Somatic Bodywork – Gabriel Posner

I’ve attended Gabriel’s Somatics classes on a number of occasions and every time I’ve walked away with a deeper, more grounded sense of self and a renewed awareness of how my body moves through space. Gabriel creates a comfortable setting and uses clear and easy direction so that you can fully immerse yourself in the experience. His gentle guidance through the movement may feel subtle at first, but for me, it has had a profound impact every time. Each class leaves me energized, able to breathe and move more easefully. I can’t wait for the next class!

I feel very lucky to have found Gabriel to work with! I’ve had one session so far and I am already seeing a dramatic difference.
I was hit by a car while riding my bike a year and a half ago and tore tendons in my right shoulder. Since then, I’ve seen several doctors and physical therapists and even had surgery. But for some reason, my shoulder was not getting better, as I was unable to lift my right arm fully sideways. This issue puzzled all of my doctors and physical therapists, and it was only after seeing Gabriel — in my first session! — that I was able to lift my arm sideways on my own once again.
In our session, Gabriel carefully listened to my story and issues before doing some massage and trigger point work, and then guided me through some exercises. He also gave me some quick exercises that I could do at home. After being able to lift my arm once again, I was so excited, yet confused about how just one session could make such a difference. He explained more about the philosophy of Somatics and his holistic body approach. It makes sense, and I’m looking forward to continuing with it.
Overall, Gabriel seems to be truly motivated by helping his clients feel better and has a very calming presence. I highly recommend seeing him!

I’ve just seen Gabriel for the first time, and I can’t wait for my next session. He’s helping me with issues I have about my back and neck after an accident. Gabriel has a very calm nature which is perfect for me and he’s helped me understand better what Somatics therapy does. He’s very patient and did not hesitate to slow down if he felt that I needed more time with each move. If you have an issue that other physical therapies can’t fix, perhaps you should help yourself by making an appointment with Gabriel!

Working with Gabriel is life changing. I cannot recommend him and somatic-​style bodywork enough. I’ve had a lot of massage, chiropractic and other healing work over the years for chronic pain, accident injuries, tension, etc and enjoy the more subtle modalities like cranio-​sacral as well as more traditional deep tissue work. Gabriel’s combination of massage and somatic work feels like a healing reeducation of my body/​mind. I feel like his hands are having a conversation with my muscles and teaching them better ways to be. He does some pressure-​point type work to release muscles, but stays within a comfortable pressure range. He does stretching and rolling and massaging of the body and often incorporates teaching simple exercises to empower you to reconnect with your body and relax it yourself.
I highly recommend his somatic education sessions as well. The physical therapy-​type exercises are simple, but deep and profound, and the body remembers and keeps building upon the last time so it starts to know itself more wholly and returns to a more relaxed place more easily.
Gabriel is a kind, generous, talented, intuitive, respectful soul with whom I entrust cocreating healing. I have a better relationship with my body and with the pain because of this work. I am reminded to appreciate the parts that feel good, and more and more do these days. I am able to feel more of a whole person instead of feeling like a walking block of back and neck pain. I feel less victimized by my body pain and better able to help myself feel good. That is invaluable and I am so grateful to Gabriel for his substantial part in it.

Gabriel and the Hanna Somatics work that he does was recommended to me by one of his existing clients for help with the chronic pain issues I have in my upper back and neck. I appreciate the work that he offers especially because there is much I can do at home to address my issues on my own. This feels very empowering to me to play a central role in my own recovery. His work with me focuses on how I can move without tension and pain. Gabriel is an articulate, sensitive, knowledgeable bodyworker and I am happy to have the chance to receive his care.

I have just completed my 3^rd visit with Gabriel. I originally made an appointment with him after I threw my back out. What I ended up discovering is that the back ‘doesn’t stand alone’ but is interconnected with the rest of the body. Logically I knew this, but through my work with Gabriel my body itself has begun to discover how things fit. This is my first experience with somatic work. I don’t exactly understand how it works, but I feel much better, and that works for me. Gabriel is very respectful, gentle and patient. If you are interested in healing, rather than taking pain pills, I highly suggest paying a visit to Gabriel.

Gabriel helped me recover from a nerve injury in my foot (Morton’s Neuroma) that was preventing me from being able to run. This was a much, much better outcome than an expensive surgery with a long recovery time!
Gabriel also helped me gain greater awareness of how my body moves during running and how it naturally should be moving. He always takes time to explain how various movements connect to each other and how the body works as a complete system.
If you’ve got pain, want to learn more about how your body moves, or both, go see Gabriel.

