Shen Therapy
Meditation
NARM Therapy
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About Bodhi: In 1995 I began exploring yoga, meditation, reiki and others related disciplines. Since that time I have had a deep interest in how the body is a key part of healing traumas from the past as well as a necessary anchor and grounding for any real transformation through meditation and contemplative practise.
Bodhi O'Connor
...on the deepest level, just as a plant spontaneously moves toward sunlight there is in each of us an impulse moving us towards connection and healing.
this is the fuel of the NARM approach
NARM Therapy: Connection
our greatest fear and our deepest desire
The objective of NARM therapy is to create a unity between a persons’ biological and psychological self. When a person experiences complex trauma their body can lose the ability to regulate emotions and bodily functions such as breathing, heart rate, blood pressure, sleep and digestion.
NARM therapy uses interventions such as mindfulness to self-regulate a person’s emotions and physiological functions. It works with the link between psychological issues and the body to help a client access the body’s self-regulatory capacities. Additionally, NARM uses mindful inquiry to dive deeper into figuring out the different identities a person takes on.
This form of therapy can help a person recognize the defense mechanisms that they put up to protect themself from further suffering. Defense mechanisms are created when unmet core developmental needs are not met and can manifest in the form of denial, repression, projection, and more.
A person who practices NARM therapy will be able to help their patient connect to their inner experience of emotions, thoughts, and sensations. This will help them identify and work through feelings of low self-esteem, guilt, shame, and self-judgment. They will work with their patient using a present-focused approach.
This will help their client better understand their body expressions and sensations to work towards self-regulation and to the overcoming of maladaptive emotions and behaviors. They will also offer personal resources that the patient can use to advance their process.
A NARM session is a process of inquiry and somatic mindfulness to bring survival strategies into conscious awareness. We will inquire about what you most want to focus on and decide what you most want to accomplish in our session, what you might want for yourself from our time together.
NARM uses both top-down and bottom-up approaches. Top-down approaches emphasize cognitions and emotions as the primary focus. Bottom-up approaches, on the other hand, focus on the body, the felt sense and the instinctive responses as they are mediated through the brain stem toward higher levels of brain organization.
“What are the patterns that are preventing me from being present to myself and
others
at this moment
and in my life?”
My working method
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In my practice, I can help you to release stored tension and stress and to tap into the body’s restorative power. Through the mechanism of self-regulation you can allow the so-called frozen parts in your system to ‘thaw’. Old traumas can come to the surface and be integrated.
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First of all, I would like to have a telephone conversation for a first meeting. If we both feel that I can do something for you, we will set a date for an initial appointment. During the first session we will look at the issues that have brought you to therapy and and you will experience how I work. We will discuss your needs and goals and, at the end of the session, consider whether you want to continue and set a course.
I do not work exclusively with a specific protocol or system, the reason for this is that the wisdom lies in the body itself. We follow what surfaces in the here and now in response to your needs. By being attentive and curious about this, your history will naturally surface at the right moment. I use tools from SHEN, NARM , Focusing and Mindfulness to help transform and integrate that experience.
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The number of sessions needed depends on the issues that you want to work with.
Please contact me to discuss rates and availability.
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About Me
In 1995 began exploring yoga, meditation and therapy. Since that time, I have had a deep interest in how the body is a key part of healing past trauma as well as a necessary anchor and grounding for any real transformation through meditation and contemplative practice.
I attended my first meditation retreat in India in 1995. I qualified as a SHEN therapist in 2004 and a SHEN therapy instructor a few years later. I worked full time in Dublin as a SHEN therapist for 5 years while also teaching meditation at the Dublin Buddhist centre.
I learned and practiced the Focusing method taught by Eugene Gendlin and and integrated it with long term meditation retreats in Canada (with Pema Chodron in 2007), Spain and Germany.
All of us have 'shadow' material that effects our lives though patterns of tension and reactivity, and all of us have the fundamental qualities of mind and heart that allows these patterns to heal and dissolve. We just need the supportive conditions to bring them to the surface. My confidence in this process has deepened over the years of therapeutic work and teaching meditation retreats.
NARM Therapy:
I started my NARM therapy journey while I was on long term meditation retreat in Germany. The clarity, simplicity and its deep healing power impressed me very much. I wanted to train in this very rich therapy modality because it brings together many different elements of body awareness, human connection and a liberating conception of our inner conflicts and so how it is in our power to release them. The NARM approach has a profound respect for the client and a precise and deep understanding of the inner dynamics that hold pattens of suffering in place.
I am a qualified NARM practitioner.