A natural approach for healing your
psyche, body, and relationships...
Hi, I'm Amanda, a Clinical Mind-Body Therapist and Trauma Specialist. I have a track record of helping people who were previously discouraged in years of unsuccessful therapy finally unlock their pathway to healing.
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I support the following groups:
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families and couples striving to break free from years of repetitive stress
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persons with trauma who've been discouraged by unsuccessful mainstream therapy
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persons with chronic medical conditions and illness who wish to reduce their symptoms and reclaim vitality
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persons trying to reinvent themselves amid midlife crisis or sickness
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In our work together, you'll be supported with clinically effective approaches to help you identify the origins and causes of dysfunction and heal at the root.
Why does my stress keep coming back?
"Very little of what we have learned about the brain has made its way into psychiatry or psychotherapy ... except that we give people drugs, and these drugs don’t really train the brain to do things properly.
They have a suppressant effect on our
natural capacity to heal." ​
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I heard these words spoken by world-leading trauma expert Dr. Bessel van der Kolk while studying in his Traumatic Stress Studies program.
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If you've tried mainstream approaches to healing, but struggled to see results, it may be because industry norms prioritize symptom-suppression over
healing at the root. ​​
"How do we heal the root causes?"
Finally. We’re living in a time in which peer reviewed science has proven significant connections between the state of the human psyche, the health of our physical body, and the patterns playing out in our relationships.
Meanwhile. The mainstream industry is struggling to integrate this research to target the root causes of debilitating stress, chronic pain, illness, and relationship discord.
Most of the people I work with struggled for decades with these unwanted symptoms and came to me feeling discouraged after standardized approaches had offered them little to no relief.
Part of the problem is that institutional approaches prescribe homogenous, standardized treatment to
dynamic and diverse human problems.
No human is the same. The root cause of your anxiety is different from the root cause of your friend’s anxiety. Even siblings who grew up in the same house and shared common challenges and privileges interpret their life experiences differently. That means their perceptions, emotions, physical manifestations of stress, and relationships challenges will be entirely unique to the individual. Healing at the root requires a customized approach for each person.
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Here’s the good news...
Your healing doesn’t have to wait for the industry to change.
With the support of my research-based, clinically effective, advanced trauma-skilled approach, the people I serve have experienced dramatic breakthroughs in their healing journeys - even after struggling for decades without seeing progress from conventional treatments.
I operate as a holistic clinical therapist and trauma specialist, having studied with some of the world’s leading psychotherapists and trauma experts, and a world-renowned psycho-neuro immunologist (mind-body scientist).
I offer support independent from any institution and licensure, which enables me to serve people who’ve felt their progress was limited by standardized protocols. My support is not a substitute for appropriate medical care, and I do not diagnose nor medically treat any illness.​
My research-based, clinically effective approach to holistic healing…
Stress, and the problems it causes in our psyche, body, and relationships,
arise from the threats we perceive.
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The problem is, we don't always know when we're perceiving threats because these perceptions exist outside of our conscious awareness.
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In our sessions, you'll be supported with research-based, clinically effective, trauma-skilled approaches for improving
the health of your psyche, body, and relationships...
You'll learn about how your brain and body have been changed by moments of unexpected change, isolation, and shock.
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You'll learn about how your culture and environment impact your symptoms
and what you can do to finally break free.
You'll learn about how your emotions and trauma are chemical reactions inside of you,
affecting your anatomy and physiology,
and steps you can take to undo the damage.
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You'll gain new understanding of your triggers, why they occur, and what you can do to improve your relationship with these chaotic occurrences.
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You'll gain awareness about how your hidden self-perceptions impact
your relationships and what you can do to
shift problematic relating and communication patterns.​
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You'll examine how your stress patterns have held you back from the experiences you long for, and you'll be guided to finally move forward with confidence.​​​
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You'll gain advanced trauma support skills that have helped people who were previously discouraged by decades of unsuccessful standardized treatment
finally break free and heal.
You'll be guided with care and understanding by a practitioner with a track record of success who has also personally healed from complex trauma and chronic illness.
You can have faith in the process as you receive a research-based, clinically effective, advanced trauma-skilled approach to healing longstanding stress patterns in your life.
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About Amanda
I'm a Clinical Mind-Body Therapist, Trauma Specialist, and Cross-cultural Educator.
While working in Chicago's health care sector, I observed the link between mental and physical health. I helped dialysis clinics improve patient outcomes by implementing mind-body education and depression management services. I was later discouraged by industry norms that prioritized profit over impact. I left in 2013 to volunteer in the Peace Corps in South Africa. ​
That's when I met David Patient, one of the first people to be diagnosed with HIV/AIDS. Doctors told him he had 6 months to live, and there was nothing that could save him. But David pioneered his own holistic treatment plans and lived another 34 years. He co-authored the book, The Healer Inside You, and was my mentor from 2013-2017 until he passed away from other causes. While in South Africa, I trained with David and his colleague Neil Orr, a psycho-neuro immunologist, who were consultants to the United Nations.
I later entered a 10-year mentorship with a body-centered psychologist and studied with the world's leading experts on trauma in Dr. Bessel van der Kolk's Traumatic Stress Studies Certificate program. I stay up-to-date on the latest psych research by attending classes through the National Institute for the Clinical Application of Behavioral Medicine. I also complete ongoing courses with Pat Ogden's Sensorimotor Psychotherapy Institute and offerings by Dr. Peter Levine.
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Personally, I've experienced my own suffering, and healed from adult onset asthma, IBS, and complex trauma. Because I know trauma and sickness intimately, I'm committed to helping people breakthrough - even when nothing else worked.​​ My clients have unlocked their healing pathway even after decades of being discouraged by unsuccessful conventional treatment.
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I operate independently of any institution or licensure, which enables me to serve people who feel their progress has been limited by conventional protocols. ​It's my honor to help people create new chapters in which their symptoms do not define them.
