Frequently Asked Questions

How do I get started?

If you are interested in one of our offerings, please contact us through our Contact page.

For individual and couples offerings, we will respond with information about current availability and next steps, which may include a brief virtual consultation to explore fit.

For Space for Connection, prospective participants may submit an inquiry to learn about upcoming cohorts and availability.

What should I expect during an initial consultation?

The consultation is an opportunity for us to learn more about what you are seeking and for you to learn more about The Space and Advocacy Project™ (S&A).

We will discuss your goals, the purpose and boundaries of the offering, what you can expect from the experience, and whether the offering appears aligned with your needs.

For couples interested in Space for Grace, both partners should participate in the consultation.

What should I expect once I begin?

Our work is collaborative and individualized.

We begin by exploring what brings you to S&A, what matters to you, and what you hope to experience or change. From there, we develop an approach grounded in your goals, lived experience, strengths, and needs.

That direction can evolve. We believe curiosity and exploration are part of the process, and you are encouraged to bring forward what feels most relevant as the work unfolds.

How do virtual sessions work?

Our current person-facing services are offered virtually by secure video.

Please join from a space that offers reasonable privacy, a reliable internet connection, and limited distractions. Our sessions are intentionally interactive, so participants should plan to engage fully with their camera on.

We respect your privacy, and sessions may not be recorded.

What are your fees?

Fees vary by offering and are listed on the corresponding offering page.

S&A is a private-pay practice. Payment information and any offering-specific terms are provided before services begin.

In keeping with our commitment to equity and access, limited sliding-scale spaces are available for select offerings when cost would otherwise create a barrier to participation.

Do you accept insurance?

No. S&A does not currently bill insurance. Our offerings are private pay.

What is your cancellation policy?

Individual and couples appointments canceled less than 24 hours before the scheduled time, as well as missed appointments, are subject to a $50 late-cancellation/no-show fee.

Groups and other experiences may have offering-specific cancellation policies, which will be provided during registration.

What is your refund policy?

Fees for completed services are non-refundable. Any additional refund terms associated with packages, groups, or other experiences will be provided before purchase or registration.

Who does The Space and Advocacy Project™ center?

Our work intentionally centers Black and BIPOC communities, LGBTQ+ people, and others whose identities and lived experiences have been marginalized, racialized, underserved, or inadequately represented within healthcare, mental health, and wellness spaces.

This centering is not rooted in seeing our communities only through trauma, struggle, or disparity. We recognize the fullness of our humanity—including our joy, relationships, creativity, culture, spirituality, bodies, communities, wisdom, rest, pleasure, and capacity to determine our own lives.

Some S&A offerings are intentionally created for specific communities, while others welcome adults who connect with our values and approach.

What does BIPOC mean?

BIPOC stands for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color.

We recognize the limitations of collective terms and understand that no single label adequately represents the distinct histories, cultures, identities, and experiences of the people grouped beneath it.

We use BIPOC when it is useful for communicating about communities collectively while remaining committed to naming people and communities more specifically whenever possible.

Do I have to identify as Black, BIPOC, or LGBTQ+ to participate?

Not necessarily. Eligibility depends on the offering.

Our person- and community-facing work intentionally centers Black and BIPOC communities and LGBTQ+ people, but not every offering is exclusive to those communities.

Some spaces are intentionally identity-specific. Space for Grace centers Black lesbian couples, while Space for Connection is created for BIPOC and LGBTQ+ adults.

We believe there is value in creating spaces where people whose experiences are often marginalized do not have to explain, defend, or translate their humanity.

How does S&A understand trauma and healing?

We recognize that trauma and chronic stress can shape how people experience themselves, their bodies, relationships, communities, healthcare, and the world around them.

We also recognize that distress does not exist only within individuals. Racism, discrimination, economic conditions, healthcare experiences, community environments, family systems, and other social conditions can profoundly influence well-being.

At the same time, we do not define people by trauma.

Healing may include tending to what has hurt us, but it can also include strengthening relationships, reconnecting with the body, developing agency, experiencing joy and rest, understanding ourselves more deeply, exploring identity, creating meaning, and imagining new possibilities.

What does trauma-informed mean at S&A?

Trauma-informed practice is part of our lens rather than the entirety of our identity.

Our approach recognizes that experiences of trauma can influence the mind, body, relationships, sense of safety, and interactions with systems. We seek to create experiences grounded in choice and self-determination, emotional and physical safety, trust and transparency, collaboration, empowerment and agency, cultural humility and responsiveness, and respect for lived and embodied knowledge.

Trauma-informed practice also means resisting the assumption that we know what another person needs simply because of our professional expertise.

