A Holistic Approach to Lifelong Healing
Utilizing the transformative power of somatics, the integration of body and mind, I provide diverse holistic approaches to enhance self-awareness and support lifelong healing and well-being.
I warmly invite you to explore your healing journey with me.
In my therapeutic approach, I prioritize that we are two humans connecting. We begin by establishing genuine relational trust and safety to create a place for healing. Together, we cultivate a space that is adaptable, inviting, and secure, allowing us to focus on addressing deep emotional wounds by engaging the wisdom of the body and the intelligence of the mind.
I use gentle and compassionate approaches to healing (Somatic Experiencing, EMDR, NeuroAffective Touch, and Safe & Sound Protocol) and am dedicated to working with you – bringing kindness and collaboration into our work to help you become “unstuck” and find a greater sense of self and healing.
This process is a collaborative effort, and I am dedicated to customizing an approach to fit your specific needs. Every background and identity is not only welcomed but also celebrated within my space.
My unwavering passion lies in empowering individuals to not just endure but to flourish in every aspect of their lives. My mission is to support you in the cultivation of personal transformation and meaningful connections, fostering the healing and integration of your mind, body, and emotions. As these systems harmoniously come together, the journey towards thriving, rather than merely surviving, truly takes root.
It’s an incredible privilege to walk alongside you on your journey. I’m deeply grateful for the chance to witness and support your healing process.
Certifications, Licensure, and Education
- Licensed Professional Counselor, Missouri - No. 2020009677
- Somatic Experiencing Practitioner, SEP (2022)
• Assists with trainings to support SE students in learning and implementing the SE model
• Offers SE Personal Sessions at the Beginner and Intermediate Levels - NeuroAffective Touch Foundation Graduate (2022)
• Assists with trainings to support students in learning and implementing the NATouch model - Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing Basics Training - EMDR (2022)
- Safe and Sound Protocol - Certified (2024)
- Master’s Degree in Professional Counseling from Covenant Seminary (2019)
"There is great power in honoring the reality of your current emotions. Not feeding them or making them worse, but simply recognizing that this is what has arisen in this present moment and that this will also change."
Now Enrolling — The Embodied Professional
Most of us have never been taught how to actually be with uncertainty.
The Embodied Professional is a three-hour experiential workshop for helping professionals who are tired of pushing through — overriding their body’s natural rhythms in order to keep showing up, stay available, and project certainty even when they’re unsure. This workshop explores how our nervous systems reach for certainty in moments of stress and how that very impulse can lead to exhaustion, disconnection, and burnout.
Through guided movement, reflection, somatic contemplation, and nervous system education, participants will learn to recognize their own regulation patterns, build the capacity to meet uncertainty with curiosity rather than control, and nourish the inner reserves that make sustainable work possible. This work is explored through both an individual and systemic lens — because the uncertainty we carry as clinicians is never just personal.
This isn’t about doing more — it’s about doing differently.
Course Objectives
By the end of this 3-hour workshop, participants will be able to:
- Identify common somatic signs of chronic stress, over-giving, and professional burnout through a nervous system lens.
- Explain how supporting their own nervous system regulation before and during sessions increases their capacity for attunement, presence, and effective client engagement.
- Demonstrate at least two embodied practices (e.g., anchoring, orienting, or gentle movement) that cultivate parasympathetic restoration and enhance professional self-awareness.
- Describe how aligning work habits with the body’s natural rhythms and the principle of ‘doing differently’ can reduce compassion fatigue and support sustainable professional practice.
- Reflect on personal patterns of uncertainty tolerance and develop individualized micro-practices to process and regulate emotional and energetic overwhelm.
- Integrate somatic awareness into professional identity to sustain empathy, clarity, and presence in client and workplace relationships.
Date: August 1, 2026
Time: 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Location: Empowered Spaces — 7602 Big Bend Blvd, St. Louis, MO 63119
Investment: $150
CE Credits: 3 NBCC-approved CE credits
Enrollment: Limited to 25 participants
The Embodied Professional has been approved by NBCC for NBCC credit. Heather Gargis, LLC is solely responsible for all aspects of the program. NBCC Approval No. SP-5316.
Therapeutic Modalities
Somatic Experiencing
- Somatic Experiencing isn't just a therapy method; it's a profound journey into the depths of our own bodies and emotions. This approach, rooted in the pioneering work of Dr. Peter A. Levine, invites us to reconnect with our innate capacity to heal from trauma and stress.
NeuroAffective Touch
- NeuroAffective Touch (NATouch) is an integrative approach that combines the relationship between mind and body, neuroscience, and emphasizes the importance of processing and resolving emotional and psychological issues through the therapeutic power of touch.
EMDR
- EMDR therapy, also known as Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, holds a deeply personal and transformative journey for those seeking to heal from trauma and emotional wounds.
Safe & Sound Protocol
- The Safe and Sounds Protocol (SSP) is a therapeutic intervention which emphasizes the importance of the vagus nerve regulating our autonomic nervous system and our ability to feel safe.