“The Getting Free course was a real life-changing experience. During this year, much of the drama in my personal life has transformed into more manageable and more substantial relationships, with my family, friends, and in the workplace. I can deal better with the events my life brings to me. And best of all, I wake up in the morning with a feeling of relaxed calm. And having a supportive community going forward is something I am deeply grateful for. Thank you, Ann and Barbara, for building a Focusing community!”

“Before Getting Free I found it hard to look at what felt like my unloved self. It felt like there was something my fault and unchangeable at the same time. I kept running after how others wanted me to be or what I thought they might want. I believed that must feel better somehow, but I was also never able to arrive at ‘feeling better.’ Now, I feel less tension, pressure, and nervousness. I can experience an idea of my present self — its strength, calmness, warmth, and dignity. I’m more able to be here without being ‘too much’ or ‘too little.’ This is really deep work and there are treasures to be found through it.“

“Before Getting Free my biggest challenge was situations where I felt inner conflict — where I wasn’t sure how to engage with something. It created a lot of disabling anxiety in me. Now, when these situations occur, I feel a lot more able to turn toward and stay with my inner experience of them. I can discover and discern deeper resonances inside myself in relation to the situations and in relation to the wider context of my life. All of that enables me to navigate and respond better when I experience conflict. The course has been really helpful.”

“Before the Getting Free course, my biggest challenge was an awareness that I always felt like I was bad, wrong somehow, but I didn’t know really, what to do about it. And I knew I carried so much hurt and shame from an abusive childhood. It left me feeling defeated and hopeless. I’d been trying to feel good about myself for decades, but nothing brought me the relief I was seeking. Getting Free taught me HOW to love myself. HOW to be with every Part of myself. And I’m now feeling so much more comfortable in my own skin — something I’d always longed for. The difference is like night and day! I feel so much more at peace and at home in the world. Like I belong here too, and that I’m okay. Before the course, I was getting triggered constantly, throwing me back into the pain of the rejection I felt as a child. Now when I get triggered, I know I need to turn towards this Younger Me and give her the presence and company that she needs. And in my “outer” life I’m experiencing so much connection and closeness in my relationships – what I’ve always longed for but seemed impossible for me to ever have. As I’ve been writing here I’m so aware of how different and much more free, comfortable, and joyful my life has become, and in such a short time! I so appreciate this class!”

“Before Getting Free, my tangle invaded every aspect of my life. I felt stuck and frustrated. This sometimes showed up in self-sabotaging ways that kept me from moving forward. During the course, I was finally able to complete a project that had been stalled for a long time. And I also increased my capacity to pause and recognize when aspects of my tangle are activated. That’s been enormously liberating for me. What a beautiful gift this course is…“

“Before Getting Free, I’d been stuck for several years in a tangle involving mourning my mother while caring for her, and a roomful of boxes containing her correspondence, books, and other possessions. That left me feeling frozen, frustrated, and alone. During the course, I was able to turn toward all the parts that were and are hurting and be with them. I was able to deal with a lot of the stuff. There is always more inner work to be done, but it’s a relief to have the tools and to know that forward movement is possible.“

“Before Getting Free something in me felt so overwhelmed it didn’t know how to live on. That left me feeling drained and like I was really struggling. Now I’m able to be more present and hold space for everything that needs me inside. I experience more joy, especially in small things. And I think it’s making me a better therapist as I can listen more deeply to my clients’ struggles and be really present. This course has given me my life back. I’m able to access aspects of myself that have been lifeless and felt abandoned. I am blown away by how this method approaches the tough areas of life with gentle precision.“

“I used to feel lost, frustrated, and hopeless at times because it was hard for me to be in touch with my inner life to the degree and with the quality I wanted. I now have hope and confidence that I can find resolutions – ones I never could’ve imagined – to the issues in my life and how I hold them.”

“I’d been feeling overwhelmed, stuck, and frightened of navigating ongoing patterns and life issues. That left me feeling anxious and disconnected from myself. In the course, I developed a true understanding of the layers of experience at play in my psyche. It felt like turning a light on inside and really seeing what’s been hidden from view. Now, I have more self-compassion and a sense of myself as able to be a container for all that’s there. Getting Free helps you gain a deep, authentic, and experiential understanding of patterns, blocks, beliefs, defenses, and behaviors that, until now, have been activating and shaping life unconsciously. That awareness enables you to live forward in a new way.“

“My biggest challenge before the Getting Free course was my inability to accept remarks I didn’t like or agree with without getting emotionally upset. I felt very frustrated by how frequently I got upset and how badly it affected me. Now, there are moments where I’m more aware of my reactions. Times when I’m able to stop myself just before I lose my calm. Sometimes I’m able to stop right after I react emotionally and I can regain my calm much faster than I used to. I’m also more aware of my environment and can take in what is there and what feels good. Getting Free is the most amazing journey into yourself and Ann and Barbara are simply splendid teachers and Focusing guides.“

“Before Getting Free my biggest challenge was adding my voice to the world. I’d freeze or my words would dry up mid-sentence. That left me feeling inadequate, frustrated, and ashamed. Now, I feel comfortable in my own shoes and able to express myself or remain silent — my choice. My year of Getting Free has been about developing inner resources to accept with open arms, the places within me that had been trying to keep me silent. Now I can listen to their fears with warmth and empathy.”