I found Gabriel on Unilocal,without a personal recommendation, just because he had great ratings and his office is located just around the corner from where I live.
In the beginning I came to him with a severe lower back pain. The pain was gone 80% after our first session, and 100% after the second!
I discovered Gabriel to be a true healer. I have kept visiting Gabriel since then, and not only did he help me to overcome all my back related pains, but he also helped me to improve my posture (my left shoulder had always been about 1.5 inches higher than the other one, now they are equal!) and my overall well being significantly. Please go see Gabriel, if you feel any back discomfort of any sort!

Gabriel is phenomenal. I carry a heavy backpack and purse that leaves my back in knots and also sit at a computer for most of my work. Somatic bodywork was recommended to me and I was incredibly grateful for the time that I spent with Gabriel. He asked me questions to understand my back and shoulder discomfort and is an excellent teacher, explaining clearly how the movements work. I felt empowered with new exercises to go home and practice. It is amazing work and I highly recommend it to anyone that wants to take care of their body in a sustainable way.

Gabriel is a very educated, intuitive, and sensitive person. I came to him very curious about the work of Somatics and really loved what I learned. It is an involved practice and I liked participating, being active in my own healing, which makes total sense. He helped my body re-​learn a state of neutrality while also understand why certain aches, pains, and discomforts exist where they do.
I recommend doing Gabriel’s package deal where you get three sessions for a discounted rate. You most likely won’t need to go back after that — so it’s money well spent!

I LOVE Gabe!
I’ve been trying to rehab my broken shoulder for over six months now and I’ve been feeling so much better with his wise help! I’m an esthetician and right handed and the injured right shoulder has been on the mend with Gabriel’s help.
I was recommended to Gabe by a dear friend of mine after she destroyed her knee, I was not knowing what to expect but after meeting him and listening to him speak about the practice of Somatic bodywork it all makes complete sense to me.
He’s never once promised me I will live a life free of pain but what he has promised, and delivered, is that my mind will allow my body to forget about the pain and to regain mobility and free movement. It’s an involved practice, this is not for a client who is not willing to partake in at home stretches. If you’re willing and wanting to allow and aid in your body’s recovery of any aches and pains then Gabriel Posner is your man!
Thank you Gabe, you enhance my wellbeing.

I’ve seen Gabriel for a couple of years to deal with chronic neck issues and he’s been very helpful. But, his support this week was AMAZING.
I pulled my neck and had an acute pinched nerve with limited motion. I could barely move my neck from side to side and was in a lot of pain. I was able to squeeze in to Gabriel’s schedule for an emergency appointment. We did somatic movement therapy and my neck felt much better right after the appointment. I could move a little bit more and was less stiff. That night I was able to sleep pretty soundly (the night before I kept on waking up due to the pain) and I woke up the next day 75% better. It has slowly improved since and I am on the road to recovery.
Without Gabriel’s support, I don’t know if I could have recovered this quickly. Thanks Gabriel!

I went into my first session with Gabriel completely not knowing what somatic eductaion was. I just knew it involved the body, and that my body hurt! Years of trying to power through a shoulder injury and chronic hip pain had left me feeling like I was 40 going on 80.
Gabriel’s sessions are interactive and, unlike massage therapy, rely a great deal on the intention and focus *I* put into each session as well as his own. It’s definitely a team effort.
I had no idea that such slow and incredibly gentle movements could be so immediately beneficial. It was a great relief to find a practice that didn’t involve the «no pain no gain» attitude.
He said he wanted to teach me how to enjoy being in my body again; not just free of pain, but full of joy and movement. I feel like I’m getting younger by the day, and have started introducing dance and other movement into my life for the first time.
The other things I really like about Gabriel are that he’s very down to earth and wants to pass on his knowledge. He is teaching me how to heal myself and isn’t pushy at all to get my business.
He’s a joy to work with and it’s hard not to be a little more in love with him after each session because I feel so good!

I went to see Gabriel for what I assumed were unrelated pains-​chronic pain in my lower back and a more episodic injury to one shoulder and arm. A few amazing sessions later what I came away with was not only a massively improved me, but also a comprehensive understanding of the root cause of my pains and an almost miraculous ability to unwind them my own.
At first, I thought the subtle movement work that we were doing seemed out of scale to the searing discomfort. With Gabriel’s patient, kind and steady encouragement, however, I reached a point where the tension in my un-​felt muscles was released and the pain was gone. What’s more, the work we did has enabled me to move more fluidly in a number of exciting ways.
I can’t recommend Gabriel and the somatic bodywork he does strongly enough. If you’re thinking about it, stop thinking. Just go!

