Sarah Schlote, Registered Psychotherapist

09/29/2026

I just discovered that the contact form on the www.sarahschlote.com site has only been intermittently been sending messages to our email inboxes, for what appears to be many years.

Since we do receive inquiries via the contact form on a regular basis, it never occurred to us that the volume was actually much higher and that we were facing a tech problem.

I've just scrolled through multiple undelivered messages from people requesting to be psychotherapy clients, training students requesting to complete credit hours, and other people seeking training, consultation, or other collaboration inquiries that have been quietly sitting in the WordPress Submissions subfolder, unbeknownst to us until now.

So many missed opportunities. We are shocked and apologize for not finding this out until today.

We are in the process of sorting out what led to this issue in the first place in order to resolve the matter. In the meantime, if you have an inquiry, please email [email protected] directly instead of using the website contact form until this has been successfully addressed.

I look forward to being of service. Thank you for your understanding.

Sarah is an attachment and body-oriented psychotherapist who combines a depth and breadth of knowledge of trauma therapy approaches and neuroscience.

09/28/2026

Today is the 𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘁 𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗹𝘆 𝗯𝗶𝗿𝗱 𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲 ($449.10 CAD) for this upcoming course! Registration includes Lifetime Access to the recording (whether you can attend live or not)

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🧠 𝗡𝗲𝘂𝗿𝗼𝗱𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲, 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝘂𝗺𝗮, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗦𝗘: 𝗗𝗲𝗺𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗗𝗮𝘆

I will be offering demonstrations with volunteer participants who have been diagnosed with or self-identify as ADHD, autistic, AuDHD, gifted, and/or have other experiences of neurodivergence that may be adjacent to these categories, such as sensory sensitivities, PDA, learning differences, etc.

Rather than focusing only on concepts and theory, Demonstration Day provides an opportunity to observe ways of approaching the work in real time—and then debriefing observations, choice points, and what participants can take into their own learning and practice. Key concepts and theoretical pieces will be discussed where applicable.

Attendance at Sarah’s Neurodivergence, Trauma, and SE™ courses hosted by Somatic Experiencing® International is not required to attend the Demonstration Day.

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𝗘𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗶𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆:

Demonstration Day is primarily geared toward:

🍂 Somatic Experiencing® students at the Advanced level

🍂 Somatic Experiencing® Practitioners

🍂 EQUUSOMA® Graduates and Practitioners working within a professional scope of practice

However, Beginning and Intermediate SE students and EQUUSOMA® Level 1 and Level 2 students may also register, with the understanding that some material may require additional training and/or consultation to support integration.

EQUUSOMA® personal stream students participating for their own personal exploration will participate according to the parameters of their student stream.

𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗻 𝗯𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻 𝗮 𝗱𝗲𝗺𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻?

If you'd like to be considered for participation in a demo, please email [email protected] by Friday, October 23, 2026, with a brief description of your SE™ and/or EQUUSOMA® training, your scope of practice or occupation, your experience as a demonstration lender (if applicable), your specific form(s) of neurodivergence, what you're curious about exploring, and anything else you feel would be important context.

𝗥𝗲𝗴𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲:
https://sarahschlote.com/deepdivelearning/neurodivergence-trauma-and-se-demonstration-day/

09/24/2026

The early bird registration deadline for these courses is today! Looking forward to these topics and connecting with you there.

Today is the last day to register for these short courses that I'm offering on specialty topics that will deepen your personal integration and professional application of the EQUUSOMA material.

Deep Dive Learning course recordings come with Lifetime Access whether or not you can attend live.

https://sarahschlote.com/deepdivelearning/

09/17/2026

Well that was a blast! Thank you to Somatic Experiencing International for hosting today's program and to everyone who registered. What a great turnout and an engaged group of humans. I'm grateful for your contributions, which made the topic so much richer.

Missed out on today's course? There's still time to register for my Deep Dive Learning follow up offering (with licensing approval from SEI), "Neurodivergence, Trauma, and SE: Demonstration Day" taking place on October 28 (with Lifetime Access to the recording of the Demo Day whether you can attend live or can only watch the recording). Attendance at today's program is not required in order to register for the Demo Day.

Plus, the early bird rate is still on!

https://sarahschlote.com/deepdivelearning/neurodivergence-trauma-and-se-demonstration-day/

Looking forward to nerding out more about this with you all.

09/09/2026

Some subjects deserve more than a brief introduction.

