For many reasons, we often live to some extent disconnected from our bodies, not being able to access the messages that our organs, tissues, or muscles communicate to the ‘thinking mind’ all the time. Those reasons include individual experiences of trauma that we have survived. Traumatic experiences of systemic oppression on the basis of race, sex, physical and mental ability, hetero- and neuro-normativity and other factors, also make a deep imprint on us, hindering our capacity to connect with sensations in our bodies. This can make it difficult to engage in an authentic, embodied way to challenge oppression, both in our own hearts and minds, and in the world beyond us. 


Somatics invites us to remember the intuitive language, our birthright in which we as a species were once fluent. It is a powerful tool to notice, begin to understand and act on those messages, nurturing an awareness of felt sensations in the body. Those sensations include physical sensations of touch, the heart beating, blood pulsing in our veins, the weight of our bones, vibrations, increasing or decreasing tension in our neck, head or shoulders… to name just a few.

Somatic work can go beyond individual healing. It involves noting, recognising, engaging with and tuning into the sensations and emotions in the body, just as much as noticing thoughts, to show up in the world in solidarity with other folks in a way that brings more authenticity and caring connection, and breaks the cycle of harm.

Allyship, in relation to race, means to me slowing down and inhabiting a mindful and embodied switched-on state to notice the impact of race on my life: on how my body responds in racially charged situations, on my relationships, conversations, what I choose to do, with whom, how, and what I choose not to do. It means trying to be brave, taking risks and engaging in interrupting racism, in my own thinking and actions, and in the ways it is constantly manifesting around me. It means practicing to be OK with discomfort and not getting discouraged when making mistakes. This could mean bringing up the topic of race when it is consciously or unconsciously avoided, de-centering myself, and engaging in life-long work to disrupt my internalised oppression and biases. Words of bell hooks come to mind 'We are bombarded daily with a colonising mentality. (…) we must be constantly engaging new ways of thinking and being. We must be critically vigiliant' ('Teaching critical wisdom: Practical wisdom' New York: Routledge 2010: 26)

I believe that white people need to engage in talking about race. It’s ultimately the white folks (myself included) who need to do the work: self-reflect about their racialised experience, regulate their bodies, develop skills, understand and digest their experiences, compost some habits. There is a benefit to doing this work in circles of white people to have spaces where this process of at times painful discovery and honesty can take place without further harming racially minoritised folks.

I’m an experienced trauma-informed practitioner, and I’m committed to holding respectful, compassionate and honest spaces to support folks in this journey. I don’t believe that we can create completely ‘safe spaces,’ as people have different triggers; what feels safe for me might not feel safe for you (and vice versa). I invite people to bring their whole selves to our meetings, and encourage an intersectional perspective. The group and 1-1 meetings that I hold invite and encourage multiple views, approaches and experiences, all needed for courageous collective sense-making.

If you mean financially inclusive, please have a look at the page on fees.

Please also read my Accountability Statement that sets the standards for my work and allows others to hold me accountable.

You may find out more about me here.

Please have a look at the section of this website on fees.

During and after sessions with me, you might experience diverse emotions, sensations and feelings. You might cry, feel sad, angry, annoyed, you might feel unsettled. You might feel spacious, abundant, or feel a need to jump, have a nap or take a brisk walk. I’d encourage you to make a mental note of what you experience, or journal if you prefer. It is OK to experience those (and other) emotions and sensations. It is a lot to realise and start to notice the multiple layers of how systemic racial oppression has been and is still working through you, despite your good intentions, and very often without your conscious awareness. But once you start noticing those things, you cannot un-see it, and the ever-unfinished work can truly begin.

My work is informed by the insights, research and practice of racially minoritised somatic therapists, academics and other practitioners and by lived experiences shared by racially minoritised folks in books, academic articles and other sources. I incorporate voices of racially minoritised folks, and don’t expect them to do more work - however, I’m always learning and very open to collaborating and working together.

It means an embodied, mindful presence and constant engaged practice to notice the ways in which racism manifest itself in and around me, and nourishing the feeling of being present and grounded in my body to step in and show up in with courage to interrupt it.

DEI (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion) or ED&I (Equity/Equality, Diversity and Inclusion), or DEIB (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging) often denote genuine efforts to move towards a more just and transparent world where all folks feel they belong and can thrive.

Those efforts might be hampered, however, by using tools and striving towards goals that contribute to existing inequalities, rather than interrupting the interwoven harmful ways of doing and thinking that keep the oppression firm in its place. Those efforts are also often oblivious to the fact that racism and other systems of oppression live in the body, just as much as in the wider society, and need to be addressed also by working with the body.

I follow my Accountability Statement published here both to keep myself accountable, and to encourage others to do so.

I'm inspired by diverse sources including but not limited to critical race theory, Somatic Abolitionism (Resmaa Menakem), race equity psychology and psychotherapy, generative somatics, trauma-informed approaches, engaged sociology and global justice, somatic psychology and movement, non-violent communication, critical whiteness studies, reflections and writings of the Gesturing Towards Decolonial Futures Collective - and so much more.