Focalizing Practitioner Course
with Nick Werber and Joanna Miller
A practical, body-based modality for coaches, therapists and wellness practitioners to help others metabolize trauma, connect to one's inner wisdom, and live with greater purpose.
- A 15-week online certification training journey
- An 80-hour certification course
- Including 38 hours of live training designed for Zoom
The Focalizing Practitioner Program is a 15-week online certification training journey into the power of Focalizing. At it’s root, Focalizing is a unique method of developing a relationship with the body and befriending the innate intelligence that lives there. By working in partnership with the hundreds of thousands of years of evolutionary wisdom contained in the body, practitioners and clients alike have the opportunity to not only face barriers from a wholly different perspective, but to uncover new solutions that may have once felt beyond reach.
Are you someone who…
Wants to build practical skills that will allow you to more confidently work with the effects of trauma ?
Senses that incorporating body based approaches will allow you to be more effective in your practice?
Has read about trauma and has some awareness about somatic approaches but desires to go deeper?
Will appreciate both a neuroscientific and energetic perspective to the healing process?
Feels there is something missing from your practice?
Is striving to become a better leader, space holder, and model for healing?
These are just a few reasons participants join this training…
A versatile approach for coaches, therapists and wellness practitioners
From it’s beginnings in the 1980s, Focalizing has been taught to a truly diverse group of practitioners with a wide variety of personal and professional backgrounds.
Today, the Focalizing Institute’s practitioner community is made up of coaches, clinical therapists, addictions recovery counsellors, doulas and death doulas, yoga teachers, reiki practitioners, intuitive practitioners, teachers, nurses, activists and many more.
By the end of this 80-hour training, you’ll have a strong grasp of how to create a safe container to work gently with the the body to help others metabolize trauma, connect to one’s inner wisdom, and live with greater purpose.
Throughout the program you will receive mentoring and guidance on how you, and people like you, have integrated Focalizing into a new or existing practices.
Hear directly from some of our past students:
3 Unique Learning Tracks
“There is one way of breathing that is shameful and constricted. Then, there’s another way: a breath of love that takes you all the way to infinity.”
What Recent Grads Are Saying
“This course was the "missing piece" that drew together wisdom from many traditions, therapeutic approaches, and fields of study. Both informational and practice-based, it provides tools for many situations, from personal healing journeys, to working in clinical settings, to teaching, parenting, and having healthy relationships. I rank it among one of my "life-changing" experiences. It will have an enduring effect on my life and work.”
— Kris H.“I joined this class simply because I knew something was "missing" in the way I was both living myself and working with my clients, even though by outward and material appearances I'm very successful. This class didn't disappoint. I absolutely know I can take my business and my healing practices to new levels and help my clients in a way I could not reach before. I already have many clients trying out my "new style/technique" and who absolutely love it. As a practitioner I also love it because I feel empowered to help my clients even more.”
— Barbara D.“This course revolutionized the way I connect to the world and to others. I am way more present in my body. I learned how to slow down and pay attention in a whole new way and am excited to incorporate this into my practice. My clients are already loving Focalizing and noticing the ease with which their nervous system navigates the world now.”
— Elizabeth P.Your Teachers
Nick Werber is a writer, educator, and Somatic Experiencing® practitioner whose work explores belonging, identity, and the imprint of family systems on the nervous system. His teaching focuses on how survival patterns form and how people can move from coping and rumination toward greater steadiness in their emotions and bodies.
Nick serves as a director and lead trainer at The Focalizing Institute, a 501(c)(3), where he trained for nearly ten years. He has trained hundreds of therapists, coaches, and helping professionals across more than 15 countries and maintains a private coaching practice.
His work has been featured by The Omega Institute, The Embodiment Conference, and the MyWellbeing Therapy Network. His writing and videos have been viewed more than 50 million times online.
Jo is a Trainee Elder, Somatic Teacher, and engaged citizen who has specialist interests in developmental, collective, and systemic trauma and shame. She is a Board Member and Senior Trainer of the Focalizing Institute, a somatic training institute that trains therapists and healers in somatic skills internationally. Having trained directly with some of the leaders in her field, she is forever the student and a very grateful teacher.
If you meet her you will feel her relaxed style, hear her deep Northern accent and sense her grounded sense of being. She comes from a long line of working class, big-hearted folk from the north of England and home is currently the blue sea of Margate with her two cats, Zac and Poncho.
There is a deep belief that runs through her bones that when we become more intimate with our body's wisdom, we get to change the world around us from the inside out.
