Huma Transpersonal Bodywork takes the orientation of the Western body-based traditions with their focus on physical and psychological health and combines it with the Eastern traditions, with their focus on reaching for and surrendering to the deeper self, the inner guide. Huma integrates subtle, articulate touch and verbal communication. It seeks the deep self by reaching for the core of the body, literally to feel the movement, the wave that is there; and sometimes even to feel the stillness which is beyond these. When this dynamic stillness occurs in the body, there can be an experience of wholeness, of the transpersonal self, which underlies and informs our lives.
SIX CORE ASPECTS OF HUMA TRANSPERSONAL BODYWORK
- Safety: Establishing an environment of safety and trust is essential in the work with clients. In addition to clarity with respect to confidentiality and boundaries, this includes being able to assess who is and isn't appropriate for this kind of work, when to refer people out, and being able to pace the work in a way which is right for each client.
- Physical: Skilled use of the hands is paramount in successful practice of this work. The hands are instruments of listening to the body. There are very specific techniques in working with the bindings (dense areas without vitality) in the body. Clients sometimes experience relief from physical pain as these bindings let go. The practitioners track the consciousness of the client in relation to information received through the hands.
- Energetic: In addition to working with the physical body, the practitioner listens for and recognizes the flow of energy through and beyond the physical body.
- Verbal: The Huma therapist/practitioner can feel, under her hands, when a significant shift in the awareness of the client occurs. In order to bring it more fully into the client's awareness, the practitioner communicates with the client about what is happening in her (the client's) experience. In addition, the practitioner sometimes uses his own psyche as a way to access that which is projected by the unconscious of the client and will verbally offer that back to the client.
- Psychological: One mechanism of repression is muscle tension. In a session, as muscle tension eases, sometimes memories and feelings which have been made unconscious come into awareness. In addition to the repression of unconscious material, areas of "holding" in the body are associated with the chronic habits of thought we construct and live in, i.e., resentment, fear, continuous planning, etc. The practitioner works with the client to name these, beginning the process of awareness, essential to letting them go.
In the psychological arena, much of what we do in our attempts to manage the ego life is to shift back and forth between its polarities, never finding a resting place. As the Huma practitioner works with the restrictions in the body which reflect this compulsive process, the client's awareness may shift to a deeper, non-dual, level of experience. Such deeper experience can involve a glimpse of the "self", rather than the ego as a basis for identity.
- Transpersonal: In this deeper state, the client may experience a tranquil acceptance of suffering and paradox which is a characteristic of the transpersonal realm. Sometimes the client may experience a shift to a state of peace, unity, love, etc. Worry is never found in this place. We can carry the memory and the fragrance of these moments back into the realm of duality. These moments can then create a context for and relativize the fluctuations of the normal ego life. It is the reaching for and supporting of this shift, which defines Huma as a transpersonal approach.
Huma Transpersonal Bodywork is a profoundly engaging process for the therapist/practitioner as well as for the client. It is done in a manner which is sensitive to the uniqueness of each person.
- Psychotherapists and counselors who want to learn to work through the body
- Body-psychotherapists who want to deepen their verbal and hands-on skills and to reach for the transpersonal
- Bodyworkers, nurses, physical therapists, and massage therapists who want to deepen their hands-on skills and to delve into the psychological and transpersonal in their work
- Those who want to work with people and feel drawn to this body-mind -spirit method
All classes may be taken for personal interest and development, for enhancement of one's own psychotherapy or bodywork practice skills, or for certification. It is not necessary to decide immediately that one wants to pursue certification. It is possible to take the classes and decide to become certified as involvement in the process deepens.
Classes are taught by demonstration, discussion, and hands-on practice. There is also support for the development and expression of each student's unique creativity in relation to the tools being learned.
CERTIFICATION
If one decides to become certified, the most important factors are a commitment to one's own personal growth, and learning to do very high quality work. Toward that end, the first stage of requirements involves taking two years of classes, (meeting one day a week, or the equivalent amount of time in workshops and intensives). The second stage, approximately one year, involves continued class time, more intense work on one's own personal growth, and an internship of clinical practice.
As people have different styles and rates of learning, and different backgrounds, certification is conferred when the student is qualified. Thus, although it generally takes three years, it might take someone two years or four years.
Continuing Education Credit available for:
National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork
