Let’s be totally open here…..
As a De-Armoring Body-Worker, my practice must be based upon a strong ethical framework. I uphold the highest standards of professionalism and integrity in all interactions.
Client-Centered Approach: Central to my ethical practice is the principle of client autonomy and empowerment. I prioritize informed and empowered consent, ensuring that clients feel safe and comfortable with each aspect of their bodywork journey.
This includes open communication about the processes involved, the potential emotional responses, and the option of working with sexual energy. I encourage clients to express their needs and boundaries, supporting a collaborative environment where their individual needs are respected and honored.
Confidentiality and Professionalism: All client interactions and personal histories shared during sessions are treated with the utmost discretion and respect. I am committed to creating a trusting atmosphere where clients can explore their bodies and emotions without fear of judgment or exposure.
Continuous Learning and Self-Care: A commitment to personal and professional growth is essential to my practice. By engaging in ongoing education and participation in sex-positive spaces and Tantra education, I stay current with evolving practices and philosophies. My personal practices in Taoist Sexual Alchemy and Kundalini further enrich my understanding and effectiveness as a facilitator. This dedication to self-awareness and self-care allows me to bring my best self to each session, ensuring that I am grounded and present for my clients.
Trauma Informed Practice
Working within such a sensitive and nuanced realm of sexual energy, it is essential to be aware of the client’s previous trauma and the potential to elicit trauma within a session.
As a Trauma-informed therapist, I have studied trauma, how it affects the nervous system, how to spot symptoms of people going into a process or disassociating, and what to do in these moments.
Learning how to navigate the effects of trauma is a prominent piece of this work. This is because the therapy involves releasing stored emotions that have been carried around for a long time. And to do it in a safe and aware manner is essential for safe and effective results.
The Trauma-Informed Practice model and using Somatic Body Awareness techniques to heal may be the missing pieces you have been looking for when traditional therapies for sexual trauma have not worked. I often have clients approach me saying that traditional psychotherapy, talk therapy or CBT has not been fully effective, and they are looking for something different that may shift something for them.
Ongoing Informed Consent is another crucial component of this work.
I believe the work that I do is deeply profound because clients trust and fully surrender into their experience. To support this I prioritize clear communication and ongoing empowered consent.
Each session begins with a conversation to go through your intake form and work on your intentions and to create a safe space to express your needs, desires, and confirm your boundaries.
To put the mind at ease and reduce anxiety I explain your chosen Bodywork session in detail.
A full explanation leaves nothing to the imagination as all options are clarified. I emphasize empowered consent, meaning that before approaching any intimate spaces I always invite a deep breath into the body and to listen to how it responds after giving options.…
I may ask - ‘Breath into your body and see how she responds when I offer massage the face, the abdomen or the chest and breast tissue, what feels comfortable for you?’.
This way, the session progresses in an empowered way where you are informing me of your wishes.
I follow with - ‘If anything changes, please let me know by asking for a pause or say stop.’
Some times an honoured ‘No, I’m not ready’, or a ‘Stop’ is the medicine that you came to the session for.
The impact of being held, seen, heard and respected in that response, with no reaction or consequence is just what your body needed in the past. This is powerful!
It goes to heal the times you hadn’t had the ability to say those words. And it ripples into future timelines to support you in the future when you need that NO.
These words are not taken as a rejection but are in fact outwardly celebrated!
“Trauma comes back as a reaction, not a memory.”
Bessel Van Der Kolk
What Is Trauma?
It is not just one event carrying a painful memory. Instead, it is an accumulation of emotional or physical overwhelm to the body-mind with the inability to process those related emotions.
Trauma can occur when;
There is too much too soon
There is too much for too long
There is not enough for too long
Autonomy and power are denied
When our primal intuitions and responses are prevented
There is not enough time, space and permission to process.
What happens when we have trauma?
When pain or unexpressed emotions associated with the traumatic time were not allowed to move through the body, they are splintered off, frozen in time, left untouched, shamed and dissociated. They lie dormant in the unconscious mind AND in the tissues of the body.
Trauma can lead to dysregulation of the nervous system with a tendency to either become hyper-aroused, stressed and panicky or low, lethargic, disconnected and numb in response to emotional triggers. It can be like carrying a deadweight: Affecting feelings, emotions and availability to participate fully in life.
We are becoming more aware of trauma and how it affects our lives. Fortunately, therapies that support the body to heal the trauma are becoming more widely accepted, supported and used to significant effect.
We have termed these types of therapies Somatic Therapies.
The word somatic comes from the Greek word 'Soma', the word for body, but more to the wisdom of the body within.
Somatic Healing allows the participant to express, give time to and integrate the unexpressed emotions that could not be processed at the time of first experiencing.
This type of Tantric Bodywork and De-armouring is a Somatic Healing process that I am proud to support people with.
“Trauma is a fact of life. It does not have to be a life sentence.”
Dr Peter Levine
Impeccable Standards and Accountability
The words Tantra and Tantric Massage have been tainted.
Unfortunately, there are predators out there that are abusing their position, and not being trauma-informed.
I want this to change because I know how powerful these techniques are and how much they are needed. And, we need to do this safely and maturely. The way we do this is with high standards of integrity, trust and safety.
I encourage completing written feedback after the session, which you can send to an organisation called The Tantra Alliance. This organisation is for participants and practitioners by having a third-party system for resolving issues using safe mediation and other processes.
Gender Inclusivity
We all carry female and male energies within us, and living as close to our authentic expressions of these polarities and how they dance together is how we can have healthy relationships with ourselves and with others.
This includes unconditional love and acceptance for all expressions of this polarity.
Having said that, I specialise in supporting people who have female genitalia. And, so far, I have worked with clients with different sexual preferences and gender identities.