Find Peace Without Needing a Substance or Behaviour,
Acceptance or Approval

Hi, I’m Ben,

I help people to find peace and live in radical freedom from addictions, cravings and compulsive patterns of thinking, feeling and behaving.

 I work with people one-on-one to help them skilfully and compassionately uncover and meet the painful patterns of thinking and feeling that lie at the root of addiction.

Is This Work For You?

Are you sober or in some kind of addiction recovery?

But the SUFFERING is still there:

  • Your addictive tendencies have simply shapeshifted to other substances or behaviours

  • Painful emotions and memories are surfacing and you don’t know how to manage them

  • You still feel disconnected from yourself, life and others: it feels numb and cold and pretty meh

  • You struggle with related issues: anxiety, depression, compulsive thinking, shame

  • You feel lost and disconnected from your authentic self

  • You are pretty savagely self-critical 

  • You feel stuck, trapped, inauthentic and fearful 

  • You struggle to control outbursts of rage or frustration

  • Your people-pleasing is going bananas

  • Your thinking can be very negative, always seeing what could go wrong

  • You find it difficult to be vulnerable and open with other people

  • You struggle with self-worth and self-love 

If so then…read on!

 

These issues arise because, even if we stop a certain substance or behaviour, the PAIN that drove that behaviour is still lurking in your body-mind, driving you bananas in various ways.

Your nervous system is still in survival mode.  

 

 How I Can Help

I used to be an alcoholic.

I use my own lived experience of addiction as well as my training with
leading addiction experts and trauma therapists to help you find greater peace and freedom by dealing with the ROOT CAUSE.

I can help you to:

  • Discover the painful emotions and trauma that lies at the root of addiction
  • Process and integrate painful emotions, wounds and traumas
  • Release core negative beliefs and deficiency stories (e.g. “I’m not good enough/unloveable”)
  • Understand how your nervous system, thoughts and feelings create your suffering and why
  • Develop wiser ways of relating to painful thoughts and feelings
  • Give you tools to better manage cravings, addictive behaviours and compulsions
  • Help you regulate your nervous system, build a sense of safety and manage powerful emotions

Note: it’s NOT a quick fix. You must do the work! And while it’s simple,
it's also challenging. But, in my experience, you absolutely get out what you put in.

 

What Is The Work: Somatic Inquiry

My main tool is what I call Somatic Inquiry.

The core of our suffering is held in the BODY: unresolved survival patterns from childhood, a dysregulated nervous system, repressed emotions and long-held emotional wounds.

I take a somatic approach that addresses these issues directly, but compassionately.

Somatic Inquiry is a set of experiential techniques that helps you to uncover and unravel the stuck, frozen patterns of survival stress that are held in the body and that lie at the root of your suffering.

This work is not therapy. It is not about ‘figuring out’ your life. It is working directly with the experience of the present moment.

 
 

 Why Do This Work?

If this work is done with sincerity and commitment the opportunity is to:

  • Deepen your addiction recovery

  • Discover the root causes of your suffering

  • Reduce the frequency and intensity of triggers

  • Go beyond managing addictions and uncover the drivers

  • Live life with less anxiety, shame, fear and lack

  • Find authentic self-expression and direction

  • Regain self-trust and self-love

  • Reconnect to your authentic self and innate love of life

  • Live in greater peace and authenticity

  • Discover and deepen into who you really are

I offer one-on-one Somatic Inquiry sessions that help you to find peace and freedom without needing a substance or behaviour, acceptance or approval.

What Happens
In A Somatic
Inquiry Session?

In sessions I help you to skilfully and compassionately explore your own somatic experience offering skilful cues, questions and techniques that support you to navigate the painful beliefs and feelings that are below the surface to help them release and leave greater freedom in their wake.

We first lay a foundation of safety so that it feels safe to explore our body and the wounds it holds.

Then we invite in whatever wants to be looked at: a painful emotion, belief, memory or some other part of yourself that we know is causing suffering.

I then help you to go deeper into that part of you using specific inquiries and tools before guiding you to through the act of processing and integrating the emotional residue.

Throughout my sessions I sprinkle in explanations of the nervous system and insights into how thoughts and feelings work to help you develop an understanding of what’s going on for you.

I also give you tools and practices that you can (and should!) take into your daily life in order to be able to turn the challenges of life into opportunities to heal.

 

 How I Work With You

It’s your session. Every person is completely unique, so I adjust how I work based on the history and temperament of your body-mind.

Here are few of the key principles that guide how I work:

  • Gentle but direct: we approach compassionately and gently, but also go directly to the root of the suffering

  • You are welcome exactly as you are, without judgement: tears, rage, sadness, fear, hatred, shame, stories…all of it is welcome

  • We work together: I listen to what you need and what works for you and we adjust the pace 

  • We go slow: you can’t rush nervous system work

  • Safety: the foundation of this work is safety—without a sense of safety and support your nervous system will not let you fully embody intense emotions

 

 What My Clients Say About Me

Testimonials blog
Audra

I came to Ben seeking relief from daily suffering. I arrived in a state of disconnect – I was ruminating on unsolvable problems and using my energy in unproductive ways. I had a hard time seeing the good in life and struggled to fully experience joy. I put pressure on myself to be perfect and found relaxing increasingly uncomfortable.

I was miserable.

