Somatic Therapy | Yoga and Sound Baths in Los Angeles | CA
My practice, Power Through Process, was built for women who have been the strong one for so long that exhaustion has become their baseline. Through somatic therapy, yoga, and sound healing, I offer a space where the body is trusted as the source of wisdom rather than something to be managed or overridden. This work is rooted in the belief that healing is not about being fixed. It is about returning home to yourself.
From the tree-lined streets of View Park and the cultural heartbeat of Leimert Park to the commuter corridors connecting Mid-City, Koreatown, and Culver City, the west and south sides of this region carry a particular kind of depth. Women traveling from Inglewood, settling into Baldwin Hills, or navigating the pace of West Adams and South LA are living some of the most layered realities in the country, moving between professional expectations, family obligations, and a long-standing cultural demand to remain unshakeable. The stretch of the Crenshaw corridor, the neighborhoods surrounding USC and Exposition Park, and the communities reaching into the South Bay each hold generations of story in their streets. What brings many women to somatic therapy in Los Angeles is the recognition that talking about it has not been enough.
The exhaustion does not lift after a good night of sleep. The tension across the shoulders does not release after a vacation. Black professional women in this city were often raised to push through, stay composed, and show up for everyone else first, and my work meets that reality without flinching. This is a practice grounded in an anti-oppressive, decolonizing framework that honors what generational strength has cost, and makes room for something different.
How it works
01
Start where you are—not where you think you “should” be
Most approaches to healing put the mind in charge of the process. My practice begins from a different premise: the body holds what the mind has had to set aside. Somatic therapy does not ask clients to explain their pain into submission. Instead, sessions create space to notice what is actually happening inside. The jaw that tenses before a hard conversation. The breath that shortens in a crowded meeting. The weight that settles between the shoulder blades at the end of every day. These sensations are not character flaws. They are information, and this work learns to listen to them.
02
No scripts. Just what your body needs
When someone reaches out, the first step is simply a conversation. There is no form designed to make a person justify why they need support. We get a sense of where things are, what feels most present, and whether this work is the right fit. From there, a path forward takes shape together. It is meant to feel like landing somewhere safe, not entering a system.
03
Where science meets soul
The shifts that come through somatic therapy, yoga, and sound healing do not usually arrive all at once. They gather gradually, the way a jaw unclenches before someone realizes it was clenched in the first place. Clients often describe noticing their nervous system earlier, responding rather than reacting, and finding that rest actually lands instead of slipping past them. This work is designed to stay in the body long after sessions end.
Explore my therapy services and specializations
Women who come to somatic therapy are often the ones no one thinks to check on. They are high-functioning, reliable, and visibly fine, but internally they are running on a reserve that has been depleted for years. This work was built for that gap, for the kind of exhaustion that has no single cause and no simple fix. In sessions, attention moves between what is felt in the body and what it means. Over time, clients begin to feel their emotions rather than manage them. The tightness that once became a shutdown starts to be recognized earlier. The emotional responses that once felt overwhelming gradually become more navigable. Something that felt stuck begins to move. Sessions are held virtually, which means this support is accessible no matter where someone is. What stays consistent is the depth of the work and the quality of presence in the room.
There is an exhaustion that stretches past the physical, living in the held breath before a hard conversation, in the inability to land in stillness even when everything is technically quiet. Yoga and sound baths were designed to reach that layer of experience. They invite the body to release what it has been holding not through force, but through vibration, movement, and breath. Sound bath sessions use the resonance of singing bowls and healing instruments to support the nervous system in shifting out of heightened states. Yoga sessions here are slow, accessible, and inward-facing rather than performance-oriented. Both pathways are offered for women who have spent years in their heads and are ready to come back home to their bodies. These offerings carry particular meaning for women in Los Angeles who are navigating high-pressure careers while being expected to remain composed, gracious, and available. This work draws from a long tradition of communal healing and meets women where they are, offering a way back to themselves.
