What to Expect
In SoleSync™, we weave together three modalities with the intention of supporting the movement and release of physical and emotional tension: breathwork, bilateral stimulation (informed by EMDR), and foot trigger-point work.
You don’t need to understand how it all works, but I thought it might be helpful to answer a few questions beforehand.
One of the unique aspects of SoleSync™ is that we don’t need to spend the session analysing your thoughts, stories or emotions. Although I love exploring the mind and understanding our patterns, sometimes we can get caught in an endless loop of trying to figure things out. SoleSync™ offers an opportunity to shift some of that attention into the body, where we can explore what you’re feeling, notice what arises and allow space for a different experience.
What happens during a session?
- We begin with a conversation
We’ll start with a chat and an explanation of the process. I’ll ask what feels most present for you right now. It might be a situation, a recurring pattern, an emotion that’s surfacing, or something you feel is holding you back.
- Get comfortable
You’ll settle into a comfortable reclining chair with your feet supported. I’ll put on some music, guide you through the process, and we’ll begin.
- Foot pressure and bilateral stimulation
I’ll apply gentle, targeted pressure to specific points on the soles of your feet. This is intended to encourage relaxation, grounding and awareness of sensations in your body.
I’ll also incorporate alternating left-right stimulation, similar to the bilateral stimulation used in EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing), a recognised approach in trauma therapy.
The combination of foot pressure and alternating stimulation provides a physical focus as you breathe, relax and notice what comes up.
I’ll check in with you throughout the session, asking what you’re noticing and adjusting the pressure and approach accordingly.
- Breathwork
We’ll begin with some longer, deeper breaths before gradually moving into a more active breathing rhythm, a little like walking uphill. This draws on elements of holotropic breathwork and other breathwork approaches that use variations in breathing patterns.
I’ll guide you through everything. There is nothing to get right, and you can always return to a natural breathing rhythm or pause whenever you need to.
Three times during the session, I’ll invite you to take a deep breath, hold it briefly, and then release it. You might choose to let out a deep sigh, make a sound, or express what you’re feeling vocally. Some people even like to release sound into a pillow.
This can be a powerful opportunity to explore and express tension and emotions such as anger or grief. There is no expectation to make a sound or push yourself beyond what feels comfortable.
Please note: with active breathwork it is not unusual to feel a stiffening of joints in fingers, feet or jaw. This is called tetany, a completely safe, temporary physical response where your nerves get super sensitive from the quick shift in your breathing, causing your hands or feet to tingle or tighten up. If this happens, you can slow down your breathing and it dissipates.
- Integration
After the third breathing and release sequence, you’ll be invited to let go of any effort and simply rest.
For the next 5–10 minutes, we’ll allow some quiet time for integration, with gentle foot massage and music.
- Checking in
We’ll finish by checking in together. What did you notice? What came up for you? How are you feeling now?
Every session is different. This is simply a guide to the process, and we’ll work with whatever unfolds, at your own pace.
*Please note: SoleSync™ is not suitable if you might be pregnant, or have any condition where breath-holding is not suitable. Please let me know of any medical conditions.
*Please let me know if you have sensitivities to any scents, oils or fragrances.
*SoleSync™ is not a replacement for regular medical care from a health care professional.
I’m so happy you’re coming for a session and look forward to sharing this experience with you.
Where did SoleSync™ Come From? Read the Origin Story
It was March 2020, and the world had just shut down. My only regular outing was my twice-daily walk up the mountain with my dog, Bella. It’s a rhythm I continue to this day, and over time, I came to understand just how important it was.
There was a lot of fear in the air. Every morning, I woke with anxiety, my mind already racing through everything that could go wrong. But each morning, I would leave those worries at the bottom of the mountain and start walking.
Steadily and deliberately, with the occasional pee break for Bella, I made my way to the top.
And somewhere along that climb, something would shift.
By the time I reached the summit, my worries had begun to dissolve. I felt lighter, clearer, even on the cloudiest of days. As I made my way down the other side, I carried a completely different perspective.
Every single time.
