Healing Therapy: Using the Energy of the Body to Heal the Mind November 16, 2014 • 0 Comments I’m a big fan of therapy. Not sit-on-the-couch-talking-forever therapy. I’m mean peel-back-the-layers-quickly therapy. I write about it here because I think it is an important healing tool: a way to delve below the surface and unearth invisible forces that wreak havoc in our lives. The right kind of therapy can be instrumental in the journey to wholeness and create possibilities for a better future. When I was a teenager, people who went to therapists seemed odd, like they had webbed toes hidden in their shoes or something. Back then, it was embarrassing to admit you needed your head examined. In fact, I don’t remember it being referred to as therapy. I recall words like shrink or analyst floating around. Thankfully, scientific discoveries about our brain are breathing new life into healing potential on the therapist’s couch. Neuroplasticity has dispelled the myth that the brain is a static organ — rather, it is capable of learning and unlearning patterns, growing new neurons and making new connections. This is good news, especially for those interested in healing. When you boil it down, a lot of our problems amount to blocked energy stored in the body, desperately seeking acknowledgment or release. As this energy seeks a way out of the body, we tend to push it away or dilute the energetic flow with denial, alcohol, drugs, food or perfectionism. Even worse, we unleash this misunderstood energy on others. And then we become stuck, repeating the same behaviors over and over. When I was trying to find a therapist for my kids, I asked one of them how to best get around the stigma of therapy with them, and he said, “Hey, what happened to you is tantamount to falling out of a gigantic tree and landing on your head. You would go to the ER to make sure your brain was still in tact. Therapy is just examining the contents of your mind to make sure everything stays in proper perspective.” I liked that a lot. It made sense and the visual was very appropriate to me because it’s exactly what the experience felt like. Despite the good explanation, my kids were not fond of therapy, and I honored their resistance. As luck would have it, I happened to cross paths with a therapist who is a seeker like me. I think of her as more of a healing sorceress because she searches the globe for the most effective healing modalities and integrates them into her practice. Her intention with each client is to be the last therapist they ever need. Although my therapist hails from clinically based, traditional training, she has been led to what she calls a “psycho-dynamic” practice, an approach that actively engages the energy of past trauma to heal how it is affecting your life right now. Every session is unique, relying on the healing that the body is seeking in that moment, utilizing the mind+body connection to interpret energy and bring about the highest good for healing. She believes talk therapy simply can’t touch or engage the body for healing trauma. A mind+body approach optimizes true healing. Each session begins with a powerful ritual of Grounding, Intention setting and Invocation, as a way to bring 100% presence to the session. From there, it is guided by a combination of consulting the inner advisor, or wisdom self, and applied kinesiology. She always defers to the inner wisdom of the client, calling the process, “therapist mid-wifing.” Sessions include a unique blend of hypnotherapy, guided imagery (or journey from shamanic traditions), EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique), TFT (Thought Field Therapy), AIT (Advanced Integrative Therapy), EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing) and Psych-K. I hope this information serves as a guide if you are considering therapy as part of your healing journey. There is a whole new frontier of mental health possibilites out there. I am cheering you on to seek a professional who utilizes a dynamic approach that fosters the mind+body connection and whole-heartedly nurtures you. Wishing you empowered and transformative healing – guided by your own pure energy. -db Who is Dianna Bonny? Hi, my name is Dianna Bonny. It’s my mission to candidly share my journey with you. For me, it’s all about the healing: to create a radiant healing energy for others who have befallen a similar fate. Together, we can forge beautiful lives of belonging and connection. Thanks for joining me today! I look forward to hearing from you.