A Safe and Empowered Space For Learning
The nature of this program is that it invites participants to explore Focalizing as a resource for their personal journey along with being a professional skillset. For this reason, The Focalizing Institute and it’s trainers are dedicated to ensuring the learning environment is safe, inclusive, and empowering for participants of all personal and professional backgrounds.
A few ways the container is held:
Participation is always personal choice, and you are always empowered to exercise your ‘no.’
The program is delivered in a step by step manner that is slow and gentle for students
Trainers are available for contact and can refer students for additional support if need be
Homework practice sessions are not recorded
Focalizing is taught with inclusivity in mind, acknowledging that holistic healing and the wellness industry at large has a long history of excluding people of color and those of indigenous descent. Program trainers are committed to inclusion and having necessary conversations should activation appear during this program.
The program trainers have worked with hundreds of people worldwide and embody the work they teach
One common piece of feedback we receive is how comfortable students feel in the learning environment, especially those that were initially hesitant about group participation at first.
Not Just A Training, A Community of Practitioners
Certified Focalizing Practitioners are eligible to join our private Mighty Networks community. This is an active group that hosts three mentoring and community calls per month, houses a library of additional resources and demo sessions, and offers a space for practitioners to continue to be supported in both their technique and on the business side of having a practice.
Download Free Welcome Pack
Contact us below to receive more information as well as the program welcome pack. If you would like to talk through any questions you’re holding, let us know and we’ll connect you with a trainer who will be happy to provide answers.
A Comprehensive Program Since the 1990’s
Dr. Picucci was a pioneer of trauma-informed embodiment tools in the western world.
It is the culmination of over 30 years in the field of psychotherapy, addictions research and trauma healing as well as his own life's journey. Though Dr. Picucci synthesized the approach, it owes much of its foundation to other pioneers and their work in the field of healing and psychotherapy.
Some of Dr. Picucci's colleagues and inspiration are Dr. Peter Levine and the pillars of Somatic Experiencing, Dr. Eugene Gendlin and Focusing, and Dr. Randolph Stone and his Polarity Massage.
In 2017, The Focalizing Institute redesigned this program for online learning and has since trained hundreds of students in the United States and internationally.
What Does This Program Include?
An 80-hour certification course made up of:
38 hours of live training designed for zoom
3 hours of personal 1:1 coaching and mentorship
Over 39 hours of self study and practice time
Theory as well as practical tools, and a safe container to explore what you’re learning with fellow participants
A wealth of additional materials including guided meditations, PDFs and videos
A nurturing space where you can learn the nuance of working with the body and the effects of trauma
Entry into the practitioner directory
Participation in a community of like-minded individuals
Program Overview
Dates & Time
Enrollment Now
Total Training Exchange
Early Bird Ends September 22nd
Early Bird Course Tuition:
(Regularly $2,750)
$2,450
(flexible payment plans available)
- 3 Individual Sessions
- $150 per session (Required for Certification)
- Please Note:
- Certification requires attending the three private Focalizing sessions.
- Payment plans
- Flexible payment plans available.
Limited BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ scholarships are available for this program. Please indicate your interest in these options by selecting them on the enrollment form.
Deadline for scholarship application is October 8th, 2026
This button takes you to the licensed teacher's website to complete your application.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does this course teach me how to practice in a ‘trauma informed’ manner?
Yes. We offer the right amount of theory and practical experience to be able to use with your communities and clients. By the the course conclusion, you will be working in a trauma informed manner.
I am a psychotherapist. Can I use this with my current work or does it have to be stand alone?
Either. Focalizing can absolutely be practiced as a stand alone modality. Past students with existing clinical practices have also integrated pieces of the work to help support clients that were in need of alterative approaches. This program welcomes students to take what (really) works and leave the rest.
What is the entry criteria?
Once the enrollment form is received, all students will speak to one of the senior trainers to ensure the program is the right fit. There are no formal professional or academic prerequisites for this program.
I have never done any somatic work. How will I know it is right for me?
By its very nature, somatic work is for everybody (read: every-body). However, to find out if this is best for you please contact us and we’ll help you connect with a senior trainer for a consultation.
Are sessions recorded?
Yes. You get access to the recorded sessions both during and after the course for life.
The price is in US dollars, can I pay in any other currency?
We allow for payment in most currencies.
What is your refund policy?
You can withdraw and receive a refund 2 weeks prior to the course start date. A cancellation fee of $300 will apply in this instance.
In the instance that you need to withdraw from the course for personal reasons program trainers can discuss the option of transferring to another cohort in the future.
If you have further questions please contact us to book a time to chat with one of our facilitators and we'd be happy to answer your questions.
This button takes you to the licensed teacher's website to complete your application.