Exploring Life & Business with Carli Watson of Carli Watson Wellness

Today we’d like to introduce you to Carli Watson. 

Hi Carli, so excited to have you on the platform. So, before we get into questions about your work life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today.
Growing up in West Michigan, my interest in holistic mental health care began during my first social work job after attending Hope College. I became employed as a service coordinator for mothers with substance use in Grand Rapids. I noticed that my clients who attended integrated healthcare centers felt better, improved, and seemed to thrive. They told me they felt understood by these providers as a whole person (mind body spirit) and finally seen for more than just their disease. I began to appreciate the field of integrated health and the deep connection between mental and physical health. 

Fast forward, I went on to get my MSW at University of Pittsburgh, certified in integrated healthcare, and became a fully licensed psychotherapist. While working five years as a therapist in integrated healthcare, I witnessed firsthand the impact of trauma on the minds and bodies of my marginalized clients with severe substance use. While collaborating with physicians, we tried to provide both physical and emotional healing through Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT), but it still felt like something was missing. The vast majority of my clients used substances to cope with intense symptoms of childhood trauma, for which traditional cognitive therapy alone is not most effective. I desired more tools to help myself and clients find wholeness in both body and mind. 

I stumbled into yoga while seeking personal anxiety relief and eventually, the entire field of somatics. As I began to study somatic psychotherapy, a new world of body-based coping skills for stress and trauma was revealed to me. This study changed my life both personally and professionally. I decided to become a registered yoga teacher and learned the impact of our nervous system states on emotions. My initial passion for holistic health, the relationship between physical and emotional, and considering mind body spirit, was reignited. All pieces clicked, and I knew that somatic healing was to be my offering. 

When my husband finished his Ph.D., we decided to move back to Grand Rapids to be closer to family in 2021. I founded my own private practice, Carli Watson Wellness LLC, to offer integrative health services including somatic psychotherapy, coaching, and yoga. Integrative health seeks to combine the best of newer Western medicine and older ancient healing practices together. Many integrative or somatic practices, although evidenced-based, are not included in mainstream mental health care, and I seek to change this. I completed a certificate in integrative somatic therapy and specialize in stress and trauma to heal the root cause from bottom up. I mainly provide virtual services from my home office at this time but look forward to offering more in-person in the future. 

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
My journey to being self-employed in my dream practice was not easy. Particular struggles along the way included: attempting to both work full-time and attend graduate school full-time at one point, trying to work within a broken healthcare system with extremely limited resources, finding time, energy, and the mental reserve to prioritize my own healing journey while also training to help clients, and following through on my commitments to myself, not just my business. 

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Carli Watson Wellness LLC?
Carli Watson Wellness LLC provides online and in-person somatic psychotherapy, coaching, and yoga services for stress release and trauma healing. My background and certifications in psychotherapy, integrated healthcare, somatics, and yoga, create a unique style of mental health care and holistic healing that is both cognitive and body-based. 

I am proud to teach practical skills to help you release trapped stress and emotions. The somatic services that I offer are set apart from cognitive psychotherapies because they quickly engage mind, body, and spirit as resources. We don’t just talk or think about change, you truly feel it, because we address your nervous system directly through concrete experiential exercises. People who found traditional talk therapy alone to be limiting before have enjoyed my different approach. 

Getting out of your head and into your body resonates with adults like me who overthink, overanalyze, or feel they are not good enough. If you feel stuck in stress, anxiety, self-doubt, people-pleasing, or perfectionism on your own, there is hope. Through guided practices, we can allow thought patterns, emotions, or physical sensations to move and transform rather than stay stuck. Imagine moving from neglect to self-care, intense inner critic to compassion, and avoidance to acceptance. 

What matters most to you? Why?
Being authentic in my practice. I will never ask clients to do something that I am not willing to explore myself. Our relationship is key to the healing work, so I must practice in my life what I am teaching others. 

Pricing:

• Individual somatic psychotherapy or somatic coaching session = $125
• Private yoga session (individual or group) = $60
• Public group yoga classses = donation only
• Initial 15min Phone Consultation = free

Contact Info:

• Website: www.carliwatsonwellness.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carliwatsonwellness/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/carliwatsonwellness/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carli-watson/
• Other: https://www.carliwatsonwellness.com/free-gifts/