When I began working with Dorie, I was tired.

When I began working with Dorie, I was tired. There was not a big moment or event leading up to my decision to seek Somatic Therapy, other than a decade-long war I was losing with depression and anxiety. I tried a few different forms of therapy before Somatic, but nothing helped me long-term and I often felt worse when walking out of sessions, while continuously dealing with the same physical and emotional symptoms; pain all over my body, hopelessness, guilt, shame, panic attacks, horrible sleeping patterns, unexplained anger, feeling stuck/frozen, and a whole lot more. I was in a place where I could not talk about myself, good or bad, to anyone without my body completely tensing up, my voice shaking, my heart racing, and holding myself in a hunched-over position.

Through working with Dorie, I have a newfound ability to be in my body and feel safe. She gave me the tools to work through emotions in the moment, which has given me the ability to say no and set boundaries, take care of myself physically and mentally, and share pieces of my life with those who care about me without having anxiety attacks, and most importantly being able to stop living in my mind so much, which has given me the opportunity to finally see the world around me and live in the moment. I have also learned that healing is a continuous effort throughout life, which used to scare me to no end.

But Dorie gave me the capacity and the tools to look at this as a positive; more chances to connect with myself, learn about myself, and never-ending opportunities to feel better physically and emotionally.

Dorie created a nonjudgmental space for me to feel safe. She has an innate warmth that you can feel even over Zoom. After over a year in therapy, I am continuing to discover parts of myself and my story that I have never noticed before, and with time, I am able to handle the emotions, reframe, and forgive anything that comes my way. Thanks to Dorie and everything she has given me, I have been able to work on myself, heal both physically and emotionally, and change my life.