It's Been a Year: Reflections on 2020 with Dwight Hurst Kathleen R. Brennan, LCPC

“So much has happened that has been so tragic. . . it’s totally out of anything we have ever experienced.”

— Dwight Hurst

Permalink

Watsu: Aquatic Bodywork and Therapy with Hilary Marshall Kathleen R. Brennan, LCPC Download

“Imagine feeling weightless, flexible, supported and comfortable, completely relaxed and your body is exactly where it wants to be. Your mind is quiet and calm. ”

— Hilary Marshall

Hilary Marshal, LMT and Watsu and WaterDance practitioner shares her experience of providing this “water and shiatsu,” aquatic and body-work therapy. I was fortunate enough to have met Hilary over a year ago when I had my first Watsu session with her. Having had a positive and nervous system calming experience, I wanted to share this therapy with others. Hilary goes into depth about everything from what clients may experience during a session to the healing benefits of this therapy.

Watsu can calm the nervous system, bringing about a sense of well being and help with general anxiety, traumatic stress and PTSD. Watsu is sometimes recommended as an adjunct therapy to help process trauma, in conjunction and collaboration with a psychotherapist.

To find a practitioner in your area: Watsu Aquatic Body Work and Therapy; Watsu and WaterDance Therapy

Healing Wave Aquatics: provides bodywork therapies for military veterans, active duty personnel, and caregivers living with the debilitating impacts of post-traumatic stress.

For appointments with Hilary: [email protected]

• meditation
• guided meditation
• self-help
• therapy
• health
• mindfulness
• stress
• self-care
• trauma
• Health
• PTSD
• Meditation
• drug abuse
• EMDR
• therapist
• addiction
• Trauma
• yoga

 

Craniosacral Therapy with Michael Brightwood Kathleen R. Brennan, LCPC Download

“You survived and your’e okay now. And it will settle. . . So what I’m doing is, I’m not erasing the memory, I’m resolving the biochemical charge.”

— Michael Brightwood

In Episode 38, Michael Brightwood describes craniosacral therapy during this conversation on the science, healing framework and practice of Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy.

With extensive study and practice in psychology, healing arts and craniosacral therapy, Michael brings his decades of experience to this interesting discussion. Michael spans the conversation with discussion on topics such as central nervous systems, quantum physics, resolution, trauma healing and healing— to name a few.

Michael Brightwood holds an advanced degree in Craniosacral Biodynamics from the Karuna Institute in England. In 1998, Michael started a private practice in San Diego and began a Craniosacral Therapy practice at Rancho La Puerta, where he continues his healing work today

Click Here for More Info

 

• meditation
• guided meditation
• self-help
• therapy
• health
• mindfulness
• stress
• self-care
• trauma
• Health

Subscribe

Sign up with your email address to receive news and updates.

Email Address Sign Up

We respect your privacy.

Thank you!

Addiction, Intervention and Recovery During a Pandemic, Part 3 | Recovery Kathleen R. Brennan, LCPC Download

“We actually have the ability to heal ourselves with a lot of good guidance.”

— Arthur Westinghouse

In Part 3 of this series on Addiction, Intervention and Recovery During a Pandemic, we focus on long-term recovery. With 30 years of sobriety at the time of this episode and many years of working with clients and their families as an interventionist, Arthur provides his wisdom for walking the paths of long-term recovery.

Upcoming Event

Virtual Event: April 5-8, 2021. For On The Blue Couch listeners, take $50 off conference registration using code: OTBC50.

To Register

Subscribe

Sign up with your email address to receive news and updates.

Email Address Sign Up

We respect your privacy.

Thank you!

Addiction, Intervention and Recovery During a Pandemic, Part 2 | Relapse Prevention Kathleen R. Brennan, LCPC Download

“ Relapse is optional. It’s not necessary. It’s also not something to shame yourself over. ”

— Arthur Westinghouse

We continue our conversation about addiction, intervention, recovery during a pandemic. In part 2 of this series on addiction, we focus on relapse prevention during this time.

Arthur Westinghouse CIP, CADC, with Westinghouse Intervention and Family Coaching, shares past and more recent personal and professional experiences so that we can all better understand the recovery path. He believes that the good healthy life is available to all of us. No matter what we have been thru or what we are currently going through, we can choose to grab onto the lifelines that are there.

April 5-8, 2021

Use code OTBC50 for $50 off registration fee!

Subscribe

Sign up with your email address to receive news and updates.

Email Address Sign Up

We respect your privacy.

Thank you!

• self-help
• health
• stress
• Meditation
• addiction
• PTSD
• therapy
• intervention
• psychology
• trauma
• Trauma
• recovery
• addiction treatment
• anxiety relief
• body therapy
• collective trauma
• pandemic
• trauma healing
• workplace stress

Permalink

Addiction, Intervention and Recovery During a Pandemic, Pt. 1 Kathleen R. Brennan, LCPC Download

In a podcast series on addiction, intervention and recovery, I speak with friend and colleague, Arthur Westinghouse with Westinghouse Intervention and Family Coaching . Arthur is a Certified Intervention Professional, Family Recovery Coach, Certified Alcohol & Drug Counselor, Consultant. We talk about intervention, recovery and relapse prevention during this pandemic. How do we support ourselves, friends and loved ones during a time of social isolation and social distancing?

