Before becoming a counselor, I received a Bachelor of Education in 1978, from the University of Alberta, Canada — and worked several years as a middle school special education teacher. I realized that many problems youth were experiencing in school, resulted from factors outside the classroom. Feeling that I could have more of an impact as a youth worker/counselor, I began working at Project Breakthrough, a powerful preventative treatment program for “high risk” youth that provided comprehensive individual, group, family, educational and life skills counseling and intervention.  My journey continued as the Assistant Program Director of Supported Independent Living Program — an innovative counseling and placement program that helped youth that had been wards of the court for most of their lives, develop independent living skills. It also prevented them from ending up on the streets after emancipation.

I learned a great deal from my early experiences working on the front lines with these “at risk” teens. I realized that in order to better understand and influence program planning and counseling for “high risk” or “acting out” youth and their families, I needed additional education and experience.

In 1981 I moved to Phoenix, Arizona to pursue a Masters in Counseling Degree from Arizona State University, an exceptional program that was in a much warmer climate than Alberta. Graduating in 1984, I joined a private practice in Scottsdale, Arizona that focused on providing comprehensive individual, group and family counseling. My emphasis was on assisting individuals that were experiencing stress-related health problems and/or life-threatening illnesses (such as migraines, tension headaches, high blood pressure, dermatological issues, Irritable bowel syndrome, chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia, and cancer) learn ways to counter the negative effects of stress through stress reduction counseling, mindfulness-based practices, relaxation training, and biofeedback. I also worked with individuals dealing with anxiety, depression, self-injurious “acting out” or addictive behaviors due to childhood or adult onset sexual, physical, and emotional abuse or neglect and other traumatic life events.

It was clear to me that for my clients to recover effectively, I had to use a combination of treatment approaches that considered the big picture –- including the mental, physical, emotional, educational, familial, social, spiritual, and environmental factors that might contribute to their current difficulties. I often collaborated with other health and wellness professionals to develop comprehensive treatment plans for my clients, tailored to their individual needs.

Compassion, competence and effectiveness are very important to me. I am constantly perfecting my craft in order to provide my clients with the best evidence-based treatment available. Through the last 30 years I have become proficient in a multitude of dynamic approaches and counseling techniques such as:

• Client- Centered Psychotherapy
• Positive Psychology
• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
• Gestalt
• Hakomi
• Ericksonian Hypnosis
• Stress Management and Biofeedback Training
• Mindfulness-based practices
• Process–oriented Couples and Family Therapy
• Solution Focused Brief Therapy
• Energy psychology
• Thought Field Therapy
• EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing)
• Ego state Therapy/Internal Family Systems, and
• HeartMath™

All of these approaches are aimed at safely and comfortably uncovering what is causing discomfort or dysfunction, and encouraging personal growth, development, and repair necessary to function effectively and achieve happiness and fulfillment.

One approach that I found to be extremely helpful in assisting my clients through their journey to health and wellness was EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing). In 1996, I received my credentials as an EMDR therapist. In 2000 I became an EMDR Institute facilitator, and was subsequently certified as an EMDRIA EMDR therapist and EMDRIA Approved Consultant. This allows me to help train other mental health professionals and physicians in this very successful approach.

Since then I have completed a multitude of advanced specialty EMDR trainings that require advanced, specialty protocols for

• Recent incident trauma/post disaster treatment
• Complex PTSD
• Acute stress disorder
• Anxiety
• Phobias
• Panic disorders
• Obsessive-compulsive disorder
• Depression
• Couples and relationship issues
• Addictions
• Compulsions and other self-injurious behaviors
• Dissociative disorders
• Very early trauma and neglect
• Dealing effectively with terminal and chronic health problems and chronic pain
• Enhancing peak performance.

In 2010, my passion for prevention prompted me to join with other like-minded EMDR trauma specialists in Arizona to form the Arizona EMDR Trauma Recovery Network (AzTRN), a network of EMDR therapists that have volunteered to provide at least 12 pro bono hours per year of Early EMDR Intervention following a community disaster or critical incident. The network also provides training for EMDR therapists in specialty protocols that can prevent PTSD and other post disaster difficulties and disorders from materializing. The AZTRN became a Medical Reserve Corp unit, and is actively involved in providing educational opportunities for first responder organizations and the community at large on the importance of trauma-informed treatment that includes effective early psychological interventions following traumatic events.

