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Focusing Pathways

Focusing Pathways

A podcast to explore people's relationship with Focusing as developed by Eugene Gendlin. In these interviews we explore the ways in which individuals embody and integrate Focusing into their personal and professional lives. Hosted by Therese Ryan and Elaine Goggin, both certified Focusing trainers with The International Focusing Institute.

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  • 18 episodes
  • Avg 45 min
  • English

Episodes 18

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  • S2 · E1
    Monday · 45 min

    Francis Fung

    Francis Fung began practicing Focusing in 2019 when working with a Focusing-Oriented Art Therapist, around the same time that he realized he was autistic. He trained with Jeffrey Morrison and became a Certified Focusing Professional/Trainer in 2023. He is interested in exploring how Focusing can support neurodivergent individuals contend with their life challenges. He has a PhD in mathematics from Princeton University and works as a software engineer at Google. He is also quite interested in world languages, particularly Bulgarian, and enjoys listening to various genres of music, including Taylor Swift, electronic dance music, Balkan pop, and classical. https://www.attachmentnewengland.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/THE-INVISIBLE-REALITIES-OF-ADOPTION.pdf https://www.attachmentnewengland.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Shame-and-Attachment-by-Larry-Smith.pdf Here is the Reddit post on "non-flowery terminology": https://www.reddit.com/r/CPTSD/s/932TbGAuKG Email Francis at implicitintricacy@gmail.com Link to Francis's presentation in Vienna: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eHDspEuLGV0 Find us on Instagram

  • S1 · E17
    May 10 · 52 min

    Laura Bavalics

    Laura Bavalics is an early childhood educator, specialist in the science of play, and a drama teacher. She is a Certified Focusing Professional, Coordinator and a Focusing-oriented educator, who has been working with young children, parents, and professionals for over twenty-five years. She is a professional director of the Pendula inclusive kindergarten program at the Világszép Foundation for Children in State Care in Hungary. She is also teaching at ELTE University, Hungary, at the College of Education. Laura was a member of the International Leadership Council at TIFI and currently is a member of the Board of Directors and the Children's Focusing Advisory Group at The International Focusing Institute. Find us on Instagram

  • S1 · E16
    January 28 · 47 min

    Rob Foxcroft

    About Rob by Rob: When I was three years old, a lodger from Egypt came to stay with my family for a year. He was warm, kind and playful. I was left with a strong feeling of friendliness for people from other backgrounds and cultures. By the time I was four I had come to find reading stories a big improvement on life. Music came a little later. I studied 'cello and piano playing, singing, conducting and composing music. Eventually I had a degree in music from the University of Cambridge. Since then I have taught music for fifty years, mostly by giving piano lessons. I read 'Dibs in Search of Self' in 1972 and met the Person Centred Approach in 1975. In 1981, during a lesson in the Alexander Technique with Patrick Macdonald, suddenly all my trouble and sadness fell utterly away. I found myself for a few hours just simply happy. I began to explore meditation when I was in Australia in 1983, met focusing in 1987, had one to one focusing sessions with Gene Gendlin in 1988, had personal guidance in meditation from Akong Rinpoche in 1993, and completed a training in spiritual accompaniment with Brian Thorne in 2012. I have been a Focusing Coordinator for many years and have trained many people. In 2018 I published a book about empathic listening: 'Feeling Heard, Hearing Others'. Now I'm writing a little book about meditation. I hope to go on teaching for another twenty years. Maybe longer. My teenagers tell their friends: 'He's really old. But he has a very strong inner child.' You can buy my book by writing directly to me: https://www.meditativelistening.com/ or by going to my publishing house (now doesn't that sound GRAND!!!): ANTONINE BOOKS – Rob Foxcroft Find us on Instagram

  • S1 · E15
    Dec 8, 2025 · 58 min

    Tony Bates

    Dr Tony Bates is a Clinical Psychologist, Psychotherapist and Adjunct Professor of Psychology at University College Dublin. He was the Head of the Department of Psychology at St James’s Hospital, Dublin, for 30 years. Following psychotherapy training at the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Oxford, he established and directed the MSc in Cognitive Psychotherapy at TCD. In 2006, he established Jigsaw (The National Centre for Youth Mental Health) to address the mental health needs of young people. He is patron of the Mindfulness Teachers Association of Ireland (MTAI) and currently works with Focus Ireland to provide trauma-informed care in homeless settings. Tony is the author of Breaking the Heart Open: Shaping the Life of a Psychologist, and Coming through Depression: A Mindful Path to Recovery Find us on Instagram

  • S1 · E14
    Jun 4, 2025 · 39 min

    Carmel Heaney

    Carmel Heaney was born in Dublin on the 21st July, 1924, the eldest child of Rosanna and Timothy O'Leary. She was educated at the Holy Faith convent, Glasnevin and at University College Dublin from which she graduated with an M.A. in History. After some years as a junior Civil Servant and in radio programming, she entered the Department of External Affairs (later the Department of Foreign Affairs). Her foreign postings were in San Francisco, Geneva and Boston where she was Consul General. She was a delegate to several sessions of the General Assembly of the United Nations in the 1970s. In 1970 Carmel married Henry Heaney, a Boston architect. She retired in 1989 and lives in Dublin. She leads a weekly philosophical discussion group, The Colloquy, and is an occasional contributor to the Irish Times. Find us on Instagram