With an interweave of his own personal recovery story, professional experiences and how to think about intervention, recovery and relapse prevention during these times, Arthur provides sound consultation for being mindful and taking action for one’s own recovery path.

Anxiety and a Meditation for Calm Kathleen R. Brennan, LCPC Download

Guided Meditation Music:  In a Moment by Lee Rosevere

Things that support calm:

Have a routine with flexibility:

Routines help create foundation and help us to feel more settled because they offer intentional predictability.  They anchor us. When we have the awareness that yes, of course things are going to change within those routines, we can better be prepared and available to make adjustments and adapt in those moments.

Attend to things that matter and need your attention. Priorities vs. Noise

Work email, checking social media again and again can get people stirred up. There is so much news right now. It is a good thing to be informed. No doubt about that. When we go down the news and social media rabbit hole, it can feel as though the world is coming to end. It can also feel like everyone else's lives are going great. Social media can often represent the "best of" peoples' lives. It's great to see how friends and family are doing but keep in mind that we all have struggles, monotony and no-so-great days. 

Take moments to connect with people:  

We are social animals and meant to mingle and be with other people. Our well-being is related to healthy inter-connectedness. It can mean making small talk with an acquantince or listening to someone you're closer to and sharing more of what is going on with you. Think of the last time you felt better after sharing with a person you trust. 

Breathe:

Deep breaths and diaphragmatic breathing engages the part of the nervous system connected to calm. More intentional breathing can go a long way. 

Meditation: 

Guided. On your own. It can create calm in the moment and has longer lasting effects for bringing more mindfulness into our lives. Meditation promotes mindfulness. Mindfulness is the thinking about your thinking. When you're able to step back from your anxiety and notice it in a curios way, it has less power. Without internal dialogue, anxiety can just be one big mass of physical and emotional chaos. 

Get Support:

If anxiety seems to be getting to be too much, making an appointment to meet with a therapist or psychiatrist who specializes in anxiety. In meeting with a professional, you will be able to share and find some answers and solutions to your anxiety. 

 

Episodes RSS

On Being Human and The Guest House Kathleen R. Brennan, LCPC Download

In Episode 32, I share The Guest House by Rumi. Each and every time I encounter this poem, whether it is shared by a meditation teacher or colleague, I gain a sense of comfort and footing. I am reminded that our inner worlds are vast and wide and no matter what is arising within ourselves, we are going to be okay. Here are a few things that came up for me when I read this poem more recently and talk more about in this episode.

When we go into our inner world:

1) Make space for it all. All inner experiences. When we make room for all of our experiences, we can feel more enlivened. When we push down the harder feelings such as anger, shame, sadness, we push down the other stuff too. The other stuff can be happiness, joy. Every time we look inward with a gentle tone, it brings us closer to acceptance of our experiences and who we are.

2) Know that one emotion is not better or worse than another. They just are. Some emotions and thoughts we carry around can be more painful and uncomfortable than others, but when we start to give each one equal attention and respect, the feelings that can be more difficult to tolerate can become less intense.

3) Judgement gets us nowhere. When we label our experience or have harsh words for where we are in a particular moment, it can create a stuckness, a block to ongoing flow of emotions. Physically, we can become more tight, more anxious or more hard on ourselves.

The Guest House

This being human is a guest house.
Every morning a new arrival.

A joy, a depression, a meanness,
some momentary awareness comes
as an unexpected visitor.

Welcome and entertain them all!
Even if they are a crowd of sorrows,
who violently sweep your house
empty of its furniture,
still, treat each guest honorably.
He may be clearing you out
for some new delight.

The dark thought, the shame, the malice.
meet them at the door laughing and invite them in.

Be grateful for whatever comes.
because each has been sent
as a guide from beyond.

~Rumi

 

Living your Passions with Evan Center Kathleen R. Brennan, LCPC and Evan Center, LCPC Download

Evan Center, MS, LCPC is a psychotherapist, business coach, mother, and co-founder of an independent high school. She is a go-getter, yet somehow manages to stay super grounded — perhaps because she has chosen to live in a mountain town where she skis, bikes, hikes, rafts, canoes, gathers huckleberries, goes to the farmers market, and carves out time to sketch floor plans, house renovation ideas, and interior design concepts keeping her mind and body happy.

You can learn more about Evan here: centerinstitute.com

 

 

Host: Kathleen R. Brennan is a Chicago-based psychotherapist and creator and host of On The Blue Couch. 

Episodes RSS

The Walking Dead and Trauma Kathleen R. Brennan, LCPC Download

The Walking Dead follows this cast of characters as they navigate a world where zombies are predictably dangerous and the living have the potential to help or cause harm. The living are on an ongoing quest for survival and safety. Along the way, they encounter unimaginable traumas within the context of the zombie-plagued and human relationships.

The impact of trauma can differ when we look at traumas that involve forces of nature versus the force and harm from other people. So, in the context of this show, what does it mean to be bitten by a zombie versus being "bitten" by a human?

 

Episodes RSS