I have provided workshops and trainings internationally on using EMDR Early Interventions: Preventing PTSD and other post trauma difficulties and disorders. And in 2015, I became a EMDR R-TEP (Recent traumatic Episode Protocol) and G-TEP (Group Traumatic Episode Protocol) Trainer for the Trauma Recovery/EMDR Humanitarian Assistance Program. This is a volunteer project that provides 2-day trainings for EMDR therapists interested in being prepared for disaster response and recovery. I have also received Disaster Mental Health training from the Red Cross and CISM Peer Support training — and recently completed an advanced Thought Field Therapy training to provide TFT training and assistance to survivors of natural and manmade disasters.

Through my training and experience in various methods of psychology, I am able to combine various disciplines to achieve optimal results in the most efficient time period. Not restricted to just one method, I am able to objectively determine the best combined forms of therapy for you. Through actively keeping up with current issues and learning new processes, I maintain an open mind towards any concerns or issues my clients present.

I really enjoy what I do, and consider myself to be somewhat of a Sherlock Holmes. With my investigative common sense and positive approach to problem solving, I can quickly uncover whatever is keeping you stuck in situations, attitudes, and behaviors that interfere with achieving the peace, success, happiness, and fulfillment you yearn for.

As a Nationally Certified and Licensed Professional Counselor, my goal is to create a quality, safe and comfortable healing environment, where you can feel free to explore aspects of your life that are not working for you and to uncover obstacles that are preventing you from moving forward in an optimal way. I believe that we have the natural ability to heal from the inside, when given the right resources on the outside.

Through the years, I’ve learned that there are often triggers to emotional distress or imbalance that are not always obvious. So together, we’ll review your current situation, symptoms, and problematic behaviors. Then, we’ll consider how past events or other mitigating factors may be contributing to your current difficulties — and what skills and internal resources you need to function in a healthy, happier, and more connected way.

To accomplish this, I select from many psychotherapeutic approaches and treatment modalities, all geared towards helping you activate your natural healing mechanisms and remove blockages to healthily resolving current difficulties or challenges you are facing. These methods are supported by the latest findings in psycho-neuro biology which is designed to access anything that’s preventing you from living your life the way you want to, free from undue mental or physical pain or emotional distress and changing any behaviors that are negatively affecting your quality of life or those of your loved ones.

To help you move quickly and effectively forward, I am always perfecting my craft, enhancing my skills, and providing you with a therapeutic experience that draws from the most up-to-date evidence based treatment approaches available. You will be provided with a personalized, targeted treatment plan geared towards making the changes you desire.

To learn more about the approaches and techniques I utilize in my practice please see the services section.

• Recent trauma/loss/disaster
• Post -Traumatic Stress disorder (PTSD)
• Acute stress disorder
• Anxiety, phobias, panic disorders
• Depression, grief, loneliness
• Relationship difficulties
• Divorce recovery
• Obsessions, compulsions, and other self- injurious behaviors
• Burn out
• Performance enhancement
• Post-partum depression, infertility and other women’s issues
• Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
• Complex trauma, early childhood abuse/neglect
• Stress related health problems
• Chronic Pain
• Dealing with major health problems (Cancer, Diabetes, heart issues, vertigo, IBS Chronic Illnesses or disabilities)

• EMDR Basic Training Consultation: Weekend 1 & 2 (group and individual)
• EMDRIA Certification Consultation
• EMDRIA Approved Consultant Consultation
• Peer Consultation for Complex Cases
• Monthly Free Peer Study group for EMDR therapists

Trauma Recovery/EMDR Humanitarian Assistance Program

• Lead Coordinator – Arizona TRN Chapter (Trauma Response and Recovery Network) (www.aztrn.org)
• Consultant –  EMDR Basic Training Weekend 1 & 2
• Facilitator – EMDR Basic Training Weekend 1 & 2
• Trainer – EMDR RTEP/GTEP ( Recent Traumatic Episode Protocol)
• National Trauma Recovery Network Advisory Council

Medical Reserve Corps – AzTRN Unit Founder/Coordinator

EMDR Free Case Study Groups

In 2000, I began sponsoring and leading a free peer study group once a month where EMDR therapists can do case consultation on the EMDR psychotherapy approach and protocols. Participants must have EMDR Basic Training credentials. Please see the Calendar Tab in the navigation bar at the top of the screen for more information.