  • S1 · E13
    Jan 31, 2025 · 40 min

    Myriam el Kettani

    Myriam el Kettani worked in the corporate world for over twenty years before training in humanistic psychotherapy and Focusing. She is a Focusing Oriented Therapist, and a person-centred practitioner. Myriam facilitates humanistic encounter groups for adults and/or adolescents. She also facilitates leadership support and collective intelligence development groups. Myriam lives in Morocco. Focusing Oriented Therapy by Neil Friedman is available on World of Books and Amazon. Find us on Instagram

  • S1 · E12
    Nov 3, 2024 · 47 min

    Báirbre Meehan

    Báirbre Meehan is a Focusing-Oriented Coach and Coach Supervisor. Her practice is informed by 25 years in people management in roles such as CEO, organisational/leadership development and finance director. Her coaching journey began 12 years ago, at a time when her personal-development journey led her to focusing and from there the integration of these powerful ways of working naturally emerged. Báirbre self-funded a research project measuring the impact of a Focusing-Oriented Coaching approach on people with Low Mental Well Being (MWB). Referrals came from medical doctors, psychotherapists and word of mouth and quantitative measurements showed very significant MWB improvements, maintained over the longer term. Focusing-Oriented Coaching is Báirbre’s passion and she is devoted to developing and sharing it with others. Báirbre regularly runs Focusing-Oriented Coaching programs, teaching coaches, therapists and helping professionals how to use Focusing in their work. You can contact Báirbre at bairbre@pause.ie To understand more about Focusing-Oriented Coaching in practice, here is a link to an article Báirbre has written 'Life wants to live: Focusing-Oriented Coaching' www.pause.ie/news This article first appeared in the July 2024 issue of Coaching Today, published by the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy. Find us on Instagram

  • S1 · E11
    Sep 10, 2024 · 49 min

    Naty Calviño

    Naty Calvino lives in Argentina and is a Certifying Coordinator with TIFI (The International Focusing Institute), a Focusing Oriented Therapist, Supervisor and a Yogatherapist. She is also an FSPM Facilitator (Jan Winhall’s Felt Sense Polyvagal Model). Naty teaches the entire Focusing Certification Program and Focusing-Oriented Therapy (FOT), and especially enjoys training and supervising therapists, as well as her work with clients both individually and with groups. What Focusing means to Naty: "For me it is a way of BEING, and my goal every day is to be connected with my Higher Self, my essence, my spirit/heart/soul... that place where I feel part of this "vast system": the earth, the sky and all the living beings in their true light, beyond conditioning, adopted patterns and survival behaviors... In love." Contact Naty at: nataliaquinn@yahoo.com.ar Find us on Instagram

  • S1 · E10
    Aug 7, 2024 · 48 min

    Gordon Adam

    Gordon Adam lives in Bristol, UK. He is passionate about Focusing and the supportive and transformative power of Focusing community. He has facilitated an open monthly ’changes’ type Focusing group for the last 15 years, and is co-creator of the BFA Focusing Community Camp. Gordon runs 5-day Focusing retreats on Dartmoor and in the Southwest, combining Focusing with periods of silence, immersion in the natural world and temporary community. During the CV lockdowns he ran a series of very successful online workshops on ‘Focusing with Poetry’ which led to the formation of an ongoing ‘Focusing with Poetry’ group. Gordon is also a homeopath and supervisor and has been editor of the British Focusing Association newsletter since 2016. www.focusing.org.uk/Gordon-Adam gordonadam@blueyonder.co.uk Find us on Instagram

  • S1 · E9
    May 20, 2024 · 45 min

    Harriët Teeuw

    Harriët Teeuw is a Focusing oriented therapist and an art therapist as well as a Focusing Coordinator with The International Focusing Institute (TIFI). When she first learned Focusing in her native Netherlands in 2000, it inspired her to live a more authentic life. She began to integrate Focusing into her work with children, parents and adults. She brings this rich experience into teaching Children and Focusing Programs and the Focusing International Online Certification Program for Focusing Practitioners. Harriet is a member of the Children and Focusing Advisory Group with TIFI. Find out more about Harriet's work and details of her programs at: https://www.childrenfocusing.org/ https://www.deruimte-info.nl/ Find us on Instagram

  • S1 · E8
    May 6, 2024 · 34 min

    Beth Mahler

    Beth Mahler is an internationally recognized Certifying Coordinator for The International Focusing Institute & a practicing Licensed Clinical Social Worker based in New Jersey, U.S.A. Beth integrates her 30 years of training & development in the Psychology field to provide high quality teaching, training, & therapeutic services. She is best known for her compassionate care while providing trauma informed resilience practices to effect change. These changes carry forward toward psychosocial, physical, & mental wellness through mutual attunement & client centered modalities. Beth would love to hear from you & can be reached at beth.f.mahler@gmail.com. Find us on Instagram

  • S1 · E7
    Mar 19, 2024 · 49 min

    Rafael Villeta

    Rafael Villeta is a Focusing trainer and Focusing-oriented therapist, these two disciplines define his current professional dedication. He previously worked in graphic design and painting and was also a tennis coach for twenty-eight years, especially in the Madrid Tennis Federation. Creator of the Organic Tennis method where he integrates Focusing and somatic dance with the teaching of academic tennis. He has a Bachelor and postgraduate studies in Fine Arts, allowing him to integrate creativity as a fundamental engine in his approach to therapy, education, somatics and movement. During the last ten years he has been more intensely dedicated to his training in various somatic dance disciplines. He defines himself as a dyslexic, visually handicapped white male interested in personal relationships and dance. His website is https://rafaelvilleta.com Find us on Instagram

  • S1 · E6
    Feb 13, 2024 · 44 min

    Pat Duffy

    Pat Duffy is a Passionist priest. He trained as a marriage counsellor with Accord and later was awarded a Diploma in Counselling and Psychotherapy by Middlesex University with the Personal Counselling Institute, Dublin. He is accredited with I.A.C.P. He is also a Certified Focusing Coordinator with the Focusing Institute, New York, qualified to teach focusing and to train others to teach it. He works as a therapist with Daneo Human and Spiritual Development Services and Cancer Lifeline in Belfast and has been an advisor to the Board of The International Focusing Institute. You'll find Pat's article on biospirituality at: https://www.daneo.org/focusing---a-way-of-living-the-paschal-mystery-pat-duffy-cp.html Find us on Instagram

  • S1 · E5
    Nov 17, 2023 · 38 min

    Mary Jennings

    Mary Jennings is a Coordinator and Focusing Trainer with The International Focusing Institute and has been involved with Focusing in Ireland for almost thirty years. She is a facilitator of the Institute's Roundtable series aimed at encouraging conversation and connection. In this episode Mary shares the many paths of her Focusing journey with Therese . You can find out more about the monthly Reading Freshly online event which Mary hosts and which is free for members of the International Focusing Institute at https://focusing.org/event/reading-freshly-0 Find us on Instagram

  • S1 · E4
    Oct 12, 2023 · 48 min

    John Keane

    John first discovered Focusing while recovering from a chronic illness that left him hospitalised for six months. Focusing had such an impact on his life that he changed career from working in the Health Insurance Industry, to studying the philosophy and practice of the Focusing Process. John took a BA in Philosophy in the Jesuit University, Milltown Park in Dublin and obtained his certification as a Focusing Professional through the Focusing Institute in New York. Inspired by the work of BioSpiritual Focusing, he obtained a master’s degree in Philosophy for his study on the correlations between BioSpiritual Focusing and Narrative. John is the International Director of the BioSpiritual Institute. You can find out more about Biospiritual Focusing at https://biospiritual.org/ Find us on Instagram

  • S1 · E3
    Sep 27, 2023 · 44 min

    Josine van Noord

    In June 2023 Elaine met Josine van Noord from Holland at the Focusing Weeklong in Dublin. They recorded this impromptu interview in which Josine describes how she learned Focusing from Marta Stapert who is renowned for her work on Focusing with children. Josine's story of her very early years in a prisoner-of-war camp in Indonesia and the healing Focusing brought to her adult life is both touching and inspiring. Focusing with Children: The art of communicating with children at school and at home by Marta Stapert and Erik Verliefde (PCCS Books, 2008) Rob Foxcroft Feeling Heard, Hearing Others. The poem 'Marta' which Josine refers to is on page 154. *This interview was recorded in a bedroom at the Dominican Retreat Centre in Tallaght on a laptop so apologies if the sound quality is slightly off and it ended up more like a chat as opposed to an interview. Find us on Instagram

  • S1 · E2
    Aug 14, 2023 · 50 min

    Beatrice Blake

    Beatrice Blake became a Certified Focusing Trainer in 2000. She went on to study Thinking at the Edge with its founder, Eugene Gendlin, PhD, and with Kye Nelson, Nada Lou and Evelyn Fendler Lee. In 2011 she became a certifying Coordinator with The International Focusing Institute She has been teaching Thinking at the Edge since 2013. Beatrice shares Gendlin’s vision that felt-sensing is an innate human capacity. It doesn’t have to be wielded by a “healer”. It's a tool for life-long exploration that anyone can practice by slowing down and listening in a friendly way to what is going on inside. Find out more about Beatrice Blake and Thinking at the Edge on her website. https://possibility-space.com/learn-focusing-and-tae/ The article Three Assertions about the Body is available from the Gendlin online library at https://focusing.org/ Find us on Instagram

  • S1 · E1
    May 2, 2023 · 35 min

    Tom Larkin

    In this episode Therese speaks to Tom Larkin. Tom is a Focusing teacher from Dublin. He is also a Certifying Coordinator with the International Focusing Institute and a Focusing Oriented Therapist. Tom has also trained as a Forest Therapy guide and offers guided forest bathing walks to individuals and groups in-person and online. Find us on Instagram

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