Body and mind integrative healing traditions have been the cornerstone of Kari Allen’s work for over a decade. As a substance abuse counselor, she integrated expressive mediation practices into programs of recovery, in both prison and hospital settings. She taught her clients practical self-care living practices that are important components of sustained mental health and substance abuse recovery; meditation, gentle yoga, imagery & visualization and ecstatic dance practices are all part of her repertoire to assist with relief, relaxation, and the development of self awareness for healing. Kari also gently nudges the spiritual doors by inviting clients into deepening rituals and ceremony’s that are consistent with their expressed preferences.
Kari has worked in a number of community based clinical settings and offered individual, group and family services. As the owner of Sacred Bliss Mind-Body Methods, LLC, Kari uses the ancient practice of group gathering to build a sense of communal support, and personalizes experiences by offering individual sessions, that are designed to assist with the embodiment and lived experience of mind-body methods as a regular part of one’s day-to-day living. Today, Kari blends coaching and counseling skills to offer Mind-Body Methods training in private, family and group sessions at Healing Pathways Medical Clinic, in West Sacramento, California. In addition, she offers sessions in private homes and in-nature; in outdoor settings, near the homes of her clients, to guide them in integrating the mind-body methods into their personal lifestyle.
Kari’s long-term professional goal is to bridge the gap between traditional holistic wellness practices and western medical and psychotherapy services so that the entire self is engaged in the healing process outside of clinical practice. Kari is in the process of building a private business in her local community that will offer Tea, Yoga and Dance in a casual coffeehouse setting, which she envisions will become an integral component in her community’s spiritual growth and development. Kari seeks to fill the gap between institutional organizations and consumer need and desire by utilizing the underlying principles of mind-body medicine to develop a conscious community-based business meant to serve the casual consumer of business and services.
Kari selected Saybrook University’s Mind Body Medicine, Master’s of Science program because of its blend of personal and academic studies. The program itself has served as a strong foundation for the emergence of her life purpose and has given credibility to her use of mind-body methods as a counselor, trainer and entrepreneur. The encouragement by Saybrook Staff to “step into the vision” has served to powerfully validate Kari’s personal vision and help her move forward as a pioneer. Kari has a strong interest in the organizational systems component of the course work. The study of leadership and organization has created a path of accessibility for fulfilling her life purpose, as a healer and organizer.
Kari has completed advanced training at the Center for Mind-Body Medicine under the direction of Dr. James Gordon and is a second year Mind-Body Medicine graduate student at Saybrook University, in San Francisco. Her specialization is in Healthcare Systems. Kari received her Bachelor of Arts degree from California State University, Chico and is certified as an addictions specialist (CAS-1) in the State of California. She will graduate from Saybrook University with a Master’s of Science in Mind-Body Medicine and a specialization in healthcare services in the summer of 2012.