Olivia Garces is an LCSW candidate currently completing her Master of Social Work at the University of Chicago Crown Family School. Olivia’s interests include somatic work, creative expression, and the relationship between the body, emotions, and past experiences. Olivia has completed training in Jungian sandplay therapy at the CG Jung Institute of Chicago and recently completed her Ashtanga yoga teacher training and clinical yoga therapy studies in Maui. She is now exploring how these practices can be thoughtfully incorporated into her clinical work under the supervision of Dr. Brooke Laufer.

While talking can be an important part of therapy, it is not the only way to explore what is happening. Depending on the person and their goals, Olivia may incorporate sand tray therapy, dream work, images and symbols, or body-based practices such as breathing and movement influenced by traditional Ashtanga yoga and yoga chikitsa. Some experiences are easier to access through the body, imagination, or creative expression than through words alone.

Olivia adapts her approach to each client—whether that means talking through an experience, working quietly with the sand tray, exploring a dream or image, noticing physical sensations, or simply making space