Trust
Yourself
Somatic therapy for overwhelmed people pleasers
Erin Bowman, LCPC, MS
I support people pleasers in moving from overwhelmed & numb to authentic & connected by healing relational trauma.
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I create space where together we slow everything down, so that you can unmask and build meaningful relationships (with yourself and others).
Remember the game “pick up sticks” (yup, from the 80s/90s)? Every day you’re picking up way too many sticks: there’s the mind-racing stick, the frozen-body stick, the people-pleasing stick, the your-mother’s-voice stick, the burned-out stick… You feel confused, frustrated and guilty (not to mention exhausted) when again and again something happens and your reaction doesn’t feel like you. This is groundhog day in the life of Weird Barbie, except instead of getting to hang with other outcast barbies, all those sticks have you feeling disconnected. And your chaotic family is not making any of this easier (to say the least).
You’ve tried ignoring the sticks, controlling the sticks, changing the sticks, talking to old school therapists about the sticks, laughing at the sticks… everything the “experts” have said works. But it hasn’t for you.
Remember Peter Pan (I promise not all my metaphors are throwbacks) and how hard he tried to catch his shadow? What if, instead, his shadow was able to be seen* and to belong, appreciated for being exactly who he was.
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This is where I can be of help.
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You deserve to go about your day with fewer sticks, trusting yourself.
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If you want to unravel your patterns of feeling hijacked by stress responses, I'd love to help you get there.
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*This is one of the many points where the connection between therapy and politics feels important and undeniable. No one feels seen when their identity is invalidated/oppressed/dismissed/ignored. I love working with queer folks, non-monogamous folks, fat folks, survivors (Trauma, PTSD, C-PTSD, DID), and default parents. In the same vein, until we're able to do away with it as a requirement (because it's a bullshit hurdle), I will be happy to provide letters for folks seeking gender affirming care.
Erin Bowman, LCPC, MS
I am a somatic trauma therapist, which means I helps you slow down, listen to your body, and trust yourself as we untangle your past and your present. As one of our fave sci fi queens, Ursula K. LeGuin, said, “Gradually the healing took place, seeming as it always does that it wasn't taking place.” Over time this slowness, listening and untangling opens space for transformation: new experiences where masking isn't a main character and deep relationships feel possible.