Dr. Norquist is only accepting returning clients at this time.

Sallie Norquist, PhD, SEP, FOT, LFYP, is a NJ licensed psychologist (NJ #2371) with over 25 years of clinical experience. A graduate of the Clinical Psychology doctoral program at Michigan State University, Dr. Norquist is founder and director of Chaitanya Counseling Services in Hoboken (For Dr. Norquist’s personal professional website, please see www.findmeaninginlife.org). She has created a self-help blog, Growing through Parenting, to share what she learned during her own parenting journey, as well as her training and experience working as a psychologist for over 30 years. She has also written a weekly column for the past 24 years called “Enlivening Ourselves” for The Hudson Reporter,  published in local weekly newspapers for Hoboken, Jersey City, Bayonne and 6 other communities.

Dr. Norquist views health as something achieved through active involvement on the part of each individual in acknowledging, accepting and taking responsibility for their physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual needs. Her professional experience is that there is an inner, organic growth process that, once accessed, can lead each individual in their own healing journey. A nonjudgmental, accepting, mindful attitude is key to this process. Her focus is on assisting clients in accessing and listening to the wisdom of this emerging inner growth process. Body awareness is an essential aspect of this healing journey. The goal is a greater ability to navigate life’s difficulties (including fear, anxiety, depression and trauma), a deeper, more enlivened life, the capacity for richer, more meaningful relationships with self and others, and the ability to access and to trust the flow of one’s own life journey.

Dr. Norquist utilizes an eclectic treatment approach (body-oriented, cognitive behavioral, psychodynamic, attachment-focused, mindfulness and spiritually-focused) employing the various specialty techniques she has learned based on each client’s individual situation. Her style is compassionate, collaborative, creative, practical, and empowering.

Dr. Norquist is a therapist who works with adults of all ages including young adults, college students, professionals, first-time mothers, adults at various crossroads in life, and senior citizens. She has extensive training in somatic (body-oriented) psychotherapies, that are especially helpful for healing trauma, managing anxiety, getting “unstuck”, establishing a genuine sense of connection with yourself, others, your body and your spirit and effecting deep and lasting change. Her training includes the following modalities:

A. Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)

EMDR has more published research to support it than any other method used to treat trauma (see www.emdria.com ). it can also be used to deal with a troubling aspect of life or to overcome a performance problem. Trauma seems to freeze the integrative process in the brain. Because of this, traumatic memories can become locked in their own memory networks, along with the images, sensations, emotions and beliefs associated with the experience. EMDR uses bilateral stimulation to accelerate the clearing of these frozen emotional, cognitive and physical blockages. Dr. Norquist integrates EMDR into the therapeutic process. She completed Levels 1 & 2 of EMDR training in 2014, Level 3 with Laural Parnell in 2015, as well as individual and group EMDR supervision.

B. Internal Family Systems (IFS)

IFS is an innovative and intuitive model of psychotherapy developed by the founder of the Center for Self Leadership, Dick Schwartz, PhD. It offers an empowering, non-pathologizing, collaborative, systems-thinking, and spiritual approach to therapy.  The Center for Self Leadership describes the IFS Model as one that “helps to release the inherent compassion, curiosity and creativity that lie beneath the protective parts of people so as to bring opening-hearted healing to them and to their relationships with others. In that process, they are able to unload extreme beliefs, emotions and sensations that burden their lives, allowing their own Self-led transformation.” Dr. Norquist completed Level 1 and Level II of IFS training in 2014 and is an Internal Family Systems Practitioner.

C. Somatic Experiencing (SE)

Dr. Norquist became a certified Somatic Experiencing Practitioner (SEP) in 2009. Somatic Experiencing is a body-oriented approach for treating trauma that was developed by Dr. Peter Levine (www.traumahealing.org). It is a gentle process that allows for the discharge of unresolved trauma and helps to restore self regulation and a sense of aliveness and wholeness. This technique is also helpful for managing stress, anxiety, anger and panic.

D. Focusing Oriented Therapy (FOT)

Dr. Norquist completed a two-year training program to become a Certified Focusing Oriented Psychotherapist in 2011, and in addition has had extensive Focusing Oriented Trauma Resolution (FOTR) training with Shirley Turcotte, a renowned Canadian trauma treatment authority. Focusing Oriented Therapy (www.focusing.org) is an experiential, client-centered, bodily felt-sense approach to therapy. Eugene Gendlin, PhD, defines Focusing as a means to providing “direct access to bodily knowing.” It is a method for entering that place where the therapeutic change process occurs, and as such, is an extremely powerful agent for effecting deep change. It is especially useful for trauma, depression, anxiety, stuck places, and when you feel estranged from yourself, your body, or others. Often unique inner shifts occur, along with the emergence of new solutions for existing issues.

E. Life Coaching

The life coaching relationship is a unique one. It is based on supporting and encouraging you as you design and create your ideal life. Coaching bridges the gap between where you are, and where you want to be, helping you to define what you want, and to stay focused on where you are going. Unlike psychotherapy, which focuses on emotional healing, life coaching is a relationship with the sole intent of supporting you as you focus on enhancing your life on all levels. Dr. Norquist completed a year-long training in Life Coaching with The Institute for Life Coaching in 2007.

F. Life Force Yoga Practitioner (LFYP)

As a certified Life Force Yoga Practitioner, Dr. Norquist has received training in various yogic techniques in 2011 that are helpful in managing depression and anxiety (see Amy Weintraub www.yogafordepression.com). This includes asana, pranayama, mudra and meditation. Additionally, she received training in Ayurvedic nutrition through the New York Open Center, and iRest (Integrative Restoration), with Richard Miller, PhD. Integrative Restoration is an adaptation of an ancient yogic technique call Yoga Nidra. It is ideal for inducing deep body-mind relaxation and is a helpful technique for reducing stress, insomnia and anxiety (www.irest.us).

Typical symptoms and issues that Dr. Norquist treats include:

•   Stress and panic
•   Search for meaning/direction/purpose
•   Depression, low self esteem
•   Personal and spiritual growth
•   Life transitions and adjustments
•   Relationship issues
•   Communication problems
•   Trauma, PTSD
•   Identity development
•   Co-dependency
•   Anger management
•   Parenting
•   Interpersonal difficulties, social skills development