Resounding Wisdom
Shawn Sodersten
Shawn (aka Shawna) Sodersten Is passionate about personal development work as a path to less suffering, more joy and authenticity, and fulfilling connection. Her work is grounded in mindfulness, and a robust array of psychological, energetic, and shamanic traditions.
Other influences include: Fancoise Bourzat, Giten Tonkov, Judith Blackstone, the Diamond Approach, the Deer Tribe Metis Medicine Society, Arkan Lushwala, Dan Wile, the Gottman Institute, Ellyn Bader, David Schnarch, Sue Johnson, Margaret Mahler, Stephen M. Johnson, Stan Tatkin, Daniel Hughes, Tara Brach, Peter Levine, and Bessel van der Kolk.
Shawn holds degrees in business management and law from the University of Hawaii and in psychology from Berkeley’s Western Institute for Social Research. She has also completed Lynda Caesara’s first and second year Energy Class (a wide-ranging introduction to energy basics, Reichian defense patterns, the chakra system, and Toltec and Twisted Hairs shamanic traditions), and a year of Reaching and Holding class taught by Peter Sandhill and Norma Ramos-Ott. She is currently in her 4th year as a member of the Deer Tribe’s Blazing Star study group taught by Heather Dutton, and has been accepted into the June 2021 cohort to learn the Biodynamic Breathwork Trauma Release System developed by Giten Tonkov.
Click Here for more on Shawn’s education and work experience.
Zoe Balfour
Zoe has studied healing since 1977. Her background includes training in classical homeopathy, zen shiatsu, reiki, clairvoyancy, and energy work. She studied with the Northern School of Homeopathy in England, The European School of Shiatsu, the Cardiff Massage Institute, and undertook 10 years of intuitive studies and clairvoyancy work with Christina Cross in California. She has been a student of Lynda Caesara since 2007, first in body work and then focusing on energy work, which has become her driving passion.
Zoe has also been teaching partner dance for 26 years, and had a rewarding and acclaimed decade of competing in A-level ballroom dance (including medaling in several international Gay Games). She teaches advanced Energy Class (3rd year and above), she is currently building a practice that combines energy work and dance teaching, and developing coursework with her partner, Oakland psychotherapist Shawn Sodersten.
Zoe and Shawn
Zoe and Shawn are partners in life as well as teaching. They practice what they teach about working with human reactivity. Between them, they cover all five classic human defense patterns, but have none in common. Each, therefore, has experience either running the pattern, or collaborating with a partner who runs the pattern.
Zoe brings an extensive background in shamanic and energy healing and teaching to the teaching partnership, and decades of experience working with people and their defensive patterns teaching partner dance. Shawn contributes from her extensive background in psychology and social justice, including teaching psychology and law.