Supporting Women's Health Massage & Somatics for 25 Years
Wholistic, Natural, Mind-Body, and Integrative Approach
Stress & Illness, Trauma & Resilience
Navel & Birthing Centered Wellness
Couples Massage & Bodywork Support
Pregnancy and Partner Pregnancy Massage
Support for Abuse & Assault
Life Cycle Health Centered
Pain Relief
Professional and Therapeutic
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“Daniel is thoughtful, supportive and truly talented. His background and experience enabled him to uniquely address the pain I experienced during pregnancy with twins. I’m truly grateful to have had his healing touch on my journey to motherhood. “
T.E. Mill Valley, CA |
Designed for Women Because:
- Heart disease is the leading cause of death for women in the United States.
- Women’s account for an estimated 75-80% of all auto-immune diseases.
- Women tend to be more body aware. Some research suggests that women tend to notice bodily sensations (interoception) more often, better understand relations between bodily sensations and emotional states, worry or experience more emotional distress with sensations of pain or discomfort and see body as less safe. Other research shows mixed results for sex differences in interoception.
- Research shows that 20-25% of US women have a mental health issue, 50% greater then men.
- Women's physiology, especially women’s stress/resilience responses, have been historically overlooked in the history of Euro-American medicine and healthcare, which, have been designed by male genetic gender biased scientists.
- Global cultures and the arts & humanities hold clues to women’s health.
- Women express higher levels of the oxytocin molecule, ‘Nature’s Love molecule medicine’.
See: Is Oxytocin "Nature's Medicine"? by Sue Carter PhD LINK
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"Oxytocin is a pleiotropic, peptide hormone with broad implications for general health, adaptation, development, reproduction, and social behavior. Endogenous oxytocin and stimulation of the oxytocin receptor support patterns of growth, resilience, and healing. Oxytocin can function as a stress-coping molecule, an anti-inflammatory, and an antioxidant, with protective effects especially in the face of adversity or trauma. Oxytocin influences the autonomic nervous system and the immune system. These properties of oxytocin may help explain the benefits of positive social experiences and have drawn attention to this molecule as a possible therapeutic in a host of disorders.
Sue Carter Ph.D |
Mind, emotion and positive psychology engagement
Oxytocin and endorphin expression tactics
Breath, laughter, vocalization narrative
Acupressure and energy psychology
Immune, inflammation and lymphatic oriented
Connective tissue release
Internal Organ Massage
Heart flow massage
Vagal nerve coherence
Energy Field therapies
Movement
And more.
Womb healing sessions are available to all genetic and cultural genders.
Creating a Coherence, Calm, Generative Container for Partnership and Birthing
Massage and Somatics for:
Women and Partner Conception Preparation
Egg Freezing Preparation (oocyte cryopreservation)
In Vitro Fertilization preparation
Pregnancy and Partner Pregnancy Massage
In the journey to parenthood, families can prepare using wise mind-body and somatic skills to embody a container for their child to arrive and thrive.
A primary theme for these services is to generate deep visceral resilience and generative internal energy; and thus, to dissipate stress and trauma from deep layers of the mind-emotion, physical and energetic bodies - for both partners. This contributes to a healthy conception, womb and birthing experience for the child and family. Simly put: clear out the old stress and trauma to make way for the beauty and light of your child..
Based upon over 25 years of study in the field of Pre and Perinatal Birth Psychology, and an expanded study of Integrated Health and Somatics, Daniel brings both simple and advanced skills to your session.
These skills and experiences are available for both partners, and all genders; individually, or as partners.
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What can I Expect from a Session.
Results can vary, and the time to achieve these results can vary.
Stress and trauma can numb us to our internal body, to our self, to our relationships and to the world. These session help you to gain control and organization over your internal resources to thrive in the world.
Utilizing a broad range of mind-body, somatic, integrated health, massage and bodywork techniques, Daniel has developed an approach to identify and transform stress, shock, and trauma into empowerment and resilience.
An uncommon tactics Daniel has cultivated is the coherence and relaxation response centered at the navel and site of the umbilical cord.
The average client feels:
- Relief from stress, pain, and/or trauma symptoms.
- An improved sense of well being.
- More self awareness and improved capacity to regulate themselves when under stress.
- Improvement of health symptoms related to stress.
- Improved awareness in partner relationship. Improved capacity to self-regulate under relationship conflict.
- A few client have had swift transformation of long standing trauma responses in a few sessions.
- Feeling more present in the moment, moving into the future. Less time and attention dwelling on the past.
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"Your work … is amazing in its integrity and transformative power. This is the deepest and safest I’ve ever been able to go." Lisa H, MFT |
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“From my vantage point as a psychiatric doctor, I believe that many people need the type of work you do, yet are unaware it even exists." Elizabeth S., MD
These sessions have been better than any psycho-therpay I have ever had. Wow! Andrea R. San Francisco
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The approach, styles and modalities are described on other pages
of this website, see:
Pain Relief Massage
This massage style integrates an innovative endocrine gland/hormone model hypothesized to address deeply rooted stress-trauma-illness patterns; specifically oxytocin/vasopressin switching.
