Bodies of water.
You. me. The puddle outside. The river, lake, aquifer that feeds your community, that filled the glass of water you drank today. The dog running across the field, the hawk flying over field. The grass, clover in the field, and the clouds above the hawk. The trees reaching into the clouds. The water molecules you exhale as you read this.
All water. We are mostly water (yes - we are also bodies of air, atoms, cells). I am on a lifelong mission to link individual healing with the water that surrounds us. Bodywork, large and small.
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one body of water next to another.
(Lauren by the lakes)
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There's a lot of healing beckoning in the world, much that is urgent, on many levels. For much of my life, my primary focus has been on one of the simplest fundamentals of life that all us bodies need - viable water. I spend a lot of time working on an individual level with human bodies now - and I'm really interested how we can cooperatively shift some of the big picture dynamics that affect everyone.
I practice biodynamic craniosacral therapy (BCST), massage, and lead qi gong and other therapeutic movements on an individual basis. I also engage in watershed stewardship and salmon volunteer work, because I think we need to heal on all levels.
about me.
Living in diverse environments throughout life has developed in me a fascination with how we are shaped by our surround - as well as how we reciprocate. I use "surround" largely - the natural surround, the cultural surround, the multi-layered landscapes of sound and smell, flora and fauna and fungi and other related creatures, of language and history and the interwoven elements in all our bodies.
my roots in this work
I am fascinated with life (and death, and their ongoing interweaving cycles). My bodywork practice emerged organically, slowly and steadily (but somehow taking me by surprise!) from a background in biology, ecology and environmental studies, particularly marine and freshwater ecology.
Although passionate about life and physiology in all bodies, it was the non-humans I thought I paid the most attention to, in part because I found human medicine amazing, but steeped in competitive and hierarchical culture at the academic level. Bodywork felt like a passion on the side, but one with deep roots...
I remember as a tiny child our father used to "relax" my sister and I to help us go to sleep - only much later realizing this was inspired by Feldenkrais method and the Alexander technique. I thank him to this day. As a teenager, our north island neighbourhood gathered for qi gong and yoga classes in yards and barns with Brenda Dempsey, now a friend and mentor from neighbouring Read Island.
Although passionate about life and physiology in all bodies, it was the non-humans I thought I paid the most attention to, in part because I found human medicine amazing, but steeped in competitive and hierarchical culture at the academic level. Bodywork felt like a passion on the side, but one with deep roots...
I remember as a tiny child our father used to "relax" my sister and I to help us go to sleep - only much later realizing this was inspired by Feldenkrais method and the Alexander technique. I thank him to this day. As a teenager, our north island neighbourhood gathered for qi gong and yoga classes in yards and barns with Brenda Dempsey, now a friend and mentor from neighbouring Read Island.
ripple effects
I started "studying" informally with massage therapist friends in college, later taking courses in holistic massage and anatomy, including relaxation and deep tissue massage, Trager and facilitated joint release. I studied more qi gong and the Tao Te Ching, geology, organic chemistry, and living anatomy. I am deeply inspired by Alexander technique and Feldenkrais awareness through movement, as well as many movement-based practices.
When I moved back home to BC and started practicing massage as a trade, I quickly noticed what that totally different results tend to occur when we really engage in our healing processes. I've always wanted to do work that reaches beyond me - partly just to get more done in a world with so much good work to do! My search for deeper, more efficient and long-lasting healing modalities led me to the profound work of BCST. A dear friend kept describing this fascinating course she was taking in New Zealand.
I loved the meeting of worlds I found in the Body Intelligence biodynamic craniosacral therapy training program (though I often with it had a shorter title!). I am deeply grateful to all my teachers in my foundation training - Ged Sumner, Steve Haines, Sheila Kean, and Angela Wheeler. I'd also like to give thanks for the additional foundation assistance from the deeply inspiring Heidi Lauber, Renee Hella, and Juliana Grubweiser, who helped me grow into my foundation in this work.
When I moved back home to BC and started practicing massage as a trade, I quickly noticed what that totally different results tend to occur when we really engage in our healing processes. I've always wanted to do work that reaches beyond me - partly just to get more done in a world with so much good work to do! My search for deeper, more efficient and long-lasting healing modalities led me to the profound work of BCST. A dear friend kept describing this fascinating course she was taking in New Zealand.
I loved the meeting of worlds I found in the Body Intelligence biodynamic craniosacral therapy training program (though I often with it had a shorter title!). I am deeply grateful to all my teachers in my foundation training - Ged Sumner, Steve Haines, Sheila Kean, and Angela Wheeler. I'd also like to give thanks for the additional foundation assistance from the deeply inspiring Heidi Lauber, Renee Hella, and Juliana Grubweiser, who helped me grow into my foundation in this work.
sharing BCST
What a gift to submerse myself further in this work! With encouraging nudges from my teacher and mentor Ged Sumner, I've slowly stepped into greater response-ability teaching BCST to others through the Body Intelligence training. I'm grateful for this additional mentorship, as well as that of BI tutors Simon Gosling, Nancy Schrauth, Jason Jackson, & Lolly Dadley-Moore, who have all helped me grow along the way.
My qi gong teachers include Brenda Dempsey, Ged Sumner, Michael Smith, Anne Logan, and more.
The learning curve just keeps going.
As does my gratitude to all my teachers - in tutor and student roles, and more.
My qi gong teachers include Brenda Dempsey, Ged Sumner, Michael Smith, Anne Logan, and more.
The learning curve just keeps going.
As does my gratitude to all my teachers - in tutor and student roles, and more.
Lauren studied Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy with Body Intelligence: http://www.bodyintelligence.com/
