Psycho Education & Movement Therapy to support better relationships
There are 3 Streams –
1. Polyvagal Theory for relationships. Understanding and application of polyvagal Theory into relationships. This is how our neurobiology affects our relationships and how we can manage it in our daily lives.
2. Better Together. This is about our relationship history and how we are subconsciously affected by these relationships of our past and how we can understand and move towards secure attachments with our current relationships.
3. Finding Home-ostasis. This is program is what the gym is for muscle building this is for regulation restoration and performance capacity of the autonomic nervous system. SOON
1. Polyvagal Theory for Relationships
An eight-week workshop series is designed to explore the autonomic nervous system both theoretically and through body awareness. Participants will learn how to feel safe within their own body and in relation to others.
2. Better Together
An eight-week workshop series is designed to explore the attachment theory both theoretically and through body awareness. Participants will learn how early relationships affected their adult life and how to move towards secure relationships.
3. Finding Home-ostasis
A ten-week group coaching program is designed to enhance vagal tone and regulate the Autonomic Nervous System, integrating community, science, and emotions.
Safe and Steady because homeostasis is derived from the greek words Homeo – similar and Stasis – steady. Safe because not only is important to feel physically safe we as human beings require to feel safe emotionally and interpersonally in our lives and relationships.
I want to deliver all the essential learning that I have had over the past 13 years. Whereas I found that talking therapy is not always enough. Various Stressors have become part of our modern world and relationships are requiring more depth and insight than ever before in our history. Our body is part of us and holds so much information for us to live. Yet many of us are surviving day to day living disconnected from our bodies. Our autonomic nervous system (ANS) is part of our body and informs us moment to moment of our surroundings, what happens within us and between us. Therefore, to have healthy and safe relationships we need to have knowledge & awareness of our body, our ANS, know about relationship theories & how relationships affect us and those around us.
1. Polyvagal Theory for Relationships
This series is an eight-week workshop held twice a week. It covers the Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) and Polyvagal Theory, teaching participants how the ANS impacts our bodies. It also guides on how to feel secure within oneself and in the presence of others, combining theoretical knowledge with movement exercises to facilitate self-discovery and understanding of others. These workshops are delivered face to face.
2. Better Together
This workshop series spans eight weeks, with sessions held twice weekly. It explores Attachment Theory, educating participants on how past relationships affect our present interactions and physical well-being. Additionally, it offers guidance on co-regulation with others, merging theoretical insights with physical exercises to promote personal growth and comprehension of interpersonal dynamics. The workshops are conducted in person.
3. Finding Home-ostasis
This program offers a 10-week coaching experience where we gather as a community twice daily during the week (Mon to Friday) to monitor our Heart Rate Variability (HRV) and engage in group breathing exercises. It’s designed for individuals seeking to regulate their Autonomic Nervous System (ANS), enhance vagal tone, and broaden their window of tolerance. Participating in a group fosters a supportive community of individuals with similar goals. As social beings, we thrive when we collaborate and support each other. This is delivered live each day via zoom.
1. Polyvagal Theory for Relationships
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✓ Polyvagal, ANS/HRV theory
✓ Developing a safe container in the body
✓ Neuroception
✓ Specific body exercises
✓ 8 weeks – 2hrs weekly
✓ Participate in building a safe community
2. Better Together
.0
✓ Attachment Theory
✓ Understanding relationship nuances
✓ Co-regulation
✓ Specific body exercises
✓ 8 weeks -2hrs weekly
✓ Participate in building a safe community
1 & 2. Polyvagal Theory for Relationships and Better Together
.0
Polyvagal, ANS/HRV theory
✓ Developing a safe container in the body
✓ Neuroception
✓ Specific body exercises
✓ Attachment Theory
✓ Understanding relationship nuances
✓ Co-regulation
✓ Specific body exercises
✓ 8 weeks -4hrs weekly
✓ Participate in building a safe community
3. Finding Home-ostasis
.0
SOON
✓ HRV monitor
✓ Coaching twice/day – (M to F)
✓ HRV & ANS theory
✓ Group Coaching community
The fact that dance/movement therapists are immersed in the language of the body, rather than focusing solely on the verbal, lends characteristics to their work that set it apart from other types of therapy. The bias of Western culture for cognitive, verbal processing and the proliferation of body-oriented therapies of recent years might cause some to think of DMT as an “alternative” therapy. But the origins and practice of DMT have more in common with psychodynamic psychotherapies than with alternative therapies and although frequently classified as adjunct therapy, DMT was argued to be appropriate primary therapy some years ago.