Hope Award – December 2011

The Hope Award is sponsored by Sierra Tucson for outstanding achievement in the area of prevention and education in the mental health field. Beverlee received this award for her years of pro bono service to the EMDR Community, such as the free Case Study Groups she has facilitated since 1999, and her initiative to establish and launch the Arizona EMDR Trauma Response and Recovery Network (AETR2N), which is a state–wide humanitarian assistance program developed to train and mobilize EMDR therapists to provide pro bono therapy to victims of disasters or recent incident traumatic events.

• EMDR Institute – Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing Institute – Facilitator
• EMDRIA – Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing International Association
• AAETS – American Academy of Experts in Traumatic Stress
• ATFT – Affiliates of Thought Field Therapy Association
• ISST–d – International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation
• ACEP – Association for Comprehensive Energy Psychology
• NBCC – National Board for Certified Counselors Association
• ACA – American Counselors Association

EMDR has been accepted as an effective form of treatment by several major health organizations including most recently the WHO (World Health Organization). It is listed as an evidenced–based practice by SAMHSA (Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration) and NREPP (National Registry of Evidenced Based Practices and Programs) and the VA/DOD Clinical Practice Guidelines (2004, 2010) recognize EMDR as being a “A” category (the highest level designation) for treatment of trauma.

EMDR is an eight-phase treatment which comprehensively identifies and addresses experiences that have overwhelmed the brain’s natural resilience or coping capacity, and have thereby generated traumatic symptoms and/or harmful coping strategies.

Through EMDR therapy, patients are able to reprocess traumatic information until it is no longer psychologically disruptive. EMDR is a physiologically–based therapy that appears to be similar to what occurs naturally in REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep and seems to have a direct effect on the way our brain processes and stores information.

The Adaptive Information Processing Model is the guiding principle of the EMDR approach and it postulates that health and wellbeing is supported by positive and successful experiences that increasingly prepare a person to handle new challenges and that the brain is equipped to manage and process adversity. Sometimes it just needs a little help. EMDR Therapy utilizes a 3 pronged approach which includes not only a focus on past (contributory) memories, but also focused reprocessing of present situation that continue to be triggering, as well as the development of an adaptive, positive template for the future.

“EMDR therapy shows that the mind can in fact heal from psychological trauma much as the body recovers from physical trauma.  When you cut your hand, your body works to close the wound.  If a foreign object or repeated injury irritates the wound, it festers and causes pain.  Once the block is removed, healing resumes.  EMDR therapy demonstrates that a similar sequence of events occurs with mental processes.  The brain’s information processing system naturally moves toward mental health.  If the system is blocked or imbalanced by the impact of a disturbing event, the emotional wound festers and can cause intense suffering.  Once the block is removed, healing resumes.  Using the detailed protocols and procedures learned in EMDR therapy training sessions, clinicians help clients activate their natural healing processes.”  (Francine Shapiro, EMDR .com)

For more information, go to www.emdr.com, www.EMDRIA.org, www.aztrn.org (Early EMDR Intervention and Disaster response). www.emdrhap.org (International Humanitarian organization)  Shapiro’s describes EMDR therapy in a 1 hour webinar/video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lsQbzfW9txc

Stress is part of being alive and some of its stimulating effects can be good, but too much of it can have a negative effect on our health. Stress Management and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy will help you learn more effective ways of coping with stress by:

1. helping you recognize and evaluate any factors that may be putting you under any unnecessary stress,
2. provide you with the stress management skills necessary for you to alter or change the feeling, thoughts, or behaviors that are aggravating or causing your current health problems, and
3. will show you, through mindfulness based practices, that you can control physical stress by learning to relax and flow through it.

The various techniques that can be employed in a stress management therapy session include relaxation, biofeedback, cognitive behavior therapy (CBT), dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT), and mindfulness–based practices such as guided imagery, deep breathing, muscle stretching, and meditation. Instead of being stuck in flight, flight, or freeze, you learn how to flow.

