Integrative Healing, LLC

Meet 'n Greet for Tao of Trauma series starting this fall this Sunday - July 14 at 4 pm Eastern. Providers get deeper access to the "issues in the tissues" when East meets West in service to trauma survivors. On Zoom - come learn all about it! 70 CEU's for Social Workers, Acupuncturists and Body-workers.

July Happenings: Meet 'N Greet THIS SUNDAY 7/14 & Live Webinar 7/26 Are you thinking about joining the 2024-25 Tao of Trauma series, but are wondering if it's a fit for you? There are a lot of wonderful trauma trainings available. The Tao of Trauma is unique in that it integrates Western neurophysiology and Polyvagal Theory with Chinese medicine. This diagnostic f...

July News 'n Views -- Connective Tissue, Ancestral Trauma, Healing Trauma in the Deaf and Hard of Hearing community, and lots of learning opportunities.

Fire Element, Triple Burner, Connective Tissue We’ve just passed the summer solstice, the high point of the season of the Fire Element. In the Fire season, we have enhanced access to “all matters of the heart." The Triple Burner belongs to the Fire Element, and is thus a close friend of the Heart. When we access our connective tissue with mi...

The next round of the Tao of Trauma starts this fall. Curious? This hopeful East-meets-West approach for the restoration of balance and regulation in trauma survivors integrates Chinese 5 Element theory with the neurobiology of the Self-Protective Response and Polyvagal Theory. Innovative, somatic approaches will emerge in your hands, mind and heart. Promise. CEU's for MSWs, Acupuncturists and Body-workers. Cohorts in Silver Spring, MD, Thousand Oaks, CA and on-line. Join me for a Meet ‘n Greet?

Our first Meet 'N Greet is THIS SUNDAY 6/16! 4pm Eastern, 1pm Pacific. RSVP if you can make it!

June News 'n Views is here! We are approaching the Summer Solstice and all matters of the Heart are more available than ever. So complex! Our Heart beats out a steady and regular rhythm when it recognizes that "it's over". Our Hearts can suffer and need just the right kind of touch and attention to heal.

Summer and the Fire Element We are heading rapidly to the Summer Solstice and the height of the season of the Fire Element. The other 4 Elements have 2 organs to help organize their various purposes and functions. The Fire Element needs 4! Matters of the Heart are quite complicated for us to manage!

I'm going to be assisting this specialized training for Deaf and Hard of Hearing and signing Clinicians sponsored by the Somatic Experiencing Institute starting this November. We can't start the registration process for students until we raise $30,000 to pay for interpreters. Will you help? Please? DHH people report traumatic experiences at nearly twofold higher rates than hearing people, including child abuse, intimate partner violence, sexual assault, and crime victimization. Increased vulnerability may stem from early language deprivation, insufficient communication with family, conflicting educational and medical guidance, low self-esteem, and social isolation. There are significant barriers to obtaining accessible care, potentially limiting Deaf individuals’ ability to leave abusive relationships or other unsafe situations. Additionally, there is a dearth of healthcare providers with training and skill in language access and cultural responsiveness to work with DHH people, often making it difficult for DHH trauma survivors to find care. You can make a difference!

Deaf/HH Training Somatic Experiencing® International (SEI) believes that everyone deserves the opportunity to live a healthy, happy, and fulfilling life, and that acute stress and trauma should not be a barrier to achieving this. We put this belief into action through our dedication to providing exceptional tra...

All clinicians welcome! Let's explore going beyond repair of past injuries to building resilience in our patients. So important! All proceeds benefit Acupuncturists Without Borders!

📣We are excited to announce a new webinar coming up on July 26th with acclaimed author, educator, researcher and clinician, Alaine Duncan, L.Ac. In this class, Alaine will share five element diagnostic and treatment strategies to restore balance and regulation and build resilience and capacity to live in vibrant community for trauma survivors. Please join us for "Going Beyond Repair To Resilience with the 5 Elements" - 2 CEUs/PDAs (NCCAOM, CA, FL, TX).

https://acuwithoutborders.org/products/going-beyond-repair-to-resilience
Can we go beyond “repair” to build capacity in trauma survivors for living in community the next time danger threatens? We acupuncturists are skilled at diagnosing pathology – both subtle and gross and repairing that. The 5 Elements illuminate the phases of the threat response and where that life-preserving process goes awry– Awaken Arousal (Metal), Signal Threat (Water), Mobilize A Response (Wood), Restore Coherence (Fire) and Digest the Gristle (Earth), and can guide us to highly effective ways to restore balance and regulation using their corresponding tissues, organs, or emotions.