After several months of working with Ben I feel alive. Life is bright and colorful, and I am able to see and experience the positive in life. I am kind to myself and feel more connected to myself and others. I trust myself and others and am able to experience a full range of emotions without fear of being overwhelmed.

You have to trust the process – I find the experience uncomfortable at times, and it can feel like some sort of voodoo magic. Ben navigates the sessions artfully, providing a secure and supportive environment and adapting as he learns more about me.

If you are willing to invest your time and energy in Ben’s method it is possible to let go of unhealthy beliefs and behaviors and regain the beautiful human experiences of joy, wonder, and love.

Christine

In every session Ben is able to hold the space with patience and compassion. He is gently but firmly encouraging me to physically and vocally express my emotions which is challenging and at the same time freeing. With Ben I feel a lot of space to just ‘be’ with whatever comes up to the surface. This has helped me to open my heart for myself and all the parts that were never allowed to be seen and heard.

My body has become more open to feel everything that is arising and the respect for myself and who I am has increased. There is also a certain sense of peace and calmness that I noticed in the core of my body which has been increasing over time.

If you want less contraction and more openness and freedom in your life, Ben certainly has the natural skills to guide you through the challenging world of your feelings and emotions.

Tony G

Being facilitated by Ben is always a great experience for me. I trust that I can be weird, dysfunctional, lost and whatever else may come up for me and Ben will be able to hold me with his presence and guide me towards self-acceptance and openness. He's a very skilled facilitator and I feel grateful for having worked with him.

Gina D. - IFS & Gestalt Psychotherapist

Working with Ben and his unique style of somatic inquiry has been a transformative experience for me. He has helped me peel back the layers of some deeply embedded beliefs, thought patterns and emotions that have been holding me captive to behaviours I’ve struggled with for decades.

Creating a therapeutic space that is both safe and adventurous, Ben has supported me to move towards challenging feelings and sensations with more ease and acceptance.

As a result, I’ve had some profound breakthroughs in my self-confidence and willingness to be visible, and some of my more compulsive behaviours have loosened their grip.

Ben’s intelligence, curiosity and humour combine with his somatic wisdom and lived experience to make him one hell of a facilitator – definitely one I’ll recommend with confidence to others struggling with addictions or suffering of any kind.

Rick H. - Psychotherapist and Zen Teacher

I’ve met many spiritual teachers, seekers and therapists in my life. Broadly speaking, they fall in to two categories; those who do because they know (or think they do…), and those who know because they do. Ben falls firmly into the latter category, living and breathing an uncommonly radical approach to finally getting to the truth of things. I consider him a most trustworthy ally on the path to healing and am honoured to call him a friend.

Dan McLintock

Being facilitated by Ben is like going on an unpredictable adventure with a good friend alongside you. His style of inquiry is direct, powerful, creative and even fun. All hail the Drunken Buddha!

Nadine C.

I had a profound experience working with Ben. Throughout the sessions no matter where my mind decided it was going to go, I always felt really safe and that Ben held a non-judgemental space for me to bring whatever it was that needed to come up into the session.

If you’re thinking about working with Ben I would highly recommend giving it a go. Just bring Truth into the space, because it *will* be well received.

Chloe M.

Ben’s calm and supportive manner made me feel immediately comfortable and completely free from judgement. With his guidance I explored feelings within myself that I had spent what seemed to be a lifetime avoiding, and which were causing me great suffering.

Ben helped me to experience these feelings in a safe environment, to stay with these feelings, and to let go, little by little, of my pain. I cannot thank him enough for his eternal calm and care.

Christian K.

I am very grateful that I encountered Ben and his work (he even does the sessions in German with me!).

I have been looking for support like this for a long time because I felt very overwhelmed by my feelings/energies on my own. He offers the support I need to approach these emotions and work with them.

Ben works in a way that is direct and gets straight to the point, alongside a great sense of humour, which I find incredibly supportive. His open and non-judgemental manner is profoundly helpful.

He is someone who has walked the walk and has come out the other side very grounded.

 My Qualifications

Through my own journey with addiction, I discovered the power of somatic approaches to the painful beliefs and core emotional wounds that drive compulsive behaviours.

I am a Certified Facilitator of a range of trauma-informed somatic modalities:

  • Embodied Processing: w/ trauma & addiction therapists Matt Nettleton and Ryan Hassan

  • Kiloby Inquiries: w/ addiction expert and spiritual teacher Scott Kiloby

  • Living Inquiries: w/ therapists Lisa Meuser and Fiona Robertson

I combine these into what I call Somatic Inquiry.

My Guarantee

I understand that it’s not always easy to put your trust in someone (or give them your money) over the internet.

So if you have a session with me and feel somehow ripped off, then I’ll give you your money back without fuss.

Book a Free Discovery Call

Book a free 30-minute call with me to discuss where you’re at, to find out a bit more about me and see if I might be able to help you.

No pressure. No commitment.

Inside this new love, die.
Your way begins on the other side.
Become the sky.
Take an axe to the prison wall.
Escape.
Walk out like someone suddenly born into color.
Do it now.
You’re covered with a thick cloud.
Slide out the side.
Die, and be quiet.
Quietness is the surest sign that you’ve died.
Your old life was a frantic running from silence.
The speechless full moon comes out now.

Rumi