Some patterns in relationship do not feel like patterns. They feel like personality. The tendency to disappear when conflict rises, to over-function when someone needs something, to feel responsible for the emotional temperature of every room. Relational Gestalt therapy is a way of tracing where those patterns began and what it costs to keep carrying them. This approach works with what is present in the moment rather than analyzing the past at a safe distance. Sessions bring awareness to how relational dynamics are alive right now, in the body, in the breath, in what gets said and what stays silent. Clients often find that the clarity gained in one relationship begins to illuminate all of them. For women who grew up learning that their needs were secondary to keeping the peace, discovering that relational patterns are adaptations rather than character flaws can be genuinely freeing. This work holds space for that recognition with care and without rushing past it.
Chronic stress rarely announces itself as a crisis. More often, it settles in as a jaw that never quite unclenches, a startle response that feels out of proportion, a body that stays on alert even when the environment is safe. That is what it looks like when the nervous system has been running in survival mode for too long without being given a way back. Nervous system regulation work focuses on helping the body discover that safety is not just a concept but something that can be felt. Over time, clients notice a shift in their baseline. The constant readiness that once felt normal begins to ease. Rest starts to actually reach them rather than sliding by. This work is particularly resonant for women whose stress has been compounded by systemic and generational factors. A nervous system shaped by years of navigating anti-Black environments, high-pressure workplaces, and the cultural expectation to remain strong and unaffected carries a particular load. My practice does not treat that as incidental.
Some things leave marks that talking alone cannot reach. Somatic trauma therapy is for women whose bodies are still holding something that happened years ago, even when the mind has found ways to carry on. The body keeps the score, and this work is about helping it finally put that weight down. Sessions are gentle and carefully paced. Nothing is forced or rushed. The focus is not on reliving what happened but on helping the nervous system complete what it never got to finish. Clients often describe feeling lighter, more present, and less held by reactions they could not explain. For women in Los Angeles carrying the layered weight of personal trauma alongside cultural and generational stress, this work offers a container where all of it is acknowledged. The complexity is not flattened or minimized. It is held with the attention it deserves.
Anxiety often lives beneath the surface, in the shortened breath before a meeting, the mind that keeps running scenarios after the day should be done, the body that cannot find its way to stillness even in quiet. Sound meditation offers a different entry into that experience, one that does not require talking through it or thinking your way past it. The vibrations used in these sessions support the nervous system in downshifting out of the heightened states that anxiety creates. Many women find that sound reaches something that logic and language cannot. Something in the body softens before the mind has a chance to intervene. For women in the Los Angeles area managing anxiety alongside demanding careers and complex personal lives, sound meditation offers a grounded and accessible way to return to themselves. Sessions are available virtually, meaning this support does not require adding yet another stop to an already full week.
Black women in Los Angeles are often carrying more than anyone around them realizes. The performance of strength. The weight of being the one everyone turns to. The particular exhaustion of moving through spaces that were never designed with their full humanity in mind. This work was built with that specific experience as its center. My practice holds an anti-oppressive, decolonizing framework that recognizes the layered realities Black women navigate daily. Systemic stress, generational conditioning, and the toll of being expected to be strong and unaffected are not background context here. They are the work itself. The women who come to this work deserve care that reflects the depth and complexity of who they are. Therapy here does not require leaving any part of that complexity at the door.
Somatic yoga is for women who want to move in a way that actually connects them to what they are experiencing, not a way that performs wellness or chases a fitness outcome. It is slower, more interior, and designed to build the kind of body awareness that supports and deepens everything else in the healing process. Rather than pushing through discomfort, somatic yoga invites listening at the edge of sensation. Breath and movement work together to support emotional release and nervous system settling. Many women find that this kind of movement softens layers that other forms of work take much longer to reach. For women in Los Angeles who have tried yoga before and found it more disconnecting than grounding, somatic yoga offers something genuinely different. It is an invitation back into the body, not a demand placed on it.
Black couples in Los Angeles carry the full weight of their love alongside a culture that has rarely made space for it to simply exist without pressure or performance. This therapy creates a container where both partners can arrive honestly, where communication is explored as an act of care, and where relational repair draws from cultural understanding rather than frameworks that were never built with Black love in mind. Sessions are available virtually.