He has been doing adjustments with the Bay Area Derby Girls.
We love him.
He’s not skeevy or creepy AT ALL. Coming from 80+ suspicious chix, this is a huge deal.
They’ve rejected other practitioners on the sole word of one person. Male bodyworkers wanting to work with us are received with cynicism and a raised eyebrow at the very least.
He is more than a masseuse… better than a chiropractor.
He’s very knowledgeable, warm, compassionate and not some condescendingly snotty new age neo-​hippie shitbird. (aka Yoga Tree).

5 STARS, baby!
I spend at least 10 – 12 hours every day sitting at a desk and, as a result, have years and years of tension stored within my shoulder and back. So. Much. Pain.
In steps Gabriel, encouraging me to «create my potential.» My initial response was «um, yeah…» But after 2 sessions of somatic therapy, I can honestly say that I have never never felt as good in my life. Gabriel is a miracle worker, and, as an added bonus, he’s incredibly nice, soothing, thoughtful, and encouraging.
Side note: I generally feel uncomfortable with male doctors /​therapists /​body workers, but was immediately completely comfortable with Gabriel the moment I met him.
Highly, highly recommended.

I would recommend Gabriel highly. I have used him personally for a chronic problem on my hip that has been bugging me for years with fantastic results and liked him so much I brought him in to work on some of my staff members at Care Practice.

Gabriel does somatic body work to help people with pain, and looking at the reviews he’s great at it. I haven’t experienced Gabriel’s somatic stuff, so I can’t comment on that, but I have had a few regular ol’ massages with Gabriel. I say «regular ol», but they’re not really regular — they’re fantastic. I’m not so much a massage-​o-​phile that I have a million massage experiences to compare to, but I have had enough to know that Gabriel is really talented.
Gabriel is kind, smart, witty, and knows how to give an excellent massage. I was pleased to observe that he’s very tactful with placement of the sheets on the massage table, so lying there «au naturel» never felt uncomfortable. For me, the only bad thing about having a massage with Gabriel, is that I feel so incredible afterward that it highlights the fact that I DON’T feel that way most of the time! Seems like the only solution is for me to have more massages.
Anyway, I recommend that if you’re a good enough planner, have a friend pick you up afterward so you don’t undo all the great effects of the massage during the drive home…
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So I said above that I had never experienced his somatic work, but that’s no longer true. Ever since I can remember my elbows never completely open (to 180 degrees, like most people’s do), which is really annoying in yoga, because I can’t just lock my arms and stay in a pose for ½ an hour.
I was previously told that it was a genetic thing, that my bones were just that way. But lo and behold, during one of my normal massage sessions, Gabriel started working on one of my arms and his efforts actually significantly increased how far I can open that arm. Holy moly, what happened to genetic?!?
We discussed this apparent miracle and he suggested another appointment so he could teach me some somatic exercises. I’ve been doing the recommended exercises for a few weeks now and I’ve experienced a big change. Hurray for Gabriel and his amazing abilities! (And hurray for me for now being able to hold downward dog without feeling like I’m gonna pass out from fatigue!)

As a professional bodyworker myself, I am quite picky about who I get work from. Gabriel and I used to work together at a holistic health clinic, and I considered it one of the perks of the job that I got to trade with him. His work is effective, gentle, informed, and nurturing. His training in Hanna Somatics gives him a unique perspective and great techniques for addressing chronic pain or movement issues. Highly recommended.

I first met Gabriel when he was doing more traditional massage work and my neck had decided to stop turning to the left. After one session I had some mobility back and after two I no longer felt like Zoolander. I’ve been to both of his studio spaces (North Beach and the Castro), which are clean, comfortable and handily located. I was a bit leery of the move into somatic bodywork, but I have been pleasantly surprised. It’s really an extension of the engaging style of massage he used before, and it proved to be the perfect antidote when an accident on the trapeze recently left me with a spasming muscle in my back. He taught me some great movements to train the muscle to tense and release in a smooth, controlled fashion. Better yet, he emailed me after each appointment with a written description of the movements that we had worked on, just in case I’d forgotten how to do it properly (which, I’ll admit, I had). Best of all, this self improving body work is integrated into self indulgent massages. Gabriel is spectacular.