I am an Integrative Somatic Coach which includes my work as a Somatic Spiritual Director who is trained in and informed by Holistic Spirituality and Contemplative Spiritual Direction, Somatic Experiencing (Somatic Experiencing Practitioner™️), Polyvagal Theory (Deb Dana’s Rhythm of Regulation™️) and other trauma & nervous system perspectives.
An Integrative Somatic Coach is a professional who combines elements of somatic (body-centered) therapy with spiritual guidance and coaching techniques to help individuals explore and transform their inner experiences. This approach acknowledges the interconnectedness of mind, body, and spirit, recognizing that physical sensations and movements can provide valuable insights into one’s spiritual journey and personal growth.
Integrative Somatic Coaches Typically Work with Clients to:
- Explore Body Sensations: They help clients become more aware of their bodily sensations, such as tension, relaxation, discomfort, and ease, and help them understand how these sensations may be connected to deeper emotional or spiritual states.
- Facilitate Mind-Body Connection: Through various somatic techniques, such as breathwork, mindfulness, body scanning, and body centered awareness they assist clients in developing a deeper connection between their physical bodies and their spiritual selves.
- Address Emotional and Energetic Blockages: Integrative Somatic coaches guide clients in identifying and regulating emotional and energetic blockages stored in the body, which may be hindering their spiritual growth and well-being.
- Support Spiritual Exploration: They provide a safe and non-judgmental space for clients to explore their beliefs, values, and existential questions, helping them connect with their inner wisdom and spiritual truth.
- Implement Practices: Integrative Somatic coaches work collaboratively with clients to set intentions for their spiritual journey and develop personalized practices and rituals to support their growth and transformation.
- Integrate Spirituality into Daily Life: They assist clients in integrating spiritual insights and practices into their daily lives, fostering greater alignment between their spiritual experience and their actions in the world.
Overall, an Integrative Somatic Coach facilitates a holistic approach to personal and spiritual development, guiding individuals to connect more deeply with themselves, others, and the larger universe through embodied awareness and spiritual exploration.
Somatic Experiencing™️
A body oriented modality that helps identify trauma and work with any freeze as a result of trauma and other stress disorders.
Polyvagal Theory
Trained in Deb Dana’s Rhythm of Regulation™️, Polyvagal theory explores how the autonomic nervous system can regulate so that one can move from a state of protection to a state of compassion. Polyvagal theory undergirds all of my work.
Somatic Spiritual Direction/Consultations
A contemplative + body based exploration of how we can experience Life in an expanded way.
Organic Intelligence™️
Exploring the body’s innate capacity to heal in the “here and now”. By following the cues from the body, we learn to follow the wisdom of our biology.
Quantum Human Design™️
A theory and system that explores the question of one’s unique ‘design’. It discerns the parts of us that are aligned with our design and how conditioning can contribute to misalignment.
Discernment
Based on all of the approaches named and implementing the wisdom of the mystics, discernment is more than making a decision, it is a deep dive into all aspects of who we are in order to better understand a particular direction one may be exploring.
It is a serious thing
Just to be alive
On this fresh morning
In this broken world
Mary Oliver
When you do things from your soul, you feel a river moving in you, a joy.
~Rumi
This quote, by Rumi, has always spoken to me. It offers an image that helps to guide and inform me.
Perhaps we all have moments when we tap into an awareness of transformation is neither beyond our reach nor does it belong exclusively to the mystics and poets. It is a common, even everyday experience. It is our birthright.
But how do we recognize the flow of this "river"? How do we learn what it actually feels like? And once we have a sense of it, how do we allow it to guide and inform us?
Science now knows that transformation and change are more likely to happen when we focus on particular interior states and yet, as human beings, we have a tendency to focus our energies on that which is not going so well. Or we become stuck, like a whirlpool, and thought and feelings can circle over and over in ways that can feel unproductive and frustrating. Experiences like trauma, collective and personal beliefs, patterns inside of us that become disoriented, "stuff" that is familial or generational, mental & physical health, and other experiences get in our way of recognizing and living from this "river" or flow that is also happening in us.
My work draws from the worlds of both contemplative and somatic/nervous system disciplines & practices and focuses on exploring the "river", within you, that Rumi speaks about. Together, we work to identify, in tangible ways, what this feels like inside of you. From here, we explore the wisdom that emerges. The goal here is not to move beyond the human experience but instead, to move more deeply into it and in alignment with it to discover the light it holds for each of us.
I draw from my work as a Somatic Spiritual Director and Integrative Somatic Coach and am informed by Somatic Experiencing™️, Polyvagal Theory, Organic Intelligence™️, contemplative spiritual direction, discernment and the newer system of Quantum Human Design™️ which explores alignment to the core part of one's self. The contemplative/mindful orientation of the "observing self" orients all of my work.
Suffering is not painful experience. Suffering is being stuck in painful experience. Together we discover how this river shows up uniquely inside of you so that it can move that which is "stuck" along. The goal is to identify and explore this river so that it is alive enough and healthy enough to en-liven all that life holds.
Lori Christine Young holds an MA in Holistic Spirituality/Spiritual Direction (Chestnut Hill College, 2005) and an MA in Pastoral Counseling (Moravian Theological Seminary, 2007). She is also a Somatic Experiencing Practitioner. She is currently teaching Spiritual Direction and Formation. All of her work is informed by contemplative spiritual formation, trauma theory and somatic perspectives. She has been working and studying in this field with individuals and groups since 1999. Her fee is $130/hour (packages available upon request).
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Lori Christine Young LLC provides Integrative Somatic Coaching information and education. Our services are not financial, tax, investment, legal, medical, or mental health advice. We do not provide investment recommendations, investment counseling, accounting services, tax, or legal advice, and nothing in our content or services is intended as such. We do not diagnose, treat, heal, cure or prevent any illness, medical, mental, or emotional condition, and nothing in our content or services is intended to diagnose, treat, heal, cure or prevent any illness, medical, mental, or emotional condition. Lori Christine Young is providing services only in the capacity as a Integrative Somatic Coach not as a business professional or licensed medical, healthcare, or mental health professional. Nothing in our content or services is intended to be a substitute for consultation, diagnosis, treatment, or other financial, tax, investment, legal, medical, or mental health advice from a licensed business professional or licensed medical or mental health professional who can review and advise you on your specific situation. Anyone choosing to implement any information in our content or services should obtain prior clearance from a licensed business professional or licensed medical, healthcare, or mental health professional to determine that the information is appropriate and useful for them. Do not disregard any financial, tax, investment, or legal advice or delay seeking professional financial, tax, investment, or legal advice based on information in our content or services. Do not disregard any medical or mental health advice, stop taking medications, stop any treatments, or delay seeking professional medical, healthcare, or mental health advice based on any information in our content or services. Coaching is in no way to be construed as financial, tax, investment, legal advice, psychological counseling, therapy, mental health, or medical advice. Nothing in our content or services is a guarantee or promise of future earnings. We do not guarantee that you will obtain any results or earn any money using our content or services. Lori Christine Young, LLC owns all copyrights to the materials presented here unless otherwise noted.