About

Growth in Motion

Growth in Motion Therapy services is founded on the notion that the body and mind are interconnected and that through this connection one can learn, grow, and heal. Mary Martin is trained in somatic (“soma” coming from the Greek for body) practices, clinical counseling, neuroscience, and mindfulness instruction, to guide clients into fully integrating cognitive, emotional, physical, and social aspects of their being. Mary utilizes these holistic techniques to support clients in areas such as regulation, emotional expression, communication (both verbal and non-verbal), body/proprioceptive awareness, sensory integration, processing of trauma, self-esteem building, reducing anxiety/depression, and moving through challenging life events/changes.

By providing clients a safe and non-threatening container, Mary encourages growth through strengths-based therapeutic methods. Mary strongly believes in the importance of creating a trusting relationship with clients and meeting clients exactly where they are in their emotional experience and at their individual developmental stage. At the foundation of Mary’s therapy is the principle that in order to grow, one must first be able to regulate the nervous system. If a client is in a state of dysregulation, they cannot learn, process, or flourish. So, the primary work Mary engages in with a client is in teaching regulation tools to support a parasympathetic nervous system. Much of regulation is done through the body…we can’t just think our way into being relaxed. This bottom-up approach is evidenced-based and effective in supporting regulation. From a place of calm, Mary can then guide a client in transformation and healing.

Mary utilizes the body and movement as means to connect with and support her clients to create change. In addition to traditional talk therapy, Mary has found that the body/movement has its own intelligence that can provide information to clients and therapist. Through the utilization of movement, physical touch, props, music, play, and art, clients can begin to transform into a more vibrant self. Mary acknowledges that movement is not only our first language, but it is also universal. And although movement may be as subtle as shifting the eye gaze, and may look different from person to person, it can ‘speak’ volumes. Movement is especially effective in working with children and those with communication differences. Through techniques like mirroring (reflecting a client’s quality of movement), Mary connects with clients and develops insights into their unique movement language, without the requirement of verbal communication.