Active Pause ®

We start this conversation from the perspective that human beings are self-interpreting animals, and go on to explore what gives us a sense of meaning. Lawrence Berger has been practicing mindfulness for many years while developing a philosophy of attention in his academic pursuits. He was formerly a business school professor at the universities of Iowa and Pennsylvania, […]

We talk about bringing a quality of fierce love to our life, as a person and as an agent of change. The Rev. Jacqui Lewis, Ph.D. is Senior Minister for Public Theology and Transformation at Middle Church in New York City. She uses her gifts as author, activist, preacher, public theologian toward creating an antiracist, […]

Jeffery Smith describes a 5-step pathway to go beyond the fragmentation of the different schools of psychotherapy and define how psychotherapy works. He discusses: (1) What psychotherapy treats (at 0′ 13″) (2) Entrenched Maladaptive Patterns (at 5′ 28″) (3) The learned fear paradigm (at 16′ 06″) (4) Requirements for change (at 29′ 12″) (5) How […]

We talk about metaphors that Salvador Moreno-López uses to understand and orient interaction in psychotherapy and daily life, such as the music of the speech and a jazz duo. Dr. Salvador Moreno-López, Ph.D., Universidad Iberoamericana, in México City. Certified Focusing Instructor and Certifying Coordinador for Mexico of the International Focusing Institute. Has been a professor […]

In this 9-minute video, Serge Prengel describes an embodied perspective on how we experience a sense of being (part of) something larger. Published November 2021.

See the audio recording below the text. Today, I am going to describe to you a one-minute practice. Now, when I say one minute, it could be 50 seconds or five minutes. We’re not timing it. You sit on a bench or a chair, with your feet touching the ground. If you are on a […]

This conversation starts with a guided, experiential exploration. Then we talk about early developmental experiences, with a perspective informed by trauma therapy and mindfulness. Cherionna Menzam-Sills, Ph.D., began teaching Embodied Embryology through somatic movement in 1997 as part of her doctoral studies in Pre- & Perinatal Psychology, which led to her teaching at Naropa University […]

Elliot Jurist and I had planned to have a recorded conversation about his perspectives on the human mind. Ten days before our conversation, his father passed away. So we talked about the process of mourning and how it relates to the human condition. Elliot Jurist, Ph.D., Ph.D. is Professor of Psychology at The City College […]

In this conversation, Jan Winhall describes how therapists can respectfully understand addiction and treat trauma responses with deep embodied listening. Jan Winhall M.S.W. F.O.T. is a psychotherapist, teacher, and the author of Treating Trauma and Addiction with the Felt Sense Polyvagal Model. She is an adjunct lecturer in the Department of Social Work, University of Toronto. […]

In this conversation, we discuss the felt sense as the experience of living (i.e., interacting) from a neuroscience perspective. Peter Afford has been practicing and teaching Focusing for years. Based in London, he is a Coordinator for TIFI and a founder member of the British Focusing Association. He also works as a counsellor and therapist […]

In this far-ranging conversation, we talk about the limitations of “McMindfulness” and discuss what it feels like to explore a new sense of self in the context of interaction. Ronald Purser, Ph.D. is the Lam-Larsen Distinguished Research Professor of Management at San Francisco State University. His latest book, McMindfulness: How Mindfulness Became the New Capitalist […]

In this conversation, we explore faith as a human experience. That is, it need not be attached to any religious narrative. We talk about finding faith organically in the midst of darkness and doubt — far from the contrived positivity of “have faith!” Monica Gomez Galaz is a Focusing Coordinator in Mexico City. She is […]

Annie Bloch has been practicing meditation and Focusing. She talks about Focusing as a direct connection with our inner wisdom. Annie Bloch is a hunter- gatherer-gardener in the fields of systems thinking, cognitive sciences, and psychotherapy. French and half American, on a dual path: Buddhist and Jewish. Published June 2021.

Mark Schenker defines addiction and talks about his integrative model. Mark Schenker is a licensed psychologist with 40 years of experience working with patients with substance use disorders. Dr. Schenker has written “A Clinician’s Guide to Twelve-Step Recovery” (Norton, 2009) and the chapter “Addiction Treatment Settings” for the APA Handbook of Clinical Psychology (APA, 2016). […]

Suzanne Noel talks about what sustains her: swimming, riding a motorbike, and connecting with others. Suzanne Noel is a Certifying Coordinator for the International Focusing Institute.in New York. She developed Recovery Focusing (the crossing of the 12 Steps for addictive process with Felt Sensing), out of which she developed her H.O.W. We Heal model for groups. […]

Bruce Gibbs talks about what his practices of meditation and Focusing have in common, what is different about them, and how they can enhance each other. Bruce Gibbs, Ph.D., has explored consciousness, both academically and experientially, for many decades. He has practiced Yoga, Vipassana, and Zen meditation. He teaches Focusing and meditation, has developed a […]

Merete Holm Brantbjerg talks about the deeply satisfying bodily experience of finding what sustains her. Merete Holm Brantbjerg developed Relational Trauma Therapy, a psychomotor and systems-oriented approach. She is an international trainer, group leader, and therapist based in Denmark. See her website. See other conversation with Merete Holm Brantbjerg. Published March 2021.

In this conversation, Gregory Kramer compares the perspectives that psychotherapy and Buddhism have on dealing with human suffering. Gregory Kramer teaches, writes, and is the founding teacher of the Insight Dialogue Community. His primary focuses are sharing a relational understanding of the Dhamma and teaching Insight Dialogue, an interpersonal form of Buddhist insight meditation. He […]

Susan Rudnick talks about mindfulness within the broader context of Buddhism and the Zen tradition. Susan Rudnick LCSW is a Focusing-oriented therapist in private practice in Westchester NY. She has a long-term practice in Zen Buddhism, and recently has been integrating this consciousness with her roots in Judaism. In her seventies, she wrote and published […]

Evelyn Fendler-Lee and Serge Prengel have been exploring creative ways to think about thinking in such a way that it opens up new horizons. This process involves sharing some of what comes up as we proceed. We feel that the sharing broadens our exploration as it stimulates further thoughts in you.  For a transcript, see […]