See more at www.goodtherapy.org/mindfulness-based-approaches-contemplative-approaches.html

Optimal You professionals providing Stress Reduction and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy:

Beverlee Laidlaw Chasse, MC, LPC
Naomi Berry, MC, LPC
Ben Woodruff, LCSW, MDiv
Wendy Moyer, MS, LMFT
D. Seth Jenkins, LPC, LISAC

“The most powerful thing the therapist does for us is provide a setting, a nourishing womb, in which our lives can unfold. Through the physical setting and, most important, the setting of his own being, he creates a place of safety; a trustworthy place where all life is befriended through an affirmation of faith in our wisdom and creativity.”
--Gregory Johanson, Ph.D., Hakomi Institute Co-Founder and Senior Trainer

The Hakomi Method of Experiential Psychotherapy is a body-centered approach developed by Ron Kurtz, which combines somatic awareness with experiential techniques to promote psychological growth and transformation.

Hakomi integrates principles of Eastern philosophy — primarily Buddhism and Taoism —  emphasizing concepts such as mindfulness, loving presence, and empathy. Kurtz also incorporated additional influences, such as general systems theory and a range of body-centered therapeutic approaches such as Gestalt therapy,  Psychomotor therapy, Reichian breathwork,  Feldenkrais method, Focusing, Bioenergetic analysis, Structural bodywork, Neuro-linguistic programming, and Eriksonian hypnosis.

In the Hakomi Method, gestures, posture, facial expressions, and other bodily experiences provide information about a person's core material. This core material can be described as a combination of the images, memories, emotions, and beliefs — even those hidden from awareness — determining a person's individual nature and may also serve to place limits on one's individuality and goals. Individuals can eventually develop a clearer understanding of this core material and, with the assistance of compassionate, gentle assistance from professionals trained in Hakomi, can examine, challenge, and ultimately transform any self-defeating beliefs or behaviors.

Read more at www.hakomiinstitute.com.

Gestalt therapy, developed by Fritz Perls, Laura Perls in the 1940s, is an experiential and humanistic form of therapy that was originally designed as an alternative to conventional psychoanalysis. Gestalt therapists and their clients use creative and experiential techniques to enhance awareness, freedom, and self-direction.The theory of Gestalt takes as its centerpiece two ideas: 1) hear and now awareness, and 2) we are inextricably caught in a web of relationship with all things. So it is only possible to truly know ourselves as we exist in relation to other things.

The idea is to avoid dwelling on the past or anxiously anticipating the future.

Experiences of the past may be addressed in therapy sessions, but the therapist and client will focus on exploring what factors made a particular memory come up in this moment, or how the present moment is impacted by experiences of the past.

At the core of Gestalt therapy is the holistic view that people are intricately linked to and influenced by their environments and that all people strive toward growth and balance. In the Gestalt approach emphasis is on the therapist’s use of empathy, understanding, and unconditional acceptance of the client to enhance therapeutic outcomes.

Energy psychology (EP) is a mind-body approach to understanding and improving human functioning. EP focuses on the relationship between bioenergy systems, neuro and electro physiological processes, and mental functions involving thoughts, emotions, sensations, and behavior.

EP applications incorporate natural energetic components into the treatment process that include, but are not limited to, meridians, chakras, biofields, and bio-electrical and electromagnetic activity of the body, the nervous system and the heart.

EP practitioners often combine cognitive and physical interventions with activation of one or more of the human bio-energy systems. Some practitioners focus on the way in which thought and intention are expressed in the bioenergy system, and explore the therapeutic value of precise use of language and congruent intention. EP approaches are often exceedingly rapid, have little to no adverse effects, are usually experienced as self-empowering by clients and patients, and are easily amenable to self-help protocols.

EP models have been beneficially applied to assessment and treatment of trauma, anxiety, depression, pain, stress, psychophysiological issues, and self-sabotaging behaviors by a broad range of healthcare providers, to regulate affect and promote emotional and physical health.

"Treatment results have been shown to be enduring and relatively rapid. There are currently over 60 research studies, including multiple Randomized Controlled Trials (RCT) published in professional and refereed journals, confirming the treatment value of EP. Taken as a body of knowledge, these findings suggest that EP meets the criteria for evidenced-based treatment.”(ACEP website)

Read more at www.energypsych.org

D. Seth Jenkins, LPC, LISAC provides Spiritual Direction services at Optimal You.

Thought Field Therapy (TFT) is a technique for the rapid relief of all kinds of emotional distress. It works like acupuncture, without the needles, stimulating the body’s energy meridians to resolve problems with the body’s emotional control system. The patient taps on various parts of the body with their fingers. The results are amazing as many emotional problems can often disappear in minutes.” — tftpractitioners.net

Thought Field Therapy uses a tapping sequence in the form of a healing code that balances the body’s energy system and allows you to significantly reduce or eliminate most negative emotions within minutes, while promoting the body’s own healing ability. This is effective in finding immediate relief, but additional techniques are typically needed to stabilize the root issues.

