Many graduate degrees associated with large universities are taught by faculty who have either never practiced in the field or who haven’t in years. Also, costs of these programs are high to support the large costs of running these institutions (huge administrator’s salaries, tenured faculty, building upkeep etc). With Soma College’s hybrid model, we can keep costs low by avoiding these overhead expenses. And having faculty who are actively practicing is an important value. We learn best by doing and from people who have fresh clinical skills.
Our values:
Mental health should be available for all
We want to do our part to close the gap between available well trained clinicians and clients who need quality care
Therapy programs should be taught by practicing therapists and should be accessible financially
Psychotherapy must come from an anti oppressive lens.
“We cannot sense without acting, and we cannot act without sensing.
This indissoluble unity is essential to the somatic process of self-regulation.”
(Thomas Hanna)
Why the name Soma?
Soma invokes a deep breath when our nervous systems are safe. Cool water after intense thirst. Salivation before a beautiful meal. Tears of purification during a psychedelic integration therapy session. A play of imagery which evokes that which we do not have the words for. The flush of rosy cheeks we get when we are with our Beloveds.
A definition of Soma is as a Sanskrit term that derives from the root ‘su’, meaning to “energize, stimulate, swell, expand and grow.” It first appears in the Rigveda, the oldest Vedic text that is said to give the direction for how to turn people into seers. Other definitions of Soma include ‘bliss’ and ‘nectar’. It is associated with the moon and the fertility Goddess Lalita Tripura Sundari, Goddess of the three worlds of waking, sleep and deep sleep.
Soma, in the outer world, can be seen as all forms that water takes, including the sap on plants and the vital fluids in animals. On an inner, psychological, level, Soma is said to be the principle of feeling, love and inspiration. On a mystical level, Soma is said to be secreted by the brain and mind from a meditative state, which catalyzes a state of peace and contentment.
Soma, from Greek origins, is said to be “of the body”, and in the modern context of somatic psychotherapy, soma is referred to as the first person perception of the body, what one finds therein, which is observing itself and acting upon itself simultaneously.
It is hotly debated whether Soma itself is a special drink made by a special plant, perhaps even a psychedelic compound. However, the highest Soma in Vedic scripture is the delight inherent in existence itself, resourced from within and not attached to an external object, the seeking of which is practiced through time immemorial in various spiritual and mystical traditions~ this return to the Soul, to true belonging, where we came from and where we’re going.
About
When our internship program started at Tucson Counseling Associates in 2018, we often got a lot of amazing feedback about how much interns were learning that they hadn’t been learning in their graduate programs. Many shared about how their professors either have never practiced therapy or haven’t in many years and they felt out of touch with what clients are presently bringing. As our internship program grew, we created more structure around our 6 core areas of competency. Starting a college masters degree program that will allow clinicians to reach licensure feels like a natural extension of the robust training program we’re already doing. To read more about our internship program, click here.