The combined skills and techniques in these sessions can relieve a variety of pain symptoms, ranging from neck, shoulder and low back, to deeper emotional stress.
The Benefits of Polarity: A Woman Receiving these Services from a Man
There is a powerful, natural chemistry, energy and polarity between all people when they come into proximity, relationship and touch. Many people find the polarity between the genetic female and the genetic male to be potent. Deep wounds reside here for many people, deep healing can arise here as well.
These wounds create stress and trauma patterns in our bodies and impact our health in multiple ways. These sessions acknowledge this energy and cultivate its potential for your healing. Biological gender differences are a part of life and the male/female polarity of chemistry can be supportive in many ways. This gender polarity creates an opportunity to cultivate deep physiological realxation and coherence responses.
In some cases, healing requires the polarity and chemistry of both female and male. There are biophysical and molecular aspects of anatomy and physiology that contribute to this dynamic.
These session cultivate and practice care, sensitivity and clear consent communication. Regularly a new female client will expressed that they were initially hesitant to receive a massage and somatic session from myself, a man, and then convey their appreciation for the sensitivity, care and container that I provided for their experience and healing.
Trust is the name of the game. With my background (see below) I hold a container for women. I am diligent to earn and maintain trust with all of my clients. And especially women, because of the significant historic, cultural and social stressors and inequalities burdened upon women. This is a deep and powerful conversation.
Couples Massage and Bodywork Sessions: Supporting your Partner
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A man Teaching a Man to Massage a Pregnant woman.
Partnership supports a family to thrive. Simple partner presence, touch and gentle engagement during pregnancy contribute to a foundation of connection for a life time.
A central goal of these sessions is to support you to create healthy relationships, with yourself, with your family and freinds and with your intimate partner.
As part of this, session can include:
- Massage and coaching for your partner.
- Four-handed massage session, where Daniel and your partner give you a massage (4-hands), or you and Daniel give your partner a massage.
During these 4- handed session, you and your partner learn about methods of connection that build trust, connection, stress relief, and self awareness. This can be a bonding and connecting experience.
Supporting Families
When working with parents with children, the goal is that the new skills of the parent roll down hill to benefit the child. When the parent is grounded, composed, and centered, they create a better container for the relationhip and secure attachment with the child.
A modified form of massage and bodywork (clothing on) is available for children when the parent receives sessions.
See: Family Health
About Daniel:
For 25 years I have studied birthing, the adverse childhood experience, stress-trauma-resilience, and women and family centered mental health. On numerous occasions I have been one of only a few men in training classes oriented to children, women and family mental health.
In the late 1990’s I was gifted a ticket to the annual conference of the Association for Pre and Perinatal Birth Psychology and Health by a pediatrician who meet me while I was volunteering at Sharp Rees-Stealy Children’s Hospital in San Diego. Later I attended the American Academy of Pediatrics annual conference, Infant mental health training at University of California San Francisco, Oakland Children’s Hospital, and Alameda County First Five. After attending workshops in 'Water Birthing' I became fascinated by the opportunity to support women's centered healthcare as a foundation for social and family health. Further study of integrated health added to my understanding of core issues related to women and family ’s health. The list of my training is long.
My female clients have included but not limited to:
Pregnancy massage
C-section surgery recovery
Breast cancer surgery preparation and recovery
Pre-surgery massage, post-surgery recovery massage
Menstrual cycle pain
Abortion recovery
Adoption recovery
Adults with complex trauma from birthing, in utero fetal shock and trauma
Assault, sexual abuse and molest, domestic violence, rape
Supported a wheel-chair bound woman to walk again after decades of complex trauma
Clearing child trauma to prepare for a marriage proposal ( which was successful)
Collaboration with client’s psychotherapists and psychiatrist providing somatic, mind-body skills
Marital infidelity
Invitro fertilization egg recovery
Child custody legal hearing preparation
Divorce recovery
Relationship breaks
Death of a spouse.
Massage, mind-body and somatic emotional support
Emotional shock from employment discrimination
Numerous, numerous clients with multiple expressions of the Adverse Childhood Experience.
Intimate partner emotional abuse
Multiple expressions of relationships breaks and traumas.
Longevity and anti-aging in the face of health decline.
Hospice support
Daniel’s skill supporting families, women and children is based in part upon his training with:
Since 1998, Daniel has attended trainings with:
The Association for Pre and Perinatal Birth Psychology and Health
The Infant Development association of California
Dr. Bruce Perry, Child Trauma Academy
University of California Los Angeles Attachment Conference
Alicia Liberman, PhD, Child Trauma Research Program, University of San Francisco Medical Center
University of California San Francisco Medical Center, Integrative Medicine Network {Workshop traininer, guest lecturer)
Oakland Children’s Hospital, Early Childhood Development
Alameda County First Five, Early Childhood Development
The American Academy of Pediatrics
Bessel Van der Kolk, Kathy Kain, Pat Ogden. Raja Selvam, others
Workshops with the United States Association of Body Psychotherapy, California Institute of Integral Studies, and others
… and more.
Daniel is cerified in pediatric massage, a certified massage therapist, certified somatic practitioner, and a trained hospice volunteer.
He is a member of the Family Law Section of the Marin County Bar Association.