And Flourishing
The Co-Creators
Elizabeth Lehmann, MA, MSW, LCSW is the co-creator of Restoring Connection, and intentionally refers to herself as such for a few reasons.
The model organically emerged from within an ongoing experiential study group of psychotherapists led by her for several years in New York City. The group consisted of: Mary Celeste Howard, LCSW; Kate Lawton, MS, CASAC; Melissa Maxwell, LCSW, Virginia Parker, LCSW and Kate Waldron, PhD, RN. Without this original Restoring Connection group there would be no model.
Years of training in various healing modalities as well as Elizabeth's experience is undoubtedly brought to the model. Yet everyone in the group wholeheartedly agreed there was a very strong sense of something much bigger than them at work.
Restoring Connection with its carefully chosen, well developed elements, and how they've come to be woven together, forming an exquisite tapestry, feels truly inspired. More than once has something spontaneously occurred within an experiential process that wasn't understood at the time, to later encounter an article or book speaking directly to what happened. A larger knowingness is clearly being tapped into. So it feels only right to also acknowledge the presence of "something much bigger".
Elizabeth's Background
In addition to co-creating the Restoring Connection model, Elizabeth is a licensed psychotherapist and a seasoned experiential group facilitator, known for providing a warm and safe environment. Her office is located on the Upper West Side of Manhattan.
Elizabeth is truly an integrationist, having post-graduate training in psychodynamically-oriented (family of origin) psychotherapy, EMDR, Focusing, Hypnotherapy, Mindfulness, Reiki, Somatic Experiencing and AEDP.
No one modality alone has proven powerful enough to effect the kind of transformation she's been seeking personally and professionally. It's through the specific integration of modalities and the revelations that continue to occur that she feels most empowered and best able to help herself and others. This is a burgeoning continuously unfolding process that becomes richer and richer each day. What a time to be alive, to be experiencing this with others and to be able to share it with you!
Through The Focusing Institute Elizabeth's had the privilege of teaching: “Introduction to Focusing”, “Expanding Your Focusing Experience”, “Focusing As An Underpinning for EMDR” and “Introduction to Focusing-Oriented Therapy”. It was at the 2008 International Focusing Conference that she first had the pleasure of presenting the Restoring Connection(TM) model.
Elizabeth is also a professional photographer. All of the photos on this site were taken by her, except for her portrait above, which was taken by Rick Savage. She's happy to be able to share this part of herself with you here.