After about a year, I began to recognise the consistency of this experience. Of course, there was the fresh air, the forest and the physical movement. But I sensed there was something more happening.
I began to notice the rhythm itself: the left-right, left-right movement of my feet, accompanied by the steady rhythm of my breath. In-in-out, in-in-out. My breathing naturally synchronised with my steps.
Something about this combination was profoundly regulating.
At the time, I was teaching online as a pain educator for a chronic pain clinic. I was immersed in learning and teaching about nervous system regulation, self-soothing tools, and the emerging understanding of how the body participates in pain, trauma and healing.
Around this time, I came across a breathwork class for trauma healing. Curious, I signed up. By the time the class ended, I was so moved by the experience that I immediately enrolled in training to become a breathwork guide.
What I experienced was extraordinary. The intensity of the emotional release, the access to deeply held beliefs and feelings, and the sense of space that followed were unlike anything I had experienced before. I loved it, and soon began guiding others online.
After 30 years in trauma therapy, I had discovered another powerful way to support emotional processing and healing.
I also understood the power of bilateral stimulation through my work with EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing), which uses alternating left-right stimulation to support the processing of distressing experiences.
And I began to wonder:
What if I could bring these elements together?
What if the rhythmic left-right stimulation, the breathwork protocol and targeted pressure on the feet could be integrated into one experience? Could combining these approaches deepen the experience of emotional processing and whole-body regulation?
This is where things got interesting.
I returned to something I had known intuitively for years: the power of the feet.
I had always loved having my feet massaged. As a child, I would ask my parents, and later my husband, to massage my feet because of the immediate sense of relaxation and comfort it brought me.
At the end of both my parents’ lives, one of the most meaningful things I could offer them was a foot massage. It was a simple way to be present, to connect and to offer comfort when words were no longer enough.
I realised that the feet held more than I had previously appreciated.
They offered a point of connection to the body, a way to ground, and an opportunity to slow down and receive. Gentle pressure and massage can stimulate sensory nerve endings, ease muscular tension and support relaxation.
I began to look more closely at the individual ingredients: what each modality brought to the experience, how they might complement one another, and how to bring them together in a consistent, integrated protocol.
And that is how SoleSync™ was born.
Why SoleSync™?
What I love most about SoleSync™ is that it brings the whole person into the healing experience, from top to toe.
So much of our traditional approach to therapy has focused on the mind: understanding our thoughts, examining our beliefs and talking about what has happened to us. These are important parts of healing, but they are not the whole picture.
Our bodies carry our experiences, too.
By beginning with the feet, we bring attention back into the body, creating an opportunity to feel grounded, supported and connected. Rather than working exclusively from the head down, SoleSync™ invites the entire body into the process.
Breathwork adds another dimension. Conscious, connected breathing can help shift our usual patterns of thinking and create access to emotions and sensations that may be difficult to reach through conversation alone. It offers a way to work with what is held beneath our everyday awareness, bringing attention to the places where we experience tension, emotion and disconnection.
Together, these three approaches create a structured experience that works with the mind, breath and body simultaneously. I also add music and essential oil essences to augment the experience.
From an idea to a practice
I began working with volunteers, testing and refining the approach, and gradually shaping the individual elements into the SoleSync™ protocol.
The feedback was encouraging:
“I felt so grounded and complete when I left, even though we moved so much emotion.”
“The next day I sat at my computer and so much creativity flowed.”
“I felt like I released seven years of trauma in one session.”
Of course, every person is different. Each session is a unique experience, and there is no prescribed outcome or timeline. Some people choose to return for further sessions; others find that one session gives them what they need to move forward in a particular area of their lives.
The intention is not to force an outcome, but to create the conditions for your body and mind to work together in a different way.
Is SoleSync™ right for you?
If you feel drawn to SoleSync™ and would like to explore whether it is appropriate for you, please read the detailed description of the session, what to expect, and important contraindications to review before booking.
If it feels right for you and your circumstances, I welcome you to schedule an in-person session with me in Kelowna.
Reach out to me at meames1@gmail.com. I look forward to sharing this work with you.