Transpersonal psychotherapy is concerned with the study of humanity’s highest potential, and with the recognition, understanding, and realization of unitive, spiritual, and transcendent states of consciousness (Lajoie and Shapiro, 1992).

The goal of transpersonal psychotherapy goes beyond healing trauma to the awakening and attainment of our highest potential. The tenets, philosophies, and practices of the world’s spiritual and wisdom traditions are integrated with Western science, philosophy, and theory to create a full-spectrum psychospiritual developmental model. This model takes us from birth and normal Western developmental phases, to the awakening of spiritual consciousness and the awareness of our interconnection to all living things through a shared energy field, as depicted in Eastern and Native spiritual traditions (Siegel, 2018).

Going beyond conventional psychology’s continuum of maladaptive to adaptive emotions and behaviors, transpersonal psychotherapy recognizes an expanded view of human wholeness, transformation and inter-connectedness via the development of higher levels of spiritual consciousness.  As consciousness shifts, the context of one’s experience shifts, insights become more profound and transformative healing occurs.  Clients transcend their egoic or personal perspectives, seeing events from an expanded state of awareness, often with new solutions and elevated understanding.

Through the use of attunement to each client’s needs, resonance with higher levels of consciousness, guided imagery, various mindfulness practices, breathwork, and tools from ancient spiritual traditions, transpersonal therapists guide clients to their own inner wisdom, facilitating shifts in consciousness, understanding, well-being and ultimately to living their fullest potential.

Solution–Focused Brief Therapy is a practical goal–driven model with emphasis on clear, precise, and realistic goal negotiations. This approach assumes that you have some knowledge of what would make your life better even though you may need some help describing the details of your better life.

The foundational belief is that people who seek help already possess the minimal skills necessary to create solutions, but just need some help setting up the small, realistic and doable steps to achieve their desired goals.

As the name suggests, SFBT is future-focused, goal-directed, and focuses on solutions, rather than on the problems that brought clients to seek therapy.

Learn more at solutionfocused.net.

Three major theoretical frameworks—a behavioral science biosocial model of the development of chronic mental health issues, the mindfulness practice of Zen Buddhism, and the philosophy of dialectics—combine to form the basis for DBT.

The biosocial theory attempts to explain how issues related to borderline personality develop. The theory posits that some people are born with a predisposition toward emotional vulnerability. Environments that lack solid structure and stability can intensify a person’s negative emotional responses and influence patterns of interaction that become destructive. These patterns can harm relationships and functioning across all settings and often result in suicidal behavior and/or a diagnosis of borderline personality.

DBT draws mindfulness techniques from Zen Buddhism in order to use here-and-now presence of mind to help people in therapy objectively and calmly assess situations. Mindfulness training allows people to take stock of their current experience, evaluate the facts, and focus on one thing at a time.

Dialectics are used to support both the therapist and person in treatment in pulling from both extremes of any issue. Therapists use dialectics to help people accept the parts of themselves they do not like and to provide motivation and encouragement to address the change of those parts. Synthesizing polar opposites can reduce tension and help keep therapy moving forward.

Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) is a therapy designed to help people change patterns of behavior that are not helpful, such as self-harm, suicidal thinking, and substance abuse.

Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) is a type of cognitive behavioral therapy. Its main goal is to teach the patient skills to cope with stress, regulate emotions and improve relationships with others.

Learn more at www.linehaninstitute.org

HeartMath™ is a unique system that combines rigorous research, advanced technologies, and validated techniques in training individuals to reduce stress and enhance their lives using biofeedback software. By generating an optimal physiological and psychological state called coherence, one is improving their nervous-system harmony, emotional stability, and cognitive performance.

What Is Coherence?

In regards to HeartMath™ services, coherence refers to the harmony of the rhythmic activities of the body including heart rate, blood pressure, and respiration. Our research indicates that when the body experiences positive emotional states, it functions in a coherent manner, providing an endless amount of physical, emotional, and mental benefits.