Over the years, my work has spanned a range of areas—from psychotherapy, trauma, and somatics to professional practice, the equine-human relationship, and other areas of emerging and established knowledge.

Along the way, certain questions and areas of interest have continued to invite deeper exploration.

Some ideas benefit from more time. Some invite us to look again, from another angle. And some topics simply don't fit neatly into a single consultation, training, or introductory conversation.

🌊𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁’𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝘆 𝗜'𝗺 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗗𝗲𝗲𝗽 𝗗𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴🌊

Deep Dive Learning is a collection of short and focused learning experiences drawn from my broader body of work.

Each Deep Dive takes a particular topic and creates space to explore it with greater nuance, context, and depth.

The common thread is 𝗱𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗵, not subject matter.

Some Deep Dives will explore my work with equines and the human-animal bond. Others will explore topics such as psychotherapy, trauma, neurodivergence, relational processes, parts work, or other areas—with no equine component at all.

Some offerings are designed for professionals and practitioners, while others are open to anyone with an interest in the topic. Some build on an existing EQUUSOMA® or Somatic Experiencing® foundation, while others require no prior training.

Each learning experience clearly identifies its intended audience and any eligibility requirements, so you can find the opportunity that fits your interests and background.

There is no single path through Deep Dive Learning.

🌊𝗖𝗵𝗼𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝗮 𝘁𝗼𝗽𝗶𝗰. 𝗕𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀. 𝗔𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗴𝗼 𝗱𝗲𝗲𝗽𝗲𝗿.

All online courses come with 𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲 𝗮𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀 to the recordings (see Terms & Conditions for details about what this actually means in the world of online webinars).

👉𝗥𝗲𝗴𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 for courses taking place between September 2026 and May 2027: https://sarahschlote.com/deepdivelearning/

08/19/2026

06/26/2026

𝐍𝐞𝐮𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞, 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐮𝐦𝐚, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐄™: 𝐀 𝐃𝐞𝐞𝐩𝐞𝐫 𝐃𝐢𝐯𝐞
𝐒𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟏𝟕, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟔 (𝟏𝟎𝐚𝐦-𝟐𝐩𝐦 𝐏𝐚𝐜𝐢𝐟𝐢𝐜 𝐓𝐢𝐦𝐞)

SEI Short Program (recording access available for registrants)

Join me for an in-depth exploration of a particular cluster of neurodivergent (ND) experiences—autism, ADHD, AuDHD, pathological demand avoidance (PDA), learning disabilities, giftedness, and sensory processing differences—which often co-occur and are regularly misunderstood and misperceived.

We will explore how to adapt various techniques and ‘maps’ taught in Somatic Experiencing® to navigate client trauma and terrain in ways that are ND-informed and ND-affirming.

Informed by a blend of research, theory, practice, and lived experience, this course features a nuanced and comprehensive integration of SE, psychodynamic and attachment perspectives, interpersonal neurobiology, and systemic and anti-oppressive orientations, along with other relevant interdisciplinary models, approaches, and frameworks.

This course is geared towards Somatic Experiencing® Practitioners and EQUUSOMA® Graduates and Practitioners. Somatic Experiencing® students (who have completed at minimum Advanced 1) and EQUUSOMA® students (who have completed at minimum Level 1) are also welcome to attend.

Registrants should watch my 2023 webinar on this topic before taking this course, which can be found here: https://traumahealing.org/equity-resources/

Learning Goals:

Learn about the intersections of autism, ADHD, AuDHD, PDA, early developmental trauma, sensory trauma, insecure attachment, rejection sensitivity, and anxiety.

Identify the particular risk factors that place ND people at risk of trauma, abuse, relational ruptures, misunderstanding, and being pathologized.

Deepen case conceptualization and intervention planning skills using SE concepts and principles adapted for this population.

Name the different factors to consider in relation to exploring sensation and embodiment with ND clients and different ways to proceed in light of complex coupling dynamics, syndromal and ‘spiky profile’ presentations, and ND traits.

To register via SEI: https://tinyurl.com/46zx7c6a

02/21/2026

This is Part 1 of a multi-part series of blog posts that I'm working on about the Polyvagal Theory debate and the complex layers that surround it on individual nervous system, relational trauma, and systemic levels.

https://equusoma.com/polyvagal-debate-part-1/

I’ve been asked to share my perspectives on the ongoing debate between the Polyvagal Theory (PVT) by Stephen Porges and those in the scientific community who have attempted to refute and/or discredit the PVT over the years. This academic conflict is occurring alongside a broader trend of interest ...