Los Angeles organizations are navigating a workforce that is increasingly aware that performance cannot be sustained without genuine wellbeing. My corporate wellness offerings bring somatic tools, sound healing, and nervous system education to teams that are ready to invest in care that actually reaches the body. Available virtually for California organizations.
Serving clients in Los Angeles and nearby areas
My practice reaches women throughout Los Angeles and the surrounding communities, including Baldwin Hills, Inglewood, West Adams, South LA, Leimert Park, Mid-City, Culver City, View Park, and Koreatown. All sessions are offered virtually, which means distance is not a barrier to beginning this work. Whether someone is a few miles from Exposition Park or an hour outside the city, the quality of care remains the same. An embedded map of the Los Angeles service area appears below.
Chelsey has been a mentor to me in many ways. She has a warm, patient, thoughtful presence that is consistent and unmoving, and the ability to closely contact whatever arises in a calm and non judgemental way that allows for connection. Highly recommend!
Haley Winer
Chelsey and I recently led a group and I was in awe of her ability to hold space, give others feedback, and stay regulated throughout the course. Chelsey was a supportive, caring, and wonderful co-facilitator. I learned so much from her!
Julia Willinger
She's phenomenal. I've had a few different therapists during my mental health journey, but Chelsea is the first one to actually make me feel comfortable enough to be vulnerable. She reminds me that it's okay to acknowledge my feelings, instead of bottling them up in order to process the situation that brought that particular feeling up. I spent a long time feeling invisible; my sessions with Chelsea remind me that I'm here, and I matter. It feels good to feel seen and understood.
Anonymous
What inspires me about Chelsey's clinical skills is that she has a talent and passion for integrating her work with holistic health and wellness. She offers healing on a deep level and her very presence has a calming effect. I highly recommend Chelsey.
Fox Eros Life Stress Intimacy Polyamory
Chelsey's approach to therapy is rich, fulfilling, and empowering. Her groundedness propels her in the ability to be attuned to her clients' needs which is valuable to community healing.
Keri Anderson
I have had the privilege of being Chelsey's supervisor for the past 18 months. She is a caring and compassionate clinician who brings thoughtfulness, warmth and curiosity to her work with clients. I highly recommend Chelsey.
Penny H.
Chelsey has been a mentor to me in many ways. She has a warm, patient, thoughtful presence that is consistent and unmoving, and the ability to closely contact whatever arises in a calm and non judgemental way that allows for connection. Highly recommend!
Haley Winer
Chelsey and I recently led a group and I was in awe of her ability to hold space, give others feedback, and stay regulated throughout the course. Chelsey was a supportive, caring, and wonderful co-facilitator. I learned so much from her!
Julia Willinger
Testimonials
Hello, I'm Chelsey Reese, somatic therapist and sound healer in Los Angeles
I'm a somatic therapist, yoga practitioner, and sound healing facilitator based in Los Angeles, CA, and the founder of Power Through Process Wellness Co. My work is grounded in an anti-oppressive, decolonizing framework that centers the full humanity of the women I serve. I specialize in supporting women of color through somatic experiencing, polyvagal-informed practices, relational Gestalt, and trauma-informed mindfulness, drawing from each approach to meet the body where it actually is. Clients come to me from across Los Angeles, from the Crenshaw corridor to Culver City, carrying the weight of survival patterns they are finally ready to set down. My practice is rooted in a single belief: empowering women of color to listen to the wisdom inside their bodies, release stored trauma, and step into an abundant life of peace and connection.
Frequently asked questions
How does virtual therapy work?
Virtual therapy sessions are held over a secure, HIPAA-compliant video platform. All you need is a private space, a stable internet connection, and a device with a camera and microphone.
Can I use my insurance for virtual therapy?
I currently do not accept insurance. I can provide a superbill for reimbursement and I do accept Loveland Vouchers.
What if I need to cancel or reschedule a session?
I ask for at least 24 hours notice to reschedule or cancel your session. Cancellations made less than 24 hours notice may incur a fee.
