I was first introduced to Focusing in 1986 while visiting a relative in Pittsburgh, PA. It was a brief Focusing session, probably lasting no more than 10-15 minutes, yet it resulted in providing clarity and insight into an issue that I had been struggling with for many months. After only a few moments of Focusing, I felt lighter, less burdened, more alive; and the insight that I received provided both meaning into the life issue and direction. Where I was once stuck, I became unstuck. The experience seemed almost magical to me, and I set out to learn more about this life-changing tool.

Over a period of two years I studied extensively with Eugene Gendlin, Ph.D., author of Focusing and Ann Weiser Cornell, Ph.D., author of The Power of Focusing: a Practical Guide to Emotional Self-Healing. This culminated in my being certified as a Focusing trainer by the Focusing Institute in 1993.

My background as a musician and music educator prompted me to find ways of incorporating sound healing techniques into the Focusing process to facilitate those wishing to learn Focusing and to deepen their process. I call my work Sound Focusing. In 1997, I presented aspects of Sound Focusing at the weeklong certification intensive in Dublin, Ireland. At its core is the life-enhancing concept that virtually everything in our inner experiencing can serve to bring us to wholeness once we learn how to be with it from a place of Presence... .i.e., neither judging it, nor analyzing it, nor categorizing it, nor expecting nor demanding anything from it. All that is necessary is that we create a space where we allow it to simply be, and where we can simply listen. When combined with Focusing, sound healing techniques such as recorded music, toning (the vocalizing of elongated vowel sounds) and drumming are highly effective tools for helping us engage in this kind of inner listening. They do so by amplifying our inner experiencing and by calling forth into awareness deeply buried aspects of our souls that are in need of healing and transformation.

In addition to the specialty workshop described below, I offer introductory (Level 1) and advanced (Levels 2 and 3) Focusing workshops upon request. I am willing and able to travel to teach Focusing workshops. Workshop fees vary according to location in which workshop is given.

Sounding the Body, Sounding the Soul
This workshop is designed for experienced Focusers who wish to incorporate toning into their Focusing practice for the purpose of deepening and enhancing their inner journey. The material covered includes a brief history of toning and its effect on our physical as well as subtle energy bodies, an understanding of the human body as a resonating instrument, the relationship between musical intervals and our felt senses, and the use of vowel sounds to heal the split between modern language and inner bodily experiencing. Exercises will be used to help participants become comfortable with toning and skilled in using it in conjunction with Focusing. No previous toning experience is necessary. The workshop is approximately 80% experiential and 20% lecture.
Prerequisite: A Level One Focusing workshop (preferably with an Inner Relationship Focusing teacher, but this is not mandatory).

See Workshops by Date and Location for schedule of upcoming workshops (as dates become known, workshops will be posted there).