Moving Through Life treats people using traditional counseling methods and dance / movement therapy.
We help our clients through the day to day struggles and any of these difficulties. Click on the links below to learn more.
Trauma — Chronic Pain & Illness — Career Advancement — Women’s Issues
Trauma
When your life is threatened by an event, you may develop symptoms of acute trauma, such as flashbacks.
Many of us have traumatic events or attachment wounds in our past. When caregivers do not support us as we deserve, we often have unwanted reactions, such as startling easily, or we rely on coping strategies that eventually make our lives more difficult. This results in chronic trauma.
When the brain does not store trauma memories correctly, the traumatic event(s) feel like they are happening now or are imminent, which results in flashbacks and other symptoms. Dance/Movement Therapy, hypnotherapy and EMDR provide an experience to help the brain store the traumatic memory properly.
Chronic pain
Pain exists as a warning to get you to stop to prevent further injury. When pain becomes chronic, it no longer serves the adaptive purpose of preventing additional damage. Hypnosis is a powerful intervention to help relieve chronic pain. Dance/movement therapy can also be very effective.
Career Advancement
Feeling stuck, unappreciated, unfulfilled in your career? Counseling and/or dance/movement therapy can help you find your footing and enable you to identify strengths. Most people can do more than they give themselves credit for. Exploring your strengths and passion can help you forge a new path, in your current career or something new, resulting in increased job satisfaction and ability to develop in your job.
Women’s Issues
Women in the Chattanooga area earn approximately 72–74 cents for every dollar earned by men. Women frequently have more responsibilities in the household and with children. Additionally, the work-life balance myth results in women blaming themselves for not being able to do everything. Melissa’s experience as one of ten female senior managers in an organization of over 3,800 employees gives her unique insight into the struggles of women in the workplace. Counseling can identify strengths and priorities. Dance/movement therapy can help you embody that strength and move toward resolving overwhelm and exhaustion.
Grief
Grief can feel like a bottomless pit with no way out. Our society lacks the rituals for grieving that other cultures have successfully used to support acknowledging and coping with death. Many even frown upon saying someone “died” – instead saying they passed or were lost. Kübler-Ross created a model of the stages of grieving, denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. This appears that you complete each emotion and it’s done; however, grief doesn’t work that way. It is a nonlinear process and can sneak up on you unexpectedly. Counseling can help you talk through memories, thoughts and feelings about the deceased. Dance/movement therapy can help you find your footing in your new situation and create a path forward.
Life Transitions
The only constant in life is change. Dealing with change is a challenge for most people. Growing older, having children, children growing up, changing careers or other life situations can be overwhelming. Counseling can help you sort through thoughts and feelings about the changes. Dance/movement therapy can help identify bodily sensations that gives cues to unknown emotions or insight and help you embrace the changes.
Depression and Anxiety
Many people think you can just snap out of the sadness, emptiness, and energy loss of depression; however, if you could control it that way, you wouldn’t be depressed. Anxiety is living in the future as opposed to being present with the now. Consistent fears or underlying worries interfere with relationships, responsibilities and most everything. Counseling can help you sort through your feelings with a trusted person beside you. Dance/movement therapy can help you identify and express feelings and thoughts and get unstuck. Together we can help you regain your joy and find peace.