Robyn Flaum Cruz. Ph.D ADTR
Movement Therapy
Movement is life, life is movement. If you don’t believe it, just try holding completely still for a minute. Impossible. Movement is a human need. Breath is movement. Our bodies express our interstate all the time. We know intuitively if someone is sad or angry. How? We are picking up the person’s body language and movement. Natalie Rogers
Perhaps the easiest way to explain movement therapy is a moving mindfulness in a therapeutic setting. Dance and movement therapy (DMT) is not a new modality. It has been around since 1940’s.
Psychodynamic psychotherapy has long been established, but a new term has emerged from neuro-psychotherapy and interpersonal neurobiology known as the ‘bottom-up’ approach, which is utilized in Movement Therapy. Traditionally, mental health models have paralleled the medical model, transitioning from talking and relational therapies—a bottom-up approach—to a top-down approach that encompasses electro, genetic, cognitive, and chemical interventions. Researchers like Dr. Dan Siegel and Dr. Stephen Porges are at the forefront of this shift, advocating for mental health support through a bottom-up approach that emphasizes relational, emotional, and nervous system aspects, including the physical body.
Details of the Classes
Polyvagal Theory in Relationships and Better Together classes are structured and experiential. Each class runs for 2hour. There are 4 parts to the class which include,
- Intro & Container for safety
- Theory
- Body
- Reflection
Participants are guided through the 4 parts of the class. Movement and breath are incorporated throughout the class. There is no need to have any formal dance, yoga or meditation knowledge. The class is developed to be suitable for anyone.
These classes cater to individuals seeking to cultivate body awareness, heal emotional and relational wounds, comprehend their own feelings as well as those of others, gain deeper self-insight, and enhance their interpersonal relationships.
Sensation may be as bottom-up as we get. Since we live in a body, our within-mind experience is shaped by the physical apparatus that lets us take in energy flow from the outside world.
In some ways, bottom-up, within-mind experiences can be considered as being as close to the present as physically possible, in the literal meaning of it being ‘pre-sensed.” Daniel J Siegel, MD
The experience will be distinctive for everyone. We all have a unique set of experiences and even if we shared a similar experience the internal meaning and memory may be different.
The future of interpersonal neurobiology is in understanding that our nervous system expands throughout our entire body and is functionally responding to the interactions with other human beings as well. I see the future of interpersonal neurobiology as leading to a greater understanding of how social interaction and social support, through a therapist, a family member, or a friend, can facilitate physical and mental health. Stephen W. Porges
Maria Hull has a Bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts – Dance, Masters in Counselling and Graduate Diploma in Education. Her experience as a clinical counsellor and studies into human neurobiology has helped her realise how beneficial movement therapy could be for clients who have relationship issues or suffering depression, anxiety, panic attacks, disassociation and who have experienced stress & trauma in their lives.
At best Movement Therapy is an internal journey of exploration via movement. Self-discovery is what helps us gain meaning and insight. When we are given the support to make internal connections with our own mind it also supports the integrity of the person. This is the pathway for holistic mental health and the health of the family, community and hopefully beyond!
The expressive arts – including movement, art, writing, sound, music, meditation, and imagery – lead us into the unconscious. This often allows us to express previously unknown facets of ourselves, thus bringing to light new information and awareness. Natalie Rogers
I aim to impart all the crucial knowledge I’ve accumulated over the past 13 years. I’ve realized that talk therapy alone is often insufficient. In today’s world, various stressors are omnipresent, and relationships demand greater depth and insight than at any previous point in history. Our bodies are integral to our existence, containing vast amounts of information essential for life. However, many people go through their daily lives detached from their bodies. The autonomic nervous system (ANS) is a component of our body that continuously provides us with information about our environment, internal changes, and interpersonal interactions. Thus, for healthy and secure relationships, it is necessary to possess knowledge and awareness of our bodies, understand our ANS, be familiar with relationship theories, and comprehend the impact of relationships on ourselves and others.
Maria Hull Noosa Counselling 