Honoring Resistance: The Wisdom of Defenses in Somatic & Hakomi-Informed Trauma Healing with Shai Lavie, LMFT

Transforming Trauma

Brad Kammer

Self-improvement, Mental Health, Health & Fitness, Education

4.6 • 140 Ratings

🗓️ 8 October 2025

⏱️ 53 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Trauma isn't just an event—it's a complex, living pattern woven through our bodies, minds, and relationships. What if the path to healing isn't about breaking down defenses or pushing past resistance, but about honoring those very protections as parts of our whole self?

Shai Lavie's journey illuminates this radical shift. As a Hakomi and Somatic Experiencing therapist, Shai learned that trauma work flourishes when we stop battling our clients' "barriers" and instead bring curiosity and compassion to every part of their experience—even the parts that resist change. Imagine your nervous system not as a malfunctioning engine to be fixed, but as a profound intelligence signaling what it needs to survive and adapt.

In practice, this means holding space for a client's "resistance", listening deeply to these "barriers" with genuine inquiry: "What wisdom might be present here? What story is this body telling me?" Such an approach transforms therapy from a power struggle into a collaborative voyage, where client and therapist become co-captains rowing in harmony, not opposition.

This relational, respectful method aligns beautifully with the NeuroAffective Relational Model® (NARM®) principles—where healing happens in connection, at the client's pace, and through mindful presence. It invites us all, as therapists and healers, to recalibrate our role: to cultivate safety not by conquering defenses, but by embracing them, fostering agency within the authentic self.

If you're a mental health professional eager to deepen your understanding of complex trauma and transform your therapeutic practice, we invite you to explore the upcoming NARM Therapist Trainings at the Complex Trauma Training Center. Join a community committed to growing both professionally and personally—where we learn that healing is not about fighting against our adaptive Self, but reconnecting with the resilient, compassionate, authentic Self.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to the Transforming Trauma podcast.
0:07.2	Transforming Trauma is presented by the Complex Trauma Training Center.
0:11.5	I'm your host, Emily Ruth, and I'm so glad you've joined us today.
0:16.4	Licensed mental health professionals, we warmly invite you to join our spring
0:20.9	2026 NARM therapist training, a live online immersion into the transformative power of
0:27.6	the neuro-effective relational model. This advanced clinical training is designed
0:32.0	specifically for those seeking to deepen their expertise in healing complex trauma
0:36.7	while offering the accessibility
0:38.8	of an online format. From January to August, 26, you'll be part of a supportive, virtual community
0:45.6	of learners, integrating mindfulness and clinical expertise. Through four comprehensive modules,
0:51.7	you'll gain specialized trauma-informed knowledge and skills to confidently and compassionately address the impacts of adverse childhood experiences and complex trauma.
1:02.2	Together, we'll explore how to support the resolution of attachment, developmental, relational, cultural, and intergenerational trauma using a neurobiologically informed approach that promotes post-traumatic growth.
1:15.6	Embodying professional and personal growth, you'll become a catalyst for transformation in your practice and community.
1:22.6	Enrollment is now open for licensed psychotherapists, counselors, social workers, psychologists, and other mental
1:29.4	health professionals, as well as graduate trainees and interns working toward licensure.
1:34.1	Visit complextrauma training center.com to learn more and secure your spot in this online
1:39.0	training opportunity.
1:41.0	And now for our interview.
1:43.8	Shai Levy is a psychotherapist in private practice in San Anselmo, California.
1:49.0	He is a certified Hacombe trainer with the Hacombe Institute of California and Hacombe Malorka,
1:54.0	and is also trained in somatic experiencing.
1:57.0	Shai has taught mindfulness and psychotherapy at institutions, including CIIIS, JFK University, and Spirit Rock Meditation Center, and has led wilderness rights of passage programs for youth. With over 30 years of Vipassad and meditation practice, he brings a deep mindfulness orientation to his work with adults, adolescents, and families.
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