Michael offers a diverse set of modalities and methods, fit to your needs, including: Holistic Assessment:  Physical, Emotional, Psychological, Relational, Situational and Soulful Depth Inquiry, Psychotherapy and Transformative Soul-Work Life Direction Coaching and Consultation Groups, Seminars, Workshops and Trainings Short, Medium and Long Term Treatment

I offer mindfulness-based, somatic, pragmatic, depth oriented psychotherapy and intimacy coaching for individuals and couples. Soulful intimacy grows by recognizing and shifting core negative beliefs, false identities that limit behavior, communication and attachment security. Collaboratively, we ground the grist of daily experiences into valuable insights, practices and results.

What gets in the way of living with greater peace, clarity and vibrancy? Unconscious beliefs, limited perspectives, mindless dysfunctional habits, chronic resistance & defensiveness,... these aspects need to be unearthed, identified and shifted to make space for ease and acceptance. I combine psychotherapy with holistic wellness coaching. I can assist you to courageously shift through anxiety, depression, trauma and addictions if your are motivated to become more centered, resourceful and connected.  Together we work to help you balance emotions, deepen insight, shift faulty views, resolve trauma, deepen forgiveness and forge new behaviors! 

I am intuitive, holistic and integrative in my therapeutic approach, applying the method that best serves you, your needs and goals. I adapt to form interventions that are responsive to who you are and what you bring in. I work pragmatically, with somatic awareness and a depth psychological perspective, to help you emotionally balance, deepen insight and become more effective interpersonally.

I support and guide you in moving through challenging personal and interpersonal conflicts both soulfully and pragmatically.  By cultivating creative communications approaches we bring more effectiveness, functionality and fulfillment to our relationships. Come to me if you want to bring greater skillfulness with you to the realms of love, intimacy, relationships, sexuality and living life with passionate purpose.

Michael's specialties include:

• Somatic Mindfulness: Embodiment, Presence, Movement and Expression
• “Mood Medicine”: Emotional Balance and Affect Regulation
• “Cognitive Clarity”: Attitude/Belief Discernment and Perspective Shifting
• Couples Therapy
• Men's Therapy
• Trauma Resolution: with EMDR
• Intimacy & Relationships Coaching, Communications Strategies, Mediation and Conflict Resolution
• Addiction Release, Behavioral and Holistic Lifestyle Change
• Marital Refinement, Resurrection and Re-Dedication: Assess and Redefine Marital Agreements and Build Greater Functionality into Your Marriage and Family System
• Healing Shame & Opening Sexual Energy
• Consciousness & Transformation, Soul-Work and Refining Spirituality
• Virtual, online e-therapy

Therapy Orientations

• Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
• Coaching
• Cognitive Behavioral (CBT)
• EMDR
• Eclectic
• Emotionally Focused
• Existential
• Experiential Therapy
• Family / Marital
• Family Systems
• Gestalt
• Gottman Method
• Humanistic
• Interpersonal
• Jungian
• Mindfulness-based (MBCT)
• Person-Centered
• Psychodynamic
• Relational
• Somatic
• Structural Family Therapy
• Transpersonal
• Trauma Focused

Modalities

• Individuals
• Couples
• Group
• Online Sessions

Somatic (Body-Centered) Approach:

• Breath and sensate-based approach for grounding and centering in physical body
• Assessment, coaching and dialogue on nutrition, exercise, alternative mood supplements and overall self-care
• Movement awareness, therapeutic bodywork, mindfulness, music-therapy and use of psycho-physical practices
• Health, wellness, centering, grounding, vitality, balance, strength and flexibility

Soul-Work:

• Meditation, attunement to essential being
• Discovering your soul medicine,  soul path and true vocation
• Character quality refinement: develop patience, compassion, equanimity, discipline, focus…
• Re-Writing Narrative: authoring, revising and transforming foundational beliefs
• Sensitivity, Intuition, Intimacy and Sexuality training
• Entraining Authenticity through core alignment, coherence and resonance
• Passionate Presence, Creativity, Contemplative Inquiry practice

Intimacy, Sexuality and Couples Work:

• Pre-marital counseling
• Building conflict resolution structures and non-defensive communication skills
• Co-Constructing functional structures and agreements for individual and couples stability and growth
• Helping couples create shared meanings, rituals of connection and secure attachment
• Facilitating the possibility of dynamic yet balanced arousal, deepening intimacy, hot sex and sacred communion
• Negotiating togetherness/connectedness and autonomy/ separateness
• Marriage de-construction and collaborative divorce, when that is what is indicated
• Co-parenting skills dialogue and Parent-child guidance
• Multi-generational family constellation sessions
• Substance abuse assessment and intervention
• Co-Dependency and ACA issues
• Group Work: Cultivating the Mature Masculine
• Intimacy and Relationship Growth
• Emotional and Social Intelligence

Additional Areas of Expertise:

• Mens Work
• Trauma Re-Processing (*EMDR)
• Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (*CBT)
• Training executive function, attention, organizational strategies Assertiveness, boundaries, empathy and non-defensive communications
• Training Working thru social anxiety, shyness, isolation, loneliness
• Live-Work Balance
• Anger Management
• Pain Management

Office locations:

2615 Ashby Avenue Berkeley, Ca 94705 (near College Ave)

333 Estudillo Ave Suite #206 San Leandro, Ca 94577

Across from the main San Leandro library, between Bancroft Ave and E. 14th St

From 880 take Davis Street exit, East to E. 14th St., right one block, left on Estudillo Ave to 333, Right into driveway.

From 580 East towards Hayward, take the Dutton/ Estudillo Ave exit, straight onto MacArthur Blvd.,
across Dutton, right on Estudillo, through the light at Bancroft to 333, left into driveway.

From 580 West towards Oakland, take the Estudillo Ave exit in San Leandro. Turn right at the end of the offramp. Turn left on Estudillo and go through the light at Bancroft to 333, left into driveway West Building, upstairs.

MICHAEL GELBART, LCS #13607

Events: