Somatic* bodymind healing arts pioneer since 1977, in hospitals, higher education and studios, helping others learn through their bodies, and variously called "flow facilitator," "creativity midwife," "somatic sage"

Enjoyable motion was synonymous with childhood for me, then ~ as for many others ~ emotional distress, illness and injury changed that. I needed to rediscover the natural ease of living in my body.

• registered dance/movement therapist in mental health settings
• creative arts director of the Heritage Creative Dance Studio and professional facilitator of Mettler-based dance improvisation for 'living room dancers' as well as professionals wanting to regain their spontaneous creative expression
• professional facilitator of Authentic Movement
• cross-disciplinary presenter and specialist in residence in higher education, agency and arts settings, such as First Victoria School of Writing
• originator/facilitator of "Moving Into Words" writing workshops, culminating in the creation of a deck of 40 creativity prompt cards
• Certified Experienced Coach, 2005, with practicum of 100 clients worldwide
• Certified Master Masteries Coach, 2006, International Association of Coaches

• experiential anatomy
• meditation
• tai chi
• yoga
• Alexander Technique
• Body-Mind Centering
• Continuum Movement
• EFT Tapping
• Feldenkrais Method
• Focusing (and BioSpirituality)
• Sensory Awareness
• Somatic Experiencing
• Syntonics

SELECTED PRESS AND EXCERPTS

Huntley, a former physiotherapist with chronic illness, wrote: "I had already done so much body awareness and mindfulness training and practice . . . I was keen to know how [Connie] worked, . . . thinking that at least I would be a good person to critique and compare this work, even if it didn't offer me any fresh tools. . . . Not only were three [sessions] enough for me to taste this beautiful work, but what I learned has remained with me these past few months. It is a rare thing for my always hungry brain to hang on to new knowledge for that long, because so much falls out before being digested. I believe mainly it has stuck because it bypassed my monkey mind and settled deeply into my body.”

Growing Through the Motions: An Interview With Connie Frey, Registered Movement Specialist, by Hannah Green, Insight Health, August/September 1996, pp. 20-23. [The pdf  available.]

[Frey] encourages lifelong attention to movement, . . . access to the rich and educational world of movement. . . . [and says she] "noticed that people treasure having time and space to follow their ongoing curiosity, to be intimate with themselves without . . . predetermined goals. Through guided explorations and structured freedom rich awareness, insights and responses sprout. . . . Often people say they want to be on friendlier terms with their bodies. Maybe something happened in the past that robbed enjoyment or self-acceptance, so they’re seeking what else is possible. . . . I often hear: ‘I haven’t done with since I was a child!’ or ‘This reminds me. I’d forgotten.’”

Creative Dance: Let Your Body Sing, by Grania Litwin, Times-Colonist, August 21, 1992,
pp. C12.

When we dance creatively we live in the moment. . . . "My first reaction was, 'This is too easy. We are not being taught anything,' recalled [author Margaret] Dyment, 53, 'Then I realized I was being taught to do what my body wanted.'"

Befriending Your Body, by Connie Frey, Healing Exchange Magazine, September-October, 1990, p. 14.

Dance Therapy, by Gloria Collins, Times-Colonist, June 5, 1987, pp. C2-3.

The language of dance is as old as man. . . . "There are many taboos surrounding movement today, [says Frey]. We aren’t encouraged to be spontaneous or natural in our movement expression, but rather we see movement as a purposeful activity as opposed to a pleasurable one.”

Photo credit: Antoinette Oberg