Anneva NK Garner
Highly Sensitive Therapist for Highly Sensitive People.
"Fly, Nina"
My story of resilient sensitivity.
Highly Sensitive Persons frequently say things like, "I don't know why I'm so impacted by this. Compared to others, my story isn't that bad."
This experience echos true for me. Parts of my childhood and adolescence were truly fantastic. At 17, I was apprenticing with a ballet company, taking 3 classes a day, performing in front of thousands of people, and loving it. But the cracks I perceived in my parents' marriage were real, and for the second time in my life, my dad moved out and my mom's mental health declined. For me, overwhelming emotions turned to viruses and chronic infections, so when a divorce was finalized, and I simultaneously experienced heartbreak and difficulties in the dance company, I really fell apart.
Resilience is a journey. My family, dance, Divine nudges, homeopathy, my therapists, and my wonderful spouse have all played an important role. Amusingly, after years of deliberation, I became a therapist because I already was one (now I have more skills and better boundaries). I became a somatic therapist because, given my background, how could I not? I became an energy healer because I stumbled across it when I did not believe, and it reminded me that sensitivity to subtleties has always been part of my life.
As a Highly Sensitive Person, I will always be more vulnerable to overstimulation than others, even as a therapist. It's neurological. Preventing, managing, and recovering from overstimulation, constructively exploring my emotions, being "kind to my human," as my therapist says, and paying it forward, are central tasks of my resilience these days.
“Empathic psychotherapists…use intuition, empathy, and spirituality, along with their conventional training, to help others. They also teach their patients to become more intuitive and aware of energy. The advantage of working with highly sensitive or empath therapists is that they can see more, feel more, and intuit more about patients, which enhances the psychotherapy process.” —Judith Orloff, MD
Home Office (Longmont)
CREDENTIALS & EDUCATION
Registered Somatic Movement Therapist (RSMT), International Somatic Movement Education and Therapy Association
Licensed Professional Counselor Candidate (LPCC.0017480), Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies
Traditional Usui Reiki Master, Lisa Powers
Advanced Mind Energy Body Coach, Year 1 & 2, 300-Hour, Carolyn Bucey Eberle School of Transformation
Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST), Mental Health Partners
Master of Arts, Clinical Mental Health Counseling, Naropa University
Concentration: Somatic Counseling
Concentration: Dance/Movement Therapy
Bachelor of Fine Arts with Distinction, Dance, University of Minnesota
CONTEMPLATIVE PRACTICES
"Spiritual Wellness" includes finding purpose, value, and meaning in life, and participating in activities that are consistent with your beliefs and values. Anneva is committed to helping you explore your spiritual wellness whether you are religious or expressly "spiritual, NOT religious."
Anneva Garner has actively practiced Christianity for three decades. A childhood mystical experience led her to this practice at a young age. This and other mystical experiences sustain her faith in Christ, despite deep disappointments within Christian community life, and with the global church as a religious institution. Seeing Jesus as the epitome of unconditional love, non-coercion, inclusion, justice, and mercy, Anneva believes all people have a right to feel welcome, safe, nourished, and challenged to grow through church community life. As a pastor's spouse, she continues to practice Christianity to grow more Christlike, root into her ancestral lineage, and promote inclusivity for future generations of the church. If you've been hurt by church leadership or community life, your wounds are welcome here.