The 5 Element model can also help trauma survivors cultivate their capacity for: Somatic Mindfulness (Metal), Distinguishing Discomfort from Fear (Water), Mobilizing Responses Commensurate with the Level of Threat (Wood); Recognizing that “It’s Over” (Fire) and Harvesting Lessons that Expand Rather than Contract (Earth).

Teaching in New York City June 1&2! Explore the interface of Western Neurobiology and the 5 Elements of Chinese medicine. Deepen your diagnosis, patient management and treatment options for those "strange, rare and peculiar" presentations in trauma survivors! Yes, there are CEU's or 'puncs!

The Tao of Trauma: Strategies to Integrate Five Elements and Neuroscience •Recognize traumatic stress response physiology and effects of trauma in survivor clients•Develop interviewing and treatment strategies for success with traumasurvivors•Identify social and cultural implications of trauma history and tools for successful practitioner-client relations and treatm...

There's a new Tao of Trauma series starting this Fall in Thousand Oaks, CA, Silver Spring, MD and on-line. 70 CEU's for social workers (VT-NASW), Acupuncturists (NCCAOM, CAB) and Bodyworkers (CBTMB). When East-meets-West rich diagnostic and treatment strategies emerge to help restore balance and regulation in trauma survivors! Come to a Meet 'n Greet to ask your questions and hear more about it!

You're Invited! Meet 'N Greet events this summer Sundays: June 16th, July 14th, August 18th. 4pm Eastern, 1pm Pacific.

May News 'n Views! Here we are, leaving Spring and the "Mobilize A Response" phase and moving into Summer and the "Restore Coherence" phase of the Self Protective Response. What happens when the Heart can't hear that the threat is over? Read all about it -- and some continuing ed opportunities too!

Late Spring Early Summer We are closing in on the end of Spring or the Wood season and moving into Summer or the Fire season. The job of the Wood in the Self-Protective Response is to orient to danger or life threat, strategize a survival response, and then mobilize a “fight,” a “flight,” or the more complex “fawn...

The Tao of Trauma: Strategies to Integrate the Five Elements and Neuroscience. Pacific College of Health and Science, New York campus. June 1-2, 2024. Live and In Person. 15 PDAs, including 2 NCCAOM approved PDAs for Ethics.

Early bird discount ends May 1, 2024!

Integrating neurobiology's 5 Steps of the Self-Protective Response and the framework of Polyvagal Theory in the context of the 5 Elements will illuminate diagnostic information and treatment room skills that will revolutionize your practice, your service to your patients, and your contribution to the healing of our world.

Register here: https://pacificcenterforlifelonglearning.com/.../the-tao.../

Discounts available for full time students, ASNY members & PCHS faculty & staff.

Could be a great introduction to my year-long Tao of Trauma class!

The Tao of Trauma: Strategies to Integrate Five Elements and Neuroscience •Recognize traumatic stress response physiology and effects of trauma in survivor clients•Develop interviewing and treatment strategies for success with traumasurvivors•Identify social and cultural implications of trauma history and tools for successful practitioner-client relations and treatm...

April News 'n Views is on your newstands! Lots of learning opportunities - Minneapolis, MN in April, New York City in June and you can register now for the 2024-25 Tao of Trauma series in Thousand Oaks, CA, Silver Spring, MD and on line. Check out the initiatives from Tao of Trauma students for understanding and healing traumatic stress that are highlighted too. https://mailchi.mp/integrativehealingworks/news-views-apr2024?e=[UNIQID]

This is an awesome film -- and full of so many important considerations for the federal election in November. I donated - and I hope you will join me with one yourself!

Black Voters Matter On February 21, 2024, we hosted a private screening of an excerpt from the film, followed by a fascinating conversation between the filmmakers and Cliff Albright and LaTosha Brown, co-founders of the Black Voters Matter Fund, which you can watch now by clicking on the WATCH FILM button above.

Join me for this comprehensive 5-session, year-long journey that integrates the Five Elements of Chinese medicine, the five steps of self-protection found in animal predator-prey relationships, and the transformative science of PolyVagal Theory. New this year: CEU's for Social Workers by the VT Chapter of the NASW as well as NCCAOM, NCBTMB and CAB!

Now enrolling for The Tao of Trauma 2024-25! California, Maryland, and Virtual Live-Stream Next cohorts start in Fall 2024. Please join us!

March News 'n Views is here! A look at how we as individuals and as a world's people cultivate capacity to mobilize fight or flight responses that are commensurate with the level of threat. So important, this gift of a flexible Wood Element allowing us to protect and defend - and find benevolence as the true nature of Wood.
https://us11.admin.mailchimp.com/campaigns/show?id=6329787

Hi everyone! I'm thrilled to be part of 's inspiring 30-day learning adventure. 🌱 I've contributed one of the sessions, and I can't wait for you to join us. It's a unique opportunity to dive deep into the wisdom of Traditional Chinese Medicine every day for a month. Check it out here: https://www.tcm.ac/courses/lc901-spring-learning-challenge

Spring into Balance: A 30-Day Wood Element Exploration - TCM Academy Welcome to the 30-Day Wood Element Exploration, where the awakening energy of spring and the dynamic power of the Wood element come to life. Each day, for 30 days, we're excited to offer you a unique video insight, illuminating the aspects of revival, growth, and the vital energy of Liver & Gallblad...

February News 'n Views - Honoring Black History Month with Dr. Joy DeGruy, and her seminal scholarship in "Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome: America’s Legacy of Enduring Injury and Healing". https://mailchi.mp/integrativehealingworks/news-views-feb2024?e=[UNIQID]

January News 'n Views. I explore the emotion of fear, the arc of trauma in the Middle East and the role the vibration of dysregulation in the United States has on triggering violence around the world. The work of healers to bring regulation to people and communities is so very important.

Transforming Polarization Like many of us I suspect, I spend some part of each day longing to somehow contribute to a greater capacity for diplomatic solutions to the violence in the Middle East. The history of trauma and threat and the ongoing loss of life that is both overwhelming the region and providing fodder for more a...

December News 'n Views looks at the impact of trauma on the actions and decisions that are being made in the Middle East. More understanding, more compassion, more space. https://mailchi.mp/integrativehealingworks/news-views-dec2023?e=[UNIQID]

I taught the Kidney/Adrenal hold for the Thousand Oaks Water module this weekend. We got to thinking about the fear/terror in the Middle East and the history of trauma there -- and decided to hold the kidney/adrenal of the Middle East. It was a really tender experience. I recommend it -- alone or in groups. Better in groups.

November News 'n Views is out! If we create just a wee bit of space or capacity inside ourselves - can it make a difference in the things that feel unbearable? When we cultivate capacity to object without contracting -- how does it serve? A few thoughts for these challenging times. https://mailchi.mp/integrativehealingworks/news-views-nov2023?e=[UNIQID]

Letting It Be So - New Video! - Somatic Practice

October News 'n Views is out! Exploring the "Animal Soul" known as the "Po" in Chinese medicine and the Felt Sense in Focusing (Eugene Gendlin) and Somatic Experiencing (Peter Levine). Our Animal Soul is critical for cultivating curiosity in the Awaken Arousal phase of the Self Protective Response.Plus a podcast with Aletha Starr Williams. Just a few seats left in the Tao of Trauma series for 2023-24!

Fall Season, Metal element, and our "felt sense" We have entered Fall, the season of the Metal Element, the Lung and Colon organs. Its job is to receive the “pure Qi of the heavens” in the Lungs and to “let go of the drainage of the dregs” in the Colon. It is both the most etheric of all the elements, and the most responsible for our “fe...