“Before Getting Free, I felt out of control trying to meet my expectations of myself. And that left me feeling ashamed, frustrated, and anxious. It was hard to make decisions and move forward. I was always afraid of failing. The worst part was not trusting myself. So far what has changed is: It’s easier to pause and sense for what needs attention, to be big enough for what’s going on inside. Before, there was an urgency to get to the bottom of whatever discomfort I was experiencing in the moment and fix it. Now, I experience life as a process that moves as I relate to my parts with open, curious energy. It’s so much easier for stress, difficult emotional states, and even physical pain to release through the practice of caring relationship.“

“Before Getting Free, I avoided certain emotions like pain and hurt. And trying to ‘make sense of it all’ was elusive. That left me feeling overwhelmed, resigned, and trying various things hoping something would stick. Now, I have a framework to ‘hold it all’ – the parts that don’t want me to feel something, parts that use well-worn strategies, and parts that are frozen in time unable to tell the past from the present. The wounds of my past are still there, but there’s also a clear sense of direction that I find helpful. This course has been such a catalyst in my healing journey.“

“Before Getting Free, my biggest challenge was finding a compassionate way to spend time with my inner critic and get in touch with the part of me that feels like she’s never good enough. Now, the belief of not being good enough has reduced in intensity and other parts are less reactive. I feel more confident overall to try new things, to feel vulnerable, to be imperfect, and most of all, to feel what it feels like to love myself. I learned a lot about the relationship dynamics of parts within me, why they are the way they are, and gained a deeper appreciation for myself, my journey, and for others.”

“Getting Free touched my conflicts and my experience of myself more completely and deeply than any other Focusing course. Before the course, I’d been putting things off that needed to be done and things I wanted to accomplish. That left me feeling frustrated and puzzled. During the course, I became aware of how I was holding myself back from living fully. And I became more aware of and better able to be with the parts of my tangle from a calm sense of self. Now, I feel greater comfort and ease.”

“Before Getting Free, I felt like a failure, as if I’d been hiding behind a perfection-driven protector, distant from myself and others. I felt like an imposter, small and without agency or purpose. Now, I have a better sense of how to be in relationship with myself and all the parts that have been misguidedly working for my good. I’m forging an ability to get a “feel” for situations and trust my observations/felt senses. I no longer abandon myself at the first sign of conflict. An image comes of a low drone, a constant white noise that was my internal experience. I’d experienced it for so long I didn’t even hear it anymore. It demanded my attention, but the decision to give it my attention was unconscious. The Getting Free demonstrations, readings, and exercises enabled me to turn toward that internal noise and be with it. To choose to listen to it, raise the volume, and then allow it to subside. I’m learning to stop fighting with ‘it’ and with what ‘is’ for me. And in the words of Robert Frost, ‘that has made all the difference.’“

“Before Getting Free I experienced feelings of emptiness and directionlessness which left me feeling lost, confused, and wondering what the point of it all is… Now, I’m starting to know my own value and uniqueness — to experience the transformative possibilities of that knowing on my sense of how I want to live my life. I also get triggered less often and when I do, it’s usually less intense. I don’t go into downward spirals of rumination and negative emotion so much anymore. This course felt safe, respectful, and deeply compassionate. There was never any sense of needing to push past anything inside me or to go faster than felt safe. On the contrary — I learned radical, loving, and life-enhancing ways of working with parts other modalities might call ‘resistant’ or ‘avoidant.’ I’ve learned a deep respect for these parts that are so often shamed and shunned. This course showed me that these parts hold potential life-energy that can be released once I know how to be with them. I am in awe of the discoveries Ann and Barbara have made and how they share them so skillfully.”

“Before Getting Free, my biggest challenge was an inability to move forward on the many projects I’d like to accomplish. That left me feeling stuck and unable to change. Now, in all kinds of little ways, I’m able to move forward. It used to feel like some invisible worry was drawing all my energy. Now there’s more energy for all the projects I want to do. The focusing technique is the only thing that has really helped me to change. I like how respectful the technique is — it doesn’t presume superior knowledge about the client — it uses the client’s own deep knowledge of their issues to gradually resolve them.”

“Before Getting Free I was dealing with low self-esteem and a part of me that felt fearful of life. The course helped me gain more awareness of Self-in-Presence and understanding of my fearful part. Now, I’m happier. I smile more and I can greet others with an open heart.”

“Before Getting Free, it was hard for me to let any part of me experience anger, even if there was good reason for that anger to be there. It always felt like I was turning into my mother and there were so many inner prohibitions against that. The first time I was able to be with a part of me that was furious and just sit for 45 minutes listening compassionately to how it was for her — to what it was that made her so mad — felt like a miracle. And it shifted something profound inside me. Now, I trust myself more — I can be with angry parts and not react from or banish those emotions. I can be loving and present with angry feelings and know that I will, in fact, not turn into my mother. It sounds like such a simple thing, yet it makes so many other things possible that were never possible before…and I am deeply grateful for that.”