Welcome to Somatic Coaching with Space to Pause
I’m so looking forward to our time together.
Please take a few minutes to read the coaching agreement below, which I’ve written as our start point.
It covers:
Coaching is, by definition, a collaborative and client-led process, which means that you are in the driving seat.
We will make time in our first session to discuss or clarify any of the following, so that we have an agreed frame of reference for our way of working together. We can and will revisit it whenever we want, to adapt and update elements through the course of our sessions.
As always, you’re welcome to drop me a line hello@spacetopause.co
- Eloïse
1. What is Somatic Coaching?
Coaching is a practice where coach and client (you) partner in a thought-provoking and creative process, that supports you to overcome challenges, get unstuck and reach goals. The aim is to set you on a path towards greater personal and often professional fulfilment, the definitions of which are unique to you.
Somatic Coaching expands the toolbox for this process beyond cognitive sensemaking (‘thinking’). It supports you to draw on the deep, natural wisdom of the bodymind to find the best answers to your questions.
As well as ‘thinking’, we give attention to your other ways of knowing such as feeling, sensing, intuition and imagination. This often yields richer insight and sense of flow.
We work together to explore your questions or challenges in a non-judgemental, kind and curious way. I hold a deep conviction in your unfolding potential and vitality wanting to emerge.
2. What can I expect in a session?
1. We always begin by identifying what you want from the session. Getting clear on this might sound like just a prerequisite, but clients often find it’s one of the most insightful parts of the process. How often do we get the space to explore what, in truth, we really want?
2. We will then explore your Want together. The foundation of our session is deep listening, which in itself gives the space a quality that encourages quieter or overlooked insights to make themselves known.
3. This is supported by a toolbox of practices, or ‘experiments’, that I can offer when relevant to help you go beyond purely cognitive meaning-making and access your body-mind’s wisdom. They invite a playful approach to building the ‘muscle’ of awareness and sense-making.
4. Sometimes I may offer questions that challenge beliefs you hold. At times there will be silence, as we give space for what’s wanting to arise. At other times, I may interrupt you when speaking to offer an observation of our experience or a question I feel will bring you into closer contact with what is really alive for you in the moment.
We each have a unique history around these elements of relating and dialoguing, interpretations of ‘receiving criticism’, ‘interruptions’ or silence.
So it’s important to note that in this space, with me, such interventions are always offered to support you. With genuine curiosity and without attachment. The intention is simply to bring awareness to alternative doorways, which you may or may not wish to step through.
5. Everything is an invitation. I will always explain an experiment first, so you can ask any clarifying questions before deciding if you want to try it out. I encourage you to say ‘no thanks’ (before or during) if it’s actually not what you feel you want in the moment. I take this as a sign you’re trusting yourself and an opportunity to feel into what it is that you do want. Equally, if you find a practice particularly useful, and you come to a session knowing it would be helpful to you, I encourage you to express this. The space is yours.
6. We will close with time for you to reflect on what’s emerged in the session, to consolidate what feels important to take away with you and name any actions you might want to take.
3. What is somatic coaching distinct from?
Coaching is a process that primarily focuses on your present and how you might design your future.
In this way, coaching is distinct from, but can be complementary to:
Mentoring – more directive guidance offered based on a mentor’s experience, often subject-matter expertise.
Psychotherapy – attends primarily to how someone’s present life is influenced by their past, including healing pain, trauma, or conflict of some kind, that impairs their present wellbeing.
Psychotherapy might be something you feel encouraged to seek out alongside your coaching experience or after it comes to a close, to work with patterns or traumas that need specific expertise. The UKCP has a handy search function to find a qualified professional who suits your focus, style and geography.Psychiatry – branch of medicine specializing in mental health.
GPs and medical professionals - Coaching does not offer diagnoses or medical advice, and session content relating to health should never be construed as such. Always seek advice from a qualified medical professional if you have concerns about your health.
An important note – Somatic Coaching is a powerful but gentle approach, that works sensitively with and in support of your nervous system regulation. You are likely to experience a range of emotions through our sessions, but if at any point you feel or I sense that you are becoming dysregulated (eg stuck in ‘fight, flight, freeze’) then we will simply pause and spend as long as necessary returning to equilibrium together.
This is distinct from offers which promise/advertise ‘catharsis’ or ‘big release’ etc, which can feel good in the moment but exhausting later and of limited use if not well supported and integrated.
Instead, Somatic Coaching supports you to come home to your body-mind, and work with it. We are interested in building your muscle of attunement, a kind of inner compass that strengthens your navigation not just through but beyond the scope of our work together.
What are our roles therefore?
The legal version….
As coach, I agree to maintain the ethics and standards of behaviour established by the International Coaching Federation (ICF).
As client, you agree that you are fully responsible for any choices, decisions and actions you take during or arising from the session. You agree that I, the coach, am not and will not be liable or responsible for any outcome from the provided services.
What this means in practice….
Foundational to coaching is the understanding that you are the expert on your life journey. The best answers to the important questions you bring to coaching will, and can only, come from you.
My role, as somatic coach, is therefore to support you to bring into play the wisdom of your bodymind, which illuminates what the next right step might be.
4. Schedule, cancellation and rescheduling policy
Schedule
Sessions are 75 minutes length
We usually use Zoom, unless otherwise requested, accessed by a link in your confirmation email (via acuity scheduling). If you have any issues accessing the room, you can reach me on WhatsApp +44 7555 889 419 or email hello@spacetopause.co
The number of sessions, dates and fees will be as discussed confirmed in email.
Cancellation
In the unusual event that I, the coach, need to cancel a session, I will attempt to reschedule at your earliest convenience or issue a refund where this is not possible.
Cancellation by the client can be made up to 1 week before commencement of the first session. Cancellation after this time will result in a 50% refund. If cancellation occurs part way through the schedule, this will be apply to the remaining sessions (pro-rata).
Rescheduling
If you need to reschedule a session, as much advance warning as possible is of course appreciated. However, I know there are times when we need to quickly make space for the unexpected, so please let me know if this is the case. As I check my emails periodically to reduce screen time, it’s best to send me a WhatsApp if we’re close to the start day/time.
If this happens more than twice, then it may be a sign that coaching isn’t a priority for you right now or that something is getting in the way, so we will revisit the agreement together.
5. Confidentiality
The content of our sessions is confidential, and information can only be divulged to a third party with the written consent of you the client. I do not record, unless you would like me to for your future reference and will not keep copies of our recordings.
Exceptional circumstances under which information will not be kept confidential are: disclosure of ongoing illegal activity, if required by law pursuant to valid court order, imminent or likely risk of danger to self or others. Where I reasonably believe one of the above circumstances is applicable, I may need to inform the appropriate authorities.
At times, you may see me taking notes during our session in order to better reflect back your own words. You may also want to have a note-taking materials to hand or choose a journal to keep for the course of our sessions so you can easily refer back to insights at a later date.
Your personal information is kept in accordance with GDPR.
