Frequently Asked Questions

I specialize in treating the effects of stress and trauma that may show up as anxiety, irritability, shutdown, low energy, sleep issues, or relational difficulties.
Please also see Who I Work With.

The word "somatic" means body-oriented or body-inclusive.
We will be talking during our sessions, but we will also track the full flow of your present-moment experience including Sensation, Imagery, Behavior, Affect or Emotion, and Meaning (SIBAM).
This attention to the broader range of human experience often creates deep and lasting change, especially when the work involves unresolved autonomic nervous system survival mobilization.
Somatic work is holistic - it includes the body while fully honoring all the dimensions of the human person: the sensitive powers (emotions and sensations) and the higher rational faculties of intellect (reason) and will. This supports the natural ordering in which reason and will gently guide the emotions toward greater wholeness.

The Catholic understanding of the human person has been developed over literally thousands of years, long before the emergence of modern theories and yet responsive to the best that science continually teaches us about the depths of human nature.
As a somatic therapist, I celebrate that we recognize a profound unity of body and soul, understood as a single reality created in God’s image and likeness. For example, St. John Paul II’s Theology of the Body and philosophy of personhood emphasize that the body is not separate from the person but reveals the person and is in fact made for communion and self-giving love.
We understood the human person as possessing an inherent dignity that does not depend on our state of health or functioning. Fully developed, human nature has a capacity for union with God.
In my unique way of practicing, I honor this unity by gently supporting the integration of body, emotions, and the higher faculties of intellect and will.

Somatic Experiencing (SE) is a powerful approach to healing that helps people to integrate or resolve unprocessed stress or trauma. I have completed three years of training in SE.
SE is whole person focused, including or addressing the body, autonomic nervous system states and survival patterns, emotions, intellect, as well as the range of rational as well as survival based choices we make. You can learn more here.

Hakomi is an experiential and mindfulness-based somatic therapy that gently explores core beliefs and patterns through present-moment awareness within sessions. I have completed two years of training in Hakomi.
One of the unique qualities of Hakomi oriented work is that we collaboratively design what we call "little experiments" to help us uncover core material. Hakomi embodies qualities of presence, attention, and care, towards oneself and towards one another.

I am in-network with PacificSource, Kaiser Permanente Northwest, HealthNet, and Moda.
I do not accept any Medicare plans except through Kaiser.
The only Oregon Health Plan I am contracted with is Trillium OHP. I do not accept other OHP plans.
I limit the number of clients from each insurance network I am contracted with so that I can maintain space for a few from each at any given time to honor those contracts.
I accept Health Savings Accounts (HSA) and Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA).

I enjoy forming long-term relationships with my clients one "piece of work" at a time, with breaks as appropriate to keep it fresh.
Those focused periods of therapy (for example, lets say 3-6 months) can be broken up by breaks of a few weeks to a few months where clients take time off for integration. This supports sustainable healing without dependency and helps the work stay clear and focused.

3003 Willamette Street, Eugene, Oregon.
Located in the Trillium Professional building, with beautiful office suites with adjacent garden.
You'll arrive to find a nice reception area with seating, bathrooms and a drinking fountain
Plenty of parking, bike stalls, and local bus access.

Inner Room Somatic Therapy | Eugene, Oregon