Dawn Holtan

Sometimes life shatters us, and we have to pick up the pieces and figure out who we are all over again. Whether you are grieving a loss, facing a new diagnosis, celebrating a birth, choosing a radically different path for yourself or your family, or simply figuring out who you want to become next, I am ready to help you heal and transform. 

With curiosity and compassion, I will help you identify strengths, tap into courage, and develop resilience. I will always see you as the expert on your life, your body, and your experiences. I believe that, beneath any fear or doubt, you know where you want to go. I will help you get there. I work with individuals, couples, folks in unconventional or ethically non-monogamous relationships, and families.

As an integrative therapist, it is my responsibility to meet you where you are, and to offer you support and tools that help you feel better. My style is person-centered, trauma-informed, and grounded in decades of somatic work. I will help you rewrite the story of your life through language, play, and embodied awareness. 

Our work will happen within the safety of the relationship we create together. I believe a healthy, authentic connection is a vital component of successful therapy, and I welcome your questions about my practice. Please contact me for a free consultation–I look forward to meeting you so that we can see if we’re a good fit.

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My Services for California Residents

While I don’t currently accept insurance, I can provide a Superbill for your insurance provider.

I also offer home visits for postpartum families and people desiring this level of care.
Please contact me for more information regarding the logistics of home visits, including pricing.

My Workshops for Therapists

About Me

I have dedicated my life to working with people, helping them understand themselves better, and facilitating growth and connection. I have decades of experience working with families, children, teens, and adults in many different roles. The through line for the work that I have done is my appreciation for each individual, and my belief in the tremendous healing power of relationships.

I am a lifelong dancetheater performing artist, and my experiences with healing from trauma through movement, storytelling, and community have shaped me as a therapist. I believe in the importance of listening and honoring the wisdom of our bodies. As a director of ensemble performance work, I have facilitated opportunities for people of all ages, sizes, skills, and abilities to contribute to the creation of unique and powerful experiences.

As an educator and unschooling parent, I believe in our innate intelligence, curiosity, and resilience. My work as an educator has included teaching Kindergarten through second grade in the public schools; leading workshops and providing in-home consultation for families learning how to use baby carriers; organizing homeschool events, classes, workshops, and the annual HSC Teen Conference; and teaching dance, improvisation, theater games and more at organizations including CSU East Bay and Shawl Anderson Dance Center. My belief that people learn what they love fosters confidence in my clients–I believe that you can create a life you will love, and that I can help you do so.

Due to my experiences with individual and collaborative journaling and movement meditation practices, I believe in our ability to shape our experience of reality with mindful work. There are no perfect people, and change is often incremental. I find delight in small steps as well as huge leaps. I think that what matters is simply finding our own best path, and then doing the work, and I know that company along the way can be profound.

In other words, I trust that you can heal and that I can help. 

During my ongoing training, I am working towards becoming a Registered Drama Therapist, and I am about to become a level One Developmental Transformations Trainee. During my work as an Early Head Start home visitor, I have supported and continue to support families with physical, intellectual, developmental, and psychological disabilities through work that is trauma-informed and rooted in disability culture. I am certified as a Realization Process Healing Ground teacher.

I bring my whole self into this work.

If we both feel that we are a good fit, then during our work together I will always welcome and honor your perspective, and I will treat your criticism as a gift that will help me better understand and support you on your path.

Important Influences