Haritha Jonnalagadda Master of Counselling

Trauma disrupts the myriad of layers of our development and well being and therefore healing from trauma demands a myriad of interventions and supports. It impacts our body at a more primal physiological level.

A stand alone talk based therapeutic approach that facilitates recovery from top- down ( brain to the body) is not only insufficient or ineffective- it is no longer evidence based for trauma recovery!

After recognizing the gaps in traditional talk therapies both as a client and practitioner, I hoped to create a more integrated & holistic therapy practice that intervened the impacts of trauma from a bottom to top (body to brain) approach.

Bottom to Top or Body Based or Somatic approaches appreciate the significant role of our internal body world in helping us resolve our unresolved traumas. The way we experience ourselves, our relationships and our life experiences are not limited to our thoughts, feelings and perceptions that then dictate our behaviors.

We experience them deep within our body in the form of sensations, movements, habitual postures, breath, heart rate, pain & inflammation, muscle preparation & arousal energy states created by our nervous system.

Traumafurther impacts us at a cellular and systemic level- digestion, immunity, endocrinology, reproductive, respiratory & pulmonary, cardiovascular & lymphatic systems.

The cost of traumatic stress is paid by our whole body.

A Peek Into My Practice…

Somatic Psychotherapy interventions help reorganize and integrate our internal experiences of the external or our relational world. It works safely with the way our nervous system reacts in the present moment as informed by our past unresolved traumas that show up as body memories.

The word “Somatic” means “ of the body''. My approach combines movement interventions and somatic therapies, to create a deep understanding of your nervous system and offer it opportunities to develop skills to regulate through the shifting impacts of trauma.

I use a unique blend of functional training, strength training, prehab & rehab skills as well as somatic movements in fusion with somatic psychotherapy to help support the nervous system and physiological regulation, creating opportunities for a deeper understanding of your body.

• Developmental Trauma/Complex Trauma/Attachment Trauma
• Trauma related dissociation
• Chronic Stress & Burnout
• Pain (Chronic, Emotional, Somatic, Joint/Muscular, Postural & Post Injury or Surgery related).
• Repetitive Injuries
• Chronic Health Conditions
• Poor relationship with movement & body
• Functional Movement restrictions & later stages of rehab.

• • Interpersonal Neurobiology
  • Polyvagal & Nervous System based
  • Embodied and Somatic approaches
    
  • Sensorimotor Psychotherapy
    
  • Trauma Informed Stabilization Treatment
    
  • Attachment Theories
    
  • Somatics & Movement
    

Sessions With Me

Whether you are engaging in therapy or movement, my work follows a phase approach which is considered the gold standard of trauma informed practice for individuals with trauma.

The first phase of trauma related healing is to establish deep levels of safety and stabilization across all layers. Without safety our nervous system cannot allow for protective responses to be replaced. We cant break down walls without knowing what built them in the first place.

The second phase is identifying resources. Once we recognize the many resources that are in place to help us with survival through those traumatic times, we can start to support alternate resources that are more adaptive to the present time.

Once we have spent time creating safe, grounding and soothing resources to manage trauma triggers, we can use those resources to support processing trauma memories and experiences within the body.

True transformation and integration of resolving unresolved traumas can occur once the energy and the arousal of old memories have been processed. This is the time we spend in embodying healing and recovery.