When we allow negative emotions like anxiety, depression, and frustration to dominate our lives, the pattern of our heart rate variability (HRV) becomes disordered, which directly effects our physical and psychological performances. When we monitor heart rhythms through our software, we can study the physiological and psychological status, as well as predicting future health risk, with the intention of reaching a coherent state. When a coherent system is learned, the heart sends more information to the brain, improving cognitive performance.

Using HRV analysis, we study the coherence through our software and determine where improvement is necessary. Coherence doesn’t mean that everybody or all the parts of the body are doing the same thing all the time. Think of a jazz band, for example, where the individual players are each doing their own thing, yet keeping in tune and step with the whole band. Coherence, in this sense, maximizes local freedom and global cohesion.

Unlike relaxation, the coherence state does not necessarily involve a lowering of heart rate or a change in the amount of HRV, but rather is primarily marked by a change in the heart-rhythm pattern. Relaxation is a low-energy state in which the individual rests both the body and mind, typically disengaging from cognitive and emotional processes. In contrast, coherence generally involves the active engagement of positive emotions. Psychologically, coherence is experienced as a calm, balanced, yet energized and responsive state that is conducive to everyday functioning and interaction, including the performance of tasks requiring mental acuity, focus, problem-solving and decision-making, as well as physical activity and coordination.

How can HeartMath™ help?

When you arrive at a HeartMath™ session at Optimal You, we’ll connect you with emWave and Inner Balance software and go through a series of relaxation and breathing techniques.

The HeartMath™ software clearly identifies your heart rhythm and coherence. Our goal is to help you reduce stress, improve cardiovascular health, balance different systems in your body including the immune and hormones, and increase your longevity, happiness, energy, and clear thought process.

Emotions drive our physiological and psychological states, which is why it’s crucial to learn how to manage emotions in a beneficial and harmonious way. Heart Math will regulate your emotional process, monitoring your heart and coherence, then provide techniques and feedback based on the results from our innovative software to help you make positive changes in your life.

The following symptoms and conditions can be treated with HeartMath™:

• High Blood Pressure
• Alexithymia
• Insomnia
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Headaches (tension type and migraines)
• Cardiovascular rehab
• ADD/ADHD
• Addictions
• Performance/Test Anxiety
• Chronic Pain
• Chronic Fatigue
• Environmental sensitivity
• Fibromyalgia
• Cancer
• Traumatic brain injury
• Arthritis
• Phantom pain and amputation
• PTSD
• Atopic dermatitis
• Diabetes Type I and II
• Autism
• Hypertension
• Inflammatory bowel disease (Crohn’s and ulcerative colitis)
• Muscle spasticity
• Immune-system dysfunction
• OCD
• Congestive Heart Failure
• Loss and Grief
• Eating Disorders
• Reflex sympathetic dystrophy (complex regional pain syndrome)

Beverlee Laidlaw Chasse MC, LPC provides HeartMath™ services with biofeedback monitoring at Optimal You.

“Mindfulness” describes a mental state of nonjudgmental attention to and awareness of the present moment -- along with calm acknowledgment of feelings, thoughts, and bodily sensations as they arise. Mindfulness can also describe a type of meditation practice which cultivates this awareness, a quality all human beings possess.

According to Mindful.org, “mindfulness is the basic human ability to be fully present, aware of where we are and what we’re doing, and not overly reactive or overwhelmed by what’s going on around us.”

Mindfulness meditation comes from early Buddhist traditions over 2500 years old, developed to foster

• clear thinking
• compassion
• open-heartedness, and
• the alleviation of suffering

Despite its Buddhist origins, mindfulness meditation requires no special religious or cultural belief system. In fact, Jon-Kabat-Zinn PhD is internationally known for bringing these practices to the West – creating a research-based program called “Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction” that has benefited people from all walks of life. This program has been a helpful ancillary form of treatment for many patients with conditions such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer, depression, anxiety, psoriasis, and other chronic conditions caused or exacerbated by modifiable lifestyle factors.

This is a way of having a look at our struggles from a unique perspective. Our personal history is a story we tell ourselves. This story creates our identity and sense of purpose. Sometimes we have chosen to tell a story that has kept us stuck in some way in our lives. By utilizing techniques such as journaling or retelling our stories we can narrate our stories in a different way. We can use the strengths and skills we have found along the way to look at our problems and struggles and create new chapters and solutions to lead us forward in our lives.

All Optimal You professionals apply some form of mindfulness principles or practice in their work.