more curiosity and trust is developed to open to the experiential and group processes. The space Laura holds with her words, presence, and intention make me feel safe enough to believe that healing is possible. We are given guidance to hold ourselves and each other in the group dynamic, which allows for the gift of being witnessed with others in our tender, shaky places.
This is unlike any other trauma therapy modality I’ve worked with. There is truly no hierarchy, no one telling you what to do, how to think, or how to heal. Laura’s approach to somatics is focused on relearning the language of our bodies. Our own inner healers emerge as we integrate sensations, memories, and symptoms. It is up to you how deeply or superficially you want to engage with the work. You will find the pace and amount you’re ready to digest. Deep emotional catharsis can happen, but more attention is given to slow, deep changes in the nervous system. We find more space in ourselves, inch by inch, so what’s stuck can move through us without being retraumatizing.
Over the last year participating in Laura’s somatics groups (as well as yoga and now breathwork circles), I have taken real steps in my healing. My trauma and my suffering still live in me, but I have so much more space in my system; it no longer feels like trauma is all I am. I feel courage as I walk through the dark spaces. I am creatively and spiritually engaged in a way I didn’t think was possible for me. I want my life! This healing is a miracle, and from the depths of my tender, growing, hurt, healing, painful, sacred heart, I thank Laura and the group members for walking with me.
Rose Hayes-Dineen
Bayfield, WI
bodyworker, herbalist, artist ”
“Laura’s somatic groups are a great landing place for those who are looking to heal trauma at any step of the journey. A wonderful introduction to somatic therapy as these groups provide experiential learning that is both gentle and paradigm-shifting. In my experience, somatic therapy helped me to be aware of my body’s responses to trauma in real time; I am able to pause in moments of distress and think about the many somatic tools I have available to diffuse a sympathetic response while also being present with it. Shifting from being clutched by trauma responses to having input on my nervous system’s functioning was revolutionary for me. In working with these small moments, I was also healing something much larger, my ptsd. The most special aspect of being in a somatic group is seeing your cohort heal alongside and being held to do the same. I would highly recommend this work to anyone curious about somatic therapy or wanting to restore balance in the nervous system. This was my first experience in a therapy setting and I’m incredibly grateful for that. In the future, it will be a requirement that the healers and therapists I work with practice somatics.”
“My experience with Laura’s Somatic Groups has been one of depth and incredible learning about myself. Laura holds a space of presence and lovingkindness. She is skilled in working with trauma, and supporting so many diverse individuals through their unique experience of the world. She has helped me personally to be more aware of my body and how it holds my past experiences, and working to titrate and pendulate between my own trauma vortexes and counter vortexes (you will understand this when you take the group!) I have and will continue to recommend this group to my friends. Her sliding scale offer of accessibility for this group also made this healing possible for me. Thank you Laura!”
Details:
This group is non-clinical and non-pathologizing. It is not meant to replace medical or psychological treatment and may be an addition to your treatment plan. If you are currently in therapy, I am happy to be in communication with your therapist. Each individual will be seen for their wholeness, intactness and ability to do self-care. If you have any questions at all, please contact Laura at lifemovesthrough@gmail.com
Therapists and helpers are welcome to refer clients and use this group as addition support for clients–including and especially clients needing scholarship and sliding scale support. Please let me know if you are therapist or helper who would like to use this group for referrals and I will email you each time a group is forming.
Therapists and helpers are also welcome to come do their own healing and expand capacity while learning tools they can share. If you are a therapist who is interested in this group, please email me for considerations of confidentiality. Please also let me know if you are doing this group to learn tools to share with clients.
This group is not run under a clinical license and instead in the category defined by CA Business and Professions Code 2908 as alternative or complementary treatments for the purpose of self-improvement and stress reduction. In all locations, you can consider this "somatic education."