01/27/2026

If you didn't have a chance to join The Space Between (Parts 1 and 2) live webinars that I delivered on June 12, 2025 and on January 8, 2026, not to worry!

They are available here free of charge:

Part 1: https://www.human-animal-interaction.org/webinars/the-space-between/

Part 2: https://www.human-animal-interaction.org/webinars/the-space-between-part-2/

These webinars have relevance beyond interspecies interactions and are directly related to some of the patterning we are seeing in the world at large:

Part 1 builds a crucial foundation of reference.

Part 2 explores how unintegrated experiences of boundary ruptures and intrusions can result in patterns of fight, flight, freeze, and management strategies in response to new information that 'enters' our boundary...
..especially information that our nervous systems deem as 'dangerous' or 'threatening' because of its over-coupling with shame, guilt, anxiety, or other uncomfortable or dissonant experiences...
..and what can be helpful to start growing capacity to tease apart and work through that complexity.

Coming out of contraction into capacity for greater expansion on an individual level supports the same shift on collective and societal levels.

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Free Video Archive:

Did you know that there is a full video archive available to the public free of charge via the HAI Section of the APA?
The recordings of a wide variety of other webinars related to human-animal interactions, are available in their archive. Broad topic areas include animal-assisted interventions; animal behaviour, training, and handling; companion animals; competencies and standards of practice; education; emotional support and service animals; equines; and grief and loss, among other subjects.

https://www.human-animal-interaction.org/webinars/

01/27/2026

This one speaks for itself, and is why I emphasize so much (in the EQUUSOMA training and in my individual work with clients, students, and consultees) that healing is both an inside and an outside job. It's not just about the individual and collective nervous system work, but about setting different conditions that don't result in having to do that healing work in the first place.

"You cannot breathe your way out of patriarchy. You cannot cold plunge your way out of structural oppression. You cannot meditate, journal, or yoga your way out of conditions that were designed to dysregulate you.

This is not to say that nervous system regulation tools aren't valuable. They are. I use them. I teach them. I believe in the body's capacity to settle, to find ground, to return to itself.

But when regulation tools are offered as the solution to chronic activation without naming the cause of that activation, they become a form of gaslighting. They locate the problem in your body rather than in the conditions your body is responding to.

The message becomes: if you're still anxious, you haven't tried hard enough. If you're still activated, you haven't found the right technique. If you're still struggling, the failure is yours.

But what if your nervous system isn't broken? What if it's accurate?

What if your chronic activation is a correct response to living in a world where your body has never been fully safe? Where your rights can be legislated away? Where your value has been tied to your appearance, your compliance, your ability to serve? Where violence against women is endemic and normalized. Where the mental load is invisible and unpaid and never ending?

You're not dysregulated because you're doing something wrong. You're dysregulated because your body is reading the environment correctly.

This is the problem with nervous system work that doesn't include political analysis. It pathologizes accurate perception. It tells you to calm down when calm would actually be a form of denial. It trains you to regulate your way into tolerating conditions that should not be tolerated.

What if regulation isn't always the goal?

What if sometimes the goal is testimony?

What if your body's activation is not a problem to be solved but a truth to be witnessed? What if the shaking, the racing heart, the inability to settle is your body saying: this is not okay. This was never okay.

And I refuse to pretend it is.

There's a reason oppressed peoples have always used the body as a site of protest. The body that refuses to be calm is a body that refuses to comply. The body that stays activated is a body that is telling the truth about what it has survived.

I'm not saying don't regulate. I'm saying regulate with your eyes open. Know what you're regulating for. Notice if your regulation practice is helping you show up more fully for your life, or if it's helping you tolerate conditions you'd be better off changing or leaving.

There's a difference between settling your nervous system so you can be present and settling your nervous system so you can continue to be extracted from.

One is healing. The other is sophisticated dissociation.

Your body knows things. It knows what's safe and what isn't. It knows what's sustainable and what's depleting. It knows when you're in the wrong relationship, the wrong job, the wrong room.

The question is not how do I make my body stop reacting. The question is what is my body trying to tell me that I haven't been willing to hear.

Sometimes the most radical thing you can do is not calm down. Sometimes the most radical thing is to let your body speak. To let it be a witness. To refuse to regulate yourself into compliance with conditions that are slowly killing you.

Although you cannot breathe your way out of patriarchy, you can listen to the body that has been registering its impact all along."
—Ailey Jolie

Artwork by instagram.com/haisoohaisoohaisoo