DanielleWeiss, LCSW, LISW
Cleveland Somatic Therapist and Dating Coach
My approach
My therapeutic orientation draws from Somatic Experiencing trauma therapy (full details at the bottom), attachment therapy, Internal Family Systems parts work, Gestalt Therapy, and mindfulness. I find that each of these modalities pulls a different but adjacent thread, weaving the therapeutic work together into an integrated whole.
By weaving together these therapeutic approaches over the course of therapy, you will access a state of integration, self-acceptance, and presence that will nourish the confidence and clarity that you desire. Your sense of self will solidify, so that you feel solid and sturdy in yourself, and confidently go after exactly what you want.
You’ll stop settling for what’s comfortable or what’s available, and start having the self-trust to stand for your highest vision of your life and nothing less. Cultivating this kind of clarity is a magnetic energy in which you are living in the flow with universal powers and your vision for life cannot help but become manifest.
More on each of these approaches is detailed below.
My 4 approaches
Using mindfulness I help you identify thought patterns and behaviors that developed early in life and are no longer serving you. By shining the light of awareness, we can step back and help you consciously create another way of being.
Through the lens of parts work, each our psyches is made up of different parts of us. We get to know the different parts of you with curiosity, understanding that every part of you is there for a good reason. We appreciate the parts of you that are trying to protect you, and we gently approach the vulnerable parts of you with compassion and care.
Through somatic trauma work we can process and heal traumatic experiences that are still stuck in the body by moving them through to completion. Slowly and gently, we help you process big trauma energy that is keeping you stuck in an either/or state of anxiety or depression, and help you build the capacity to stay in a state of grounded presence.
And through attachment therapy, we create a secure, caring relationship in the therapy room and support you in creating that same secure, loving relationship with all parts of your yourself as well as in your intimate relationships with others.
My style
In a few words, I describe my style as grounded, nurturing, transparent, real, and collaborative.
It is important to me to understand how you identify, including race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, class, culture, and other identities that shape you now and have impacted you throughout life.
I take time to understand the societal, cultural, and familial contexts in which you live and have developed, in order to address your mental health and wellbeing effectively. I strive to name privilege and power dynamics in the therapeutic relationship, in order to empower you and dismantle systems of oppression inside of the therapeutic container.
What is Somatic Experiencing?
Somatic Experiencing (SE) is a trauma treatment modality created by Peter Levine that helps us heal from traumatic experiences. We’ve all had scary or highly emotional experiences that have felt overwhelming and put us into a flight, fight, or freeze mode. Oftentimes, those states get stuck in our nervous systems, resulting in us alternating between feeling anxious, angry, or depressed. We keep feeling this way even when nothing bad is happening around us. That’s when we know we need a deeper kind of healing.
Through Somatic Experiencing, I support you in safely telling the story of your trauma in a slow and gentle way, while helping you stay connected to your body throughout. In the therapeutic container, I support your body to release stored trauma energy and emotions out of the body, often through crying, shaking, sounds, words, or visualizations. This helps your body and nervous system feel that the traumatic event is finally over, and your body can feel present, relaxed, and calm again. In my clinical experience, this kind of trauma work is the thing that resolves unhelpful patterns, relieves anxiety and depression, and gives us the freedom to live life in the present moment.
For more on this topic, click below to check out my blog post on healing trauma through nervous system work.