Hello and Welcome Readers and Friends,

I have a special treat interview and great written book by Author, Don St John, Ph.D.

Don and his wife Diane have been teaching, coaching, counseling, and guiding wellness paths for many together for over 25 years. Their website, “Paths of Connection”  is a must visit for a list of upcoming workshops they enjoy putting on to others learn more about well-being and wholeness. They ARE known as, “The Frontiers of Well-Being” thanks to Don and his Best-Selling book;  Healing the Wounds of Childhood: A psychologist’s journey and discoveries from wretched beginnings to a thriving life .  .  .  .

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About Don’s Book:

This is a groundbreaking book. Throughout his infancy and childhood, the author suffered severe physical and emotional abuse. He shares his personal journey and the disciplines, treatments, and practices that enabled him to overcome the effects of severe maltreatment.

He studied as a professional each of these disciplines and treatments that helped him as a patient. Along the way Dr. St John had some life-altering insights, such as:

-“Normal” is not nearly good enough.

-We have all been wounded to some degree or other.

-Most of us can increase our ability to receive and absorb love.

-We can enjoy more life-giving love connections.

-We can improve our resilience, deal more effectively with stress, experience better health.

-We can expand our sense of who we are. -Because our bodies are mostly water, we can heal the deepest wounds to our psyche and go beyond what we can even imagine.

To make such changes we must address ourselves as a whole, which means not only our psyches, our personalities, our belief structure, our relationship capacities, but the fluids, tissues, structure and movement of our bodies as well. We are whole organisms, not just bodies with a mind.

Healing the Wounds of Childhood tells the reader where to look if she wants to grow into her full potential for good health and beautiful intimate relationships. Most self-help books focus on one area such as the brain, or communication skills. Healing the Wounds of Childhood provides the big picture.

This alone would make this a unique book. However, the book is sprinkled with autobiographical material, lending a very human story to this holistic presentation.

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About Don and Diane St John:

Don: Somatic-Relational Psychotherapy Relationship and Well-Being Tele-coaching

“I began my clinical training in 1967 and have been working since as a psychotherapist, relationship therapist and somatic therapist.

My interest over the past few years has been helping people realize how many more resources they have available within themselves, to learn to connect to those resources and strengths, plus learn to connect well with those they love. The only way to have any real idea of what I do is to invest in one session, after which you will know if it is right for you.”

Don studied Gestalt Therapy at the LA Gestalt Therapy Institute, and Neo-Reichian therapy with doctors Allan Darbonne and Jack Lee Rosenberg; the Psychology of Selves and Voice Dialogue Method with doctors Hal and Sidra Stone; Hakomi with Dr. Ron Kurtz; Coherence Therapy with Dr. Bruce Ecker; AEDP with Dr. Diana Fosha; and CIMS with Dr. Albert Sheldon and Beatriz Winstanley. I have taken immersion courses and core training in Dr. Sue Johnson’s Emotionally Focused Couple’s Therapy.

He is a Trainer Emeritus in Hellerwork Structural Integration and certified in Somatic Experiencing (SE), the trauma work of Dr. Peter Levine. For 18 years, he has been practicing and now teaching Continuum Movement, developed by Emilie Conrad.

“My doctoral dissertation focused on the consequences of, and recovery from, relational maltreatment in early childhood.”

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Diane: Wellness Counseling, Coaching, and Tele-Coaching

“In order to continue growing we need to feel safe, accepted and understood. I bring those qualities with firm, loving support. Together we access and develop your often hidden resources and strengths. The objective is to resolve words and trauma, feel less anxious or depressed and bring a greater sense of well-being into your life.

Are you looking for a body-focused and relational approach to allow the healing of past difficulties? Do you want to develop more relationship skills and capacities? Do you know you are capable of feeling more loving and feel more loved? Do you yearn to feel more spiritually connected? If your answer is yes, this work may be what you have been wanting.