Yaoxin Zhang is a Doctoral student in the Counseling Psychology program at the University of Toronto. He teaches a class on the intersection of Taoism and Mental Health services that uses The Tao of Trauma as a text! His doctoral research examines the lived experiences of healers in incorporating Taoism in addressing mental health issues.
He is looking for clinicians who he can interview for his research. Wanna help him out? Participants interested in this research must meet the following criteria:

Self-identify as healers, such as psychotherapists, psychologists, counselors, nurses, medical doctors, TCM doctors, holistic healers, etc.
Self-identify as using Taoism (e.g., yin-yang principle, five-element theory, Traditional Chinese Medicine, Laozi and Zhuangzi’s philosophy) to help people with mental health issues
18 years or older
Living in North America
Speak English or Mandarin
Can commit 1-1.5 hours for an interview via Zoom before the end of 2023

Information collected during this research will be kept in the strictest confidence. If you are interested in more information and/or wish to take part in this research, I would be happy to be contacted at: [email protected]

Research Participants Needed for a Study Examining Mental Health Healers’ Experience of Incorporating Taoism into Counselling and Psychotherapy

Get your seat while there still is one left! 3 cohorts for the Tao of Trauma - Silver Spring, MD, Thousand Oaks, CA and by Zoom. Explore the "strange, rare and peculiar" physiology and psychology of trauma survivors - and how to help restore innate regulation and balance. So much suffering in the world, and we can help. https://integrativehealingworks.net/training/the-tao-of-trauma-2023-24-integrating-five-element-theory-and-trauma-healing/

September News 'n Views. An exploration of the "flesh" as the tissue associated with the Earth Element and the Late Summer. The muscles store experiences of failed self protection. They can be volatile, braced, collapsed and painful. https://mailchi.mp/integrativehealingworks/news-views-sep2023?e=[UNIQID]

Listen to these Tao of Trauma students! New cohorts starting this fall in Silver Spring, MD, Thousand Oaks, CA and on-line. Catch early bird pricing by 9/1/23. It’s a comprehensive journey that integrates the 5 Elements of Chinese medicine, the 5 steps of self-protection described by neurobiology and the transformative power of Polyvagal Theory. Pretty darn rich things happen when diverse worlds come together!

Catch the early bird - by September 1st - for Tao of Trauma! "This work is transformational! I feel extremely lucky to be a part of this." - 2022-23 student feedback

This Sunday! Bring your questions about the Tao of Trauma series that starts this fall. Learn interaction, observation and touch skills arising out of the interface of the 5 Elements of Chinese Medicine and the neurobiology of traumatic stress. Powerful intersectionality.

You're Invited! Meet 'N Greet events this summer/fall Sundays: July 16th, August 13th, and September 17th. 4pm Eastern, 1pm Pacific.

August News 'n Views. Earth. Gratitude. Digest nourishment and the Gristle. Interoception. Working with Viscera. Registration for Tao of Trauma series.

Late Summer, Earth season, Gratitude We have entered the Earth season, Late Summer, a 5th season in the agrarian cultures of the world, including China. No more fruits will be set, but they will ripen and sweeten. It’s the best time of the year to eat – peaches, melons, tomatoes, zucchini are all abundant – sweet and tasty – an...

July News 'n Views explores the pericardium, the Ventral Vagus Nerve, touch, the feign response, upcoming opportunities for study -- and more!

Our Heart Protector and the Ventral Vagus Nerve There is an organ in Chinese physiology called the Pericardium. Western medicine understands it as a largely inert structure, a sack that holds the heart. The Chinese also call the Pericardium the “Heart Protector” or the “Circulation-Sex” Official. It functions like a pair of gates, opening...

Thinking about taking the Tao of Trauma series, starting this fall? Got questions? Join me at one of these virtual Meet 'n Greets? First one is July 16th. You will explore the interface of the 5 Elements of Chinese Medicine and the 5 Steps of the Self Protective Response - and cultivate interaction, observation and touch skills to help restore balance and regulation in survivors of "too much, too fast, with inadequate support". It's pretty cool. Silver Spring, MD, Thousand Oaks, CA and a virtual cohort too.

You're Invited! Meet 'N Greet events this summer/fall Sundays: July 16th, August 13th, and September 17th. 4pm Eastern, 1pm Pacific.

Summer, Fire Element, Triple Heater, and Connective Tissue It’s Summer! Time of the Fire Element – and all matters of the Heart! Of the four organs that support the Fire Element, the Triple Heater supports our sense of relationship with ourselves and with others. It helps ensure the warmth of connection and the distinction of separation. Two critical ca...