Cultivating Presence, Compassion and Connection

Cultivating Presence, Compassion and Connection

Cultivating Presence, Compassion and Connection.
This course helps professionals develop embodied presence, compassionate engagement, and somatic attunement. Through experiential practices, participants will cultivate inner awareness, deepen their capacity to resonate with others, and navigate challenging dynamics with resilience. The focus is on refining somatic language, building resilience, fostering trust through compassionate inquiry, and using the body as a guide in healing. These skills provide a foundation for creating safe, attuned therapeutic relationships.

Who This Is For

Helping professionals (therapists, counselors, healers) seeking to develop embodied presence and attunement in their practice.

Faculty

Manuela Mischke-Reeds

Manuela Mischke-Reeds

Manuela Mischke-Reeds. MFT is an international teacher of somatic psychology, somatic psychotherapist, a founder of Hakomi Institute of California and Embodywise (non-profit) that cultivates learning from the wisdom teachings of the body. She is the developer of the Innate Somatic Intelligence Trauma Therapy Approach (ISITTA), an in-depth trauma training program for therapists and practitioners.

Manuela has 25+ years of clinical experience with trauma clients, coaching executives, first responders. She lectures and trains professionals on the topics of Hakomi Therapy, mindfulness-somatic psychology, trauma healing, embodied mindfulness for trauma and stress, Movement Therapy, Somatic Psychedelic assisted Psychotherapy.

Manuela is the author of several books, including 125 Somatic Psychotherapy Tools for Trauma and Stress (PESI 2018), 8 Keys to Practicing Mindfulness: Practical Strategies for Emotional Health, Well Being (W.W.Norton 2015), Trauma-sensitive movement (2025), Embodied Psychedelic Therapy (2025).

Scott Lyons (Dr.)

Scott Lyons (Dr.)

Dr. Scott Lyons (DO, PhD, MS, MFA, CHT, BMCP/T, RSMT, SME, BMCP, IDME, SEP, CST, BFA, RYT-500) is a Clinical Psychologist, Osteopath, and Mind-Body Medicine practitioner who specializes in therapies for infants, youth, and adults. Additionally, Dr. Lyons holds a BFA in Theater/Psychology, and an MFA in Dance/Choreography. Scott is the creator of The Embody Lab — a hub for embodied education, self-discovery and healing— and developer of Somatic Stress Release™ — a processes of restoring our biological adaptation system.