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Sundown Healing Arts

Intuitive, compassionate bodywork for trauma

Survival Tools

Topic: Survival Tools

Addiction as Emotion Management

“[T]he realities of poverty, class, racism, social isolation, past trauma, sex-based discrimination and other social inequalities affect both people’s vulnerability to and capacity for effectively dealing with drug-related harm.” (emphasis added)   — Principles of Harm Reduction Addiction is defined as physical and/or psychological dependence on a substance or behavior. Physical dependence leads to tolerance, where more of a substance… Read More

September 1, 2011 sonia

Topic: Survival Tools

Gain Awareness of Dissociation

Like denial, dissociation protects us from overwhelming input. Where denial distances us from a thought or feeling, dissociation distances us from our own felt experience and body. Dissociation can be short-term, such as listening to headphones and spacing out during a dental appointment, or long-term, such as feeling floaty and disjointed for months after a… Read More

July 1, 2009 sonia

Topic: Survival Tools

Behind the Curtain of Obsessive Thoughts

Whether we’re struggling with our bodies, our relationships, our addictions, or some other intractable problem, many of us find our thoughts covering the same painful ground again and again. We’re not gaining new insights, and we can’t seem to stop the cycle. The thoughts themselves become a topic of worry and self-judgment. Peeking behind the… Read More

May 1, 2009 sonia

Topic: Survival Tools

Tell a Story about Denial

Denial, the refusal to acknowledge a painful fact, thought, or feeling, has a bad reputation these days. Being “in denial” is thought to be contrary, regressive, and the opposite of healing. We are urged to confront the truth, lose our illusions, and stop running away, all in the name of getting healthier. Denial is protective… Read More

April 1, 2009 sonia

Topic: Survival Tools

Calm Your Inner Critic

Have you noticed an ongoing commentary in the back of your mind that points out every mistake, omission, and fault you’ve made or might make? Most of us have it, commonly labeled the Inner Critic. You may have already noticed that arguing with your Inner Critic only leads to louder criticism, possibly about how self-critical… Read More

December 1, 2008 sonia

Topic: Survival Tools

The Gift of Resistance

Resistance is often seen as a problem, or even a character flaw. Instead, it can be seen as a gift of information from our deeper selves. Changing the focus At the beginning of a session, a client courageously announced, “I didn’t want to come today.” When I invited him to explore his feeling further, he… Read More

October 1, 2008 sonia

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This practice is closed. Thank you to all the clients who have come in over the years. I appreciate your courage and trust. Click here for practitioner referral list. I am returning to my previous career of computer programming, and my previous home of Oakland, CA.

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People Say

Michelle Siegel

I had come to Sonia for relief from migraines and ended up with both reduced frequency of the migraines and relief from other stress-induced problems–shoulder and neck pain, back pain. Working with Sonia also enabled me to release some old memories and pain that were held quite deeply in my body. Continue Reading (click twice)

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Sundown Healing Arts is size-friendly, diversity-friendly, queer-friendly, and trans-friendly. Persons of any body size, skin color, sexual orientation, and gender are welcome. Black Lives Matter.

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