What is Trauma Center Trauma-Sensitive Yoga (TCTSY)?

Trauma Center Trauma-Sensitive Yoga (TCTSY) is an evidence-based, body-centered approach developed specifically for people affected by trauma.

TCTSY emphasizes choice, interoception—the ability to notice sensations within the body—present-moment awareness, and agency.

Rather than directing participants toward a particular physical outcome, the facilitator uses invitational language and offers opportunities to notice sensation and make choices about movement. Physical adjustments are not used.

The practice can support people in exploring their relationship with their bodies at their own pace while strengthening awareness, choice, and agency.

TCTSY informs S&A’s broader approach to Embodied Healing and is incorporated into select offerings.

Learn more about TCTSY: https://www.traumasensitiveyoga.com/

What is Psychology-Informed Coaching?

Psychology-Informed Coaching is at the heart of our coaching work.

It brings psychological knowledge into a collaborative coaching process that may explore identity, relationships, patterns, boundaries, emotions, stress, meaning, and intentional change.

Our approach may integrate compassionate inquiry, relational practices, motivational approaches, embodied awareness, and trauma-informed principles.

The goal is not to diagnose or treat you. It is to create space for deeper self-understanding, greater agency, and meaningful change on your own terms.

Is Psychology-Informed Coaching the same as psychotherapy?

No.

Psychology-Informed Coaching may draw from psychological concepts and is provided by a professional whose background includes social work and psychotherapy, but S&A’s coaching services are not psychotherapy.

Coaching does not include diagnosing or treating mental health conditions and is not a replacement for psychotherapy, psychiatric care, crisis intervention, or other clinically indicated mental health treatment.

What is Embodied Healing?

Embodied Healing recognizes the body as an important source of information, experience, and knowledge.

Depending on the offering, our work may incorporate somatic awareness, mindfulness, intuitive movement, Trauma Center Trauma-Sensitive Yoga (TCTSY), reflection, and opportunities to notice how emotions, stress, relationships, and lived experiences show up in the body.

The goal is not physical performance. It is greater connection, awareness, choice, presence, and agency within your own body.

What is Healthcare Empowerment?

Healthcare Empowerment is about strengthening your ability to participate actively and confidently in your own healthcare.

Through Space for Advocacy, we provide education and psychoeducation, a general review of the healthcare concern and information you choose to share, targeted research, professional insight, practical recommendations, and individualized advocacy tools.

Our goal is not to navigate the healthcare system for you. It is to help you strengthen your ability to understand your concerns, ask meaningful questions, communicate your priorities, recognize your options, and advocate for yourself.

Know your voice. Understand your options. Maintain your agency.

Is Space for Advocacy medical care or case management?

No.

Space for Advocacy is an educational and psychoeducational service. It does not include diagnosis, medical treatment, ongoing case management, care coordination, provider outreach, appointment scheduling, or communication with healthcare professionals on your behalf.

Information, research, recommendations, and tools are intended to strengthen your understanding, preparation, and self-advocacy. They do not replace individualized medical advice or care from your treating healthcare professionals.

Do you work with children?

No. Our current person-facing offerings are designed for adults.

What if I am experiencing a mental health crisis or need a higher level of care?

S&A’s coaching, embodied, and community offerings are not crisis services or substitutes for mental health treatment.

If you are experiencing an acute mental health crisis, significant psychiatric symptoms, or concerns requiring diagnosis or treatment, a licensed mental health or medical provider may be a more appropriate source of care.

Seeking clinical care does not prevent you from participating in S&A offerings later or, when appropriate, alongside your existing care.

Do I have to be at a particular stage of healing?

No one needs to reach a perfect or predetermined stage of healing before entering an S&A space.

Our offerings are particularly suited for people who are ready to engage actively—with curiosity, reflection, choice, and participation—in their own process.

Some people come to deepen work they have already begun. Others may be exploring a particular part of themselves, their relationships, their bodies, or their healthcare experiences for the first time.

What matters most is whether the particular offering is appropriate for your current needs.

What if cost is a barrier?

We believe financial circumstances should not automatically exclude someone from meaningful support.

Limited sliding-scale spaces are available for select offerings when cost would otherwise be a barrier to participation. Availability depends on the offering and current practice capacity.

You are welcome to ask about sliding-scale availability when submitting an inquiry.

How does S&A give back to the community?

S&A was created with an understanding that individual well-being and community well-being are interconnected.

We seek to support communities not only through our services, but through accessible offerings, community-centered experiences, resource sharing, collaboration, and support of organizations and initiatives aligned with the communities we serve.

As S&A evolves, so will the ways we practice community care and collective responsibility.