I draw from many years of working with individuals and studying diverse body-oriented, movement and energetic systems. I am an authorized Continuum Movement Teacher, and I am certified in Somatic Experiencing (SE) – the trauma work of Dr. Peter Levine as well as Hellerwork Structural Integration. I am experienced in the Psychology of Selves andVoice Dialogue and AEDP (Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy).

Currently, I am using EVOX as a system to assist in helping clients shift their perceptual views and understandings.”

Both Son and Diane are big into WHOLENESS EDUCATION, so they put on workshops throughout the year to help those who attend tap into their full potential’s while receiving and bringing peace and serenity into their lives. They have one coming up soon below, so make sure you visit their website for the Full Details – March 2017 – Growing Into Wellness  .  .  .  .  .

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GROWING INTO WHOLENESS

Please join us for three days of coming together, learning as one, and departing with a greater understanding of our own connections. The fall workshop sold out early and before the end of Early Bird Special. Sign up now and make sure to join Don and Diane St. John in March 2017.

We are thrilled to host this workshop at Vitalize Studio in Salt Lake City, Utah.  We are grateful for the assistance and coordination of Monica at monica@monicafauxkota.com or at (801-688-8962).

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Now I did happen to ask Don a few questions about his book and a wee bit more about him personally and here is what he offered up for us! LOL.

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How did you decide to write a book and are you writing another?  
I wrote the book because I concluded that the distance I traveled from my early life (clearly on a trajectory of a miserable life and an early death) to how my life evolved and continues to evolve, was worth sharing. Especially, helping others know how I did it, what’s available to help and the subtle and not so subtle ways we are wounded in childhood, and how we are affected by those wounds in our entire organism.  I am not currently planning to write another book; if I did it would be called something like The Frontiers of Well-Being. Why? Because that is what I believe my wife and I are exploring.

Did you have any writing habits like where you liked writing, a certain setting, and did you write on the computer or by hand? I wrote on a computer, and since we moved to Salt Lake City, almost five years ago, I usually wrote in the late mornings either at my kitchen counter or at my desk.

How long did the first book take to write and why the topic of sharing your childhood?
I wrote my dissertation in 2004 on the topic of recovery from childhood trauma. I decided to convert it to a book, thinking it would take a couple of years. I soon realized that it was going to require starting from the beginning. Living in Seattle until 2012 where I had a full practice, plus teaching, plus many other commitments, it was a very slow process. When we moved in 2012 to SLC, I was able to complete it in three years.

You live in Salt Lake, UT, where were you born and raised? I was born and raised a short distance from New York City.

Are you in recovery from addiction? In my twenties, I couldn’t make it through the evening without alcohol. I was on my way to being a serious problem drinker. Then, I discovered grass and switched immediately. In a way, I was addicted to misery. Marriages came and went! Then through a wide variety of healing practices—psychotherapy, structural body work, movement work, seminars, spiritual practices, workshops (more than I could possibly name), the trajectory changed. I describe these in my book.

Do you have grown children and do you have grandkids? I have a grown step-daughter and two beautiful grandchildren ages 8 and 12. 

Favorite food? Lobster cooked in a tomato sauce; seared ahi salads; sushi.

What is your favorite book?My all time favorite novel is Les Miserables by Victor Hugo.


What are some hobbies and interests you enjoy when not working or teaching?Four years ago at age 69, I took up golf for the first time. You might say it’s an addiction. It’s not an easy game to play, especially when one starts at the age I did. Early this year my wife and I began taking ballroom dance lessons. Now we are studying salsa. 

Lastly, what is one thing about you the public won’t find or read about you that may surprise them? LOL.Given the fact that my work is about open-hearted connections and fluid movement, they might be surprised to learn that between the ages of 9 and 15 my dream was to be a professional prizefighter.

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“Geust Interview and Book Spotlight Presented By: Author/Columnist, Catherine Lyon &  “Recovery Starts Here”