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Licia Sky, Co-Founder and Global Ambassador of the Trauma Research Foundation, which she leads alongside her husband, Dr. Bessel van der Kolk, joins Abdullah Boulad on Living a Life in Balance to explore how healing begins when we reconnect with the body and learn to hold both joy and grief with compassion.
Licia shares moments from her own journey, including a near-death experience that transformed her understanding of life, love, and presence. She reflects on the power of embodied awareness, how the body remembers what the mind forgets, and why slowing down is essential to finding balance.
Together, they discuss the future of psychedelic therapy, the importance of integration and guidance, and how music, movement, and community can help us return to ourselves.
🔗 Tune in for a deeply human conversation about embodiment, trauma, and the art of coming back to balance.
About Licia:
A somatic educator, artist, and bodyworker, she guides individuals and trains professionals in using movement, voice, mindfulness, and creative expression as tools for healing and connection. With over 40 years of experience as an artist, musician, and therapist, her approach weaves together polyvagal theory, parts work, and the latest research on trauma and the body.
00:00:00 – Early Trauma and Spiritual Experience
00:02:06 – Journey into Trauma Work and Meeting Bessel van der Kolk
00:04:24 – Intuition and Listening in Healing
00:05:58 – Childhood Mysticism
00:07:34 – Multicultural Upbringing and Identity
00:12:03 – Generational Trauma and Family History
00:14:16 – Spiritual Experience at Age 12
00:22:34 – Integration and Search for Understanding
00:26:16 – Improvisation, Self-Learning, and Creativity
00:27:34 – Bodywork, Flashbacks, and Validation
00:30:40 – Working with Challenging Clients
00:33:48 – Lessons in Humility and Human Connection
00:35:04 – Intuitive Bodywork and Therapeutic Boundaries
00:36:47 – Meeting Bessel van der Kolk and Relationship
00:43:28 – Role at the Trauma Research Foundation
00:46:50 – Psychedelics and Ketamine Therapy
00:53:37 – Importance of Integration and Individualised Care
00:58:16 – Cultural Differences in Mental Health
01:05:05 – Singing, Vulnerability, and Healing
For further mental health information and support, visit The Balance RehabClinic website: https://balancerehabclinic.com/
Follow Abdullah Boulad:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/abdullahboulad/
https://www.instagram.com/abdullahboulad/
Follow Licia Sky:
https://liciasky.com/index.html
You can order Abdullah’s book, ‘Living A Life In Balance’, here: https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/...
Follow The Balance RehabClinic:
https://www.linkedin.com/company/thebalancerehabclinic/
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