My therapy with Ermanno began because I wanted professional help unpacking my mind and the relationship with my parents. I did not realise that his work was body focused and not typical talk therapy. I was at first sceptical about this as I had never really heard about it, but he has since helped me change my entire life for lack of other words.
In the beginning, I quickly learned that the way my body responds to being touched or handled is directly indicative of my responsiveness to people and intimate relations. This realisation progressed into releasing control over my feelings which in the past had prevented me from love and had ruined relationships and family connections. Ermanno’s emphasis is on inhabiting the body and understanding patterns of emotion and what they indicate about my state. I was able to become literate in my own emotions and understand that this is how my body is communicating to me.
Ermanno works with the body to access the patterns and habits of the psyche ,which in my case was protected by rationalisation and psychological defences. One of the most pertinent examples of this was understanding how I acted in relationships. Once Ermanno was working on the connective tissue around my heart space where I felt a kind of movement of stale energy. He observed how I responded to having my breathing subdued. In the space of 15 minutes I learned that I often accommodate to other people’s needs which causes me to suffer and not have air in my own body or fulfil my own needs.
The work I have done with Ermanno has allowed me to gain access to my own feelings and cry for the first time in 6 years. I have not only completely changed my relationship to myself, but have been able to navigate conflict and strengthen family, romantic, and social relationships. Ermanno is kind, honest, funny, vulnerable, trusting, and present. He is sensitive, understanding and exemplifies all the qualities one seeks in a therapist.
I cannot speak highly enough of this man and what he stands for. If you choose to work with him, you are in very good hands. (Richard)