Finding Our Center

My last newsletter found me Powering Down to Power Up and moving out of my studio space in Belmont Shore because my lease was up on March 31, 2020. It was time to grow. I had intended on taking a break to focus on building the Empowered Health Research Center to rehabilitate childhood trauma and Adverse Childhood Experiences at the root of pain, addiction and disease in the body. For those who don’t know, Empowered Health Foundation is the sister non-profit to Centripetal Force Studio that was created in 2010. The Empowered Health Foundation connects, heals and revives the human body on an emotional and physical level throughout early, mid and late life. Needless to say, the timing of the move was impeccable, making me feel even more motivated on this purposeful path in helping people heal their innermost wounds stuck in the body. Covid has magnified these invisible wounds that we all need to heal in ourselves, our children, our families, our homes and our connections with each other in relationships at every level. 
 
Over the past year and a half, I’ve found myself feeling grateful for my family and the time we’ve spent together as the world was healing and continues to heal. As a collective, it feels like we’ve been drastically uprooted and forced to release historical trauma in the body and find health in our soul for the sake of our children and their children’s children. I’m very sorry if you lost someone dear and special to you and any pain and struggles you’ve experienced. It’s been rough on our heart and unsettling in our body and mind. Sending love. 

Throughout the pandemic I focused on healthy cooking, daily walks, yoga and meditation. I felt the urge to center myself and care for my body by raising my energy level to prepare for the Covid aftermath and healing needed to reset the bodies of ourselves and children today as well as future generations tomorrow. Ironically, this is the treatment plan and vision I’ve been diligently working on for nearly twenty years! I never understood when I was going to need to do the work on a mass scale, but I intuitively felt it coming toward me. I’m trusting the Universe and will be ready with a team when we receive the green light to set sail on our healership.  

I recently sent an email to the California Surgeon General asking for a collaboration (see email below). I got a response from her Chief of Staff saying they don’t have the time to collaborate on this type of project right now. “Thank you for your contributions and passions, be well!” He said. Bummer I thought, yet, I’m thinking that they didn’t jump on the opportunity to research physical therapy to reverse the physiological effect of ACEs in the body because they’re still in the beginning stage of educating physicians on screening for ACEs and seeing the connection between ACEs and disease/mental health disorders. The solution may not be where they are focused just yet. There’s hope, we’re still in the game. Just because this is not their time, does not mean it is not ours. This is an important time for our research! We want an evidence-based solution when the time is right. Innovating physical and rehabilitative medicine has been a lifelong personal dream. Healing childhood trauma in the body is necessary to remain connected to who we are and how we can contribute positively into our society. When we are disconnected in fear, isolation and feel under threat then we are impulsive, defensive, and weary. This is not a strong and safe foundation to grow as a person, family or community. Acceptance, love and time to rehabilitate is key to unlocking feeling alive to thrive in the present and into the future. 

Late last year I was declined a position at USC’s PhD Department of Physical Therapy & Biokinesiology. Bummer again. Oh, the journey I have walked trying to get someone to open the door to put healing into healthcare. After I picked myself up for the 250th time my husband said, “guess you have to find another way.” I am currently pursuing my clinical doctorate at my alma mater, Western University of Health Sciences and will become Dr. G in 2023!

I’m adamant about integrating my treatment method into mainstream healthcare. I’ve come to understand the root cause of diagnoses and know how to steer a 13-year-old boy away from sad and suicidal thoughts to playing a sport and expressing himself to his family. My experience in detecting trauma in the body has sharpened my intuition and powered my hands like defibrillator paddles where we restored the life of a middle-aged man severely struggling with pain and addiction. I can excavate the memory of trauma driving the body into pain, mental health disorder and addiction and plug them back into life. It’s a beautiful thing. There’s nothing more rewarding than igniting someone’s spirit. That’s what Healer’s do!

I am powering up!

When the body is stuck, we need someone to find the block and help us energetically move the emotion. It’s critical to our lives. 

I know we can heal addiction. 

I know we can detect cancer before it appears. 

I know we can help wanderers find their way home. 

I know we can heal the opioid epidemic. 

I know we can heal this pain-demic. 

If my grandfather fought for our freedom on D-Day, I guess his granddaughter can continue to fight for putting healing into healthcare. 

I’ll never give up. I’d love to hear from you.

Xx- g.


My Recent Email to our CA Surgeon General…

Dear Dr. Burke Harris,

I had the pleasure of meeting you at The Deepest Well release event in Los Angeles. I wholeheartedly agree with the New York Times that your book is “indispensable” in raising public awareness of the impact of Adverse Childhood Events (ACEs) on health and well-being. When we spoke, we briefly discussed my work in physical therapy and my experience treating childhood trauma. I asked you if The Center for Youth Wellness included a rehabilitation center to treat physical trauma. You joyfully looked at me, smiled and said, “no, it got too complicated. You should do it!” 

Since meeting you, I’ve pioneered an ACEs rehabilitation protocol, known as Physioenergetic TherapyTM. It combines intensive investigation of traumatic life experiences with physical rehabilitation. The goal is to restore the autonomic nervous system and biomechanics hijacked by the unresolved trauma and toxic grief stored in the body. I’ve healed my own body of multiple debilitating symptoms of a misfiring autonomic nervous system as well as witnessed hundreds of my patients find their own freedom from physical and emotional pain.

Based on the success of my clinical work, I’ve been invited to speak about healing generational wounds in the body on KPFK and asked to speak at the local middle and high schools on the topic of toxic stress and how it manifests in the body. I’m also excited to share that I’ve been invited to partner with the Long Beach Boys & Girls Clubs to provide my team’s PROJECTbraincore clinics to an anticipated 250 or more elementary-aged club members this summer! Many of these children come from families most harshly impacted by the pandemic and the racial and socio-economic stressors of the past 18 months. Our approach is to teach children to process and manage their emotions and stress by powerfully connecting to their bodies through physical movement and mindfulness. The goal is to help these children heal their trauma and develop resilience for the upcoming school year. 


I’ve been incredibly inspired by your dedication to treating childhood trauma and admire the way you’ve partnered with Kaiser Permanente and the CDC to extend the landmark ACEs study, as well as the launch of your state wide Aces Aware program. I believe my work can support your vision to cut ACEs and toxic stress in half in one generation. I’m looking for an opportunity to partner with an organization like yours to design a demonstration project to explore the hypothesis that physical therapy, when combined with energetic therapy is a powerful, noninvasive treatment that has the potential to be a key treatment option as part of a comprehensive plan to help reverse the long-term physiological effects of childhood trauma.


Are you open to discussing how we might collaborate? I’m available to meet in person at your location of choice or via zoom. Thank you for considering my request and I look forward to hearing from you!

Sincerely, 
Gina Calderone, MPT 

9

Comments

  1. Elvia Alvarado says:

    Wanted to thank you Gina for the opportunity of working with you. I am so glad I heard you on KPFK and I realized you were right on when you spoke about healing generation trauma.
    The fact that you have some Mexican indigenous roots interested me as well in wanting to work with you. To a few friends that I share that I make clinical appointments with you, I tell them that I am going to see my “curandera”, the healer. Hope to continue.