Finding resilience, navigating disappointment, and discovering the heart of my practice.

Moving in Relationship:

A Journey Toward Connection

Finding resilience, navigating disappointment, and discovering the heart of my practice.

When I first imagined my therapy practice, I envisioned a space where psychotherapy, movement, creative expression, and both in-person and virtual experiences could come together. I built my practice one step at a time, always wondering how movement would find its place within it. Like many new business owners, I discovered that bringing a vision to life is rarely straightforward. I started by asking myself, "What do I know?" The answer was children and families. Before becoming a Dance/Movement Therapist, I taught children's dance and preschool movement classes. I loved the creativity, the spontaneity, and the connection that naturally emerged through movement. Wanting to give back while exploring this new chapter, I volunteered at my local library, offering movement experiences for caregivers and their young children. At the same time, I kept asking myself different questions: "What kind of experience would I want to attend? What do I want to facilitate? How do I hope people feel when they leave?" The answers were always the same: connection, relationship, and belonging. My first community workshop, Move, Breathe, Grow, didn't gain much traction. I felt discouraged and questioned whether there was a place for the kind of work I wanted to offer. Still, I kept going. When the New York State Chapter of the American Dance Therapy Association accepted my workshop proposal, it felt like a meaningful affirmation. Even with only two participants, the experience reminded me why I do this work. Together we explored movement, nature, presence, and relationship. It was small, but it was exactly the kind of community I had hoped to create. Since then, there have been many attempts, revisions, disappointments, and new beginnings. One of my biggest dreams has been to facilitate an ongoing Authentic Movement group—a space where movers and witnesses come together in presence, curiosity, and reflection. Creating that kind of community has proven more difficult than I imagined. Finding a space, finding participants, and finding the right timing are all part of the process. These questions continue to accompany me, but they no longer feel like signs that I'm on the wrong path. They are simply part of building something meaningful. Meanwhile, in my psychotherapy practice, another pattern has become increasingly clear. Whether I'm working with individuals or couples, the themes are remarkably similar. People come to therapy wondering how to feel closer to the people they love. They struggle with dating, parenting, intimacy, sexuality, rejection, loneliness, and the longing to be fully seen. They ask questions like: • How can I feel closer? • How can I let someone truly know me? • Why do I feel so alone, even when I'm with other people? It is a privilege to sit with these questions and witness the courage it takes to ask them. Then one day, everything clicked. For a long time, my work felt scattered. I worked with caregivers and children. I worked with adults navigating intimacy and sexual health. I worked with individuals seeking deeper connection and couples hoping to strengthen their relationships. What tied it all together? Relationships. Relationships with ourselves. Relationships with our partners, children, families, and communities. The thread running through everything I do is helping people experience greater connection—with themselves and with one another. That realization brought an unexpected sense of clarity. My work has never really been about movement or talk therapy alone. Both are simply pathways into relationship. Irvin Yalom captured this beautifully: "It's the relationship that heals." Those words continue to guide my work every day. If you're searching for deeper connection, with yourself, your partner, your family, or your community, I would love to support you. Whether through psychotherapy, movement, or future group offerings, my hope is to create spaces where people feel seen, connected, and more fully themselves.

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Warmly,

Meredith Casimiro 

meredithdmt.com  

meredith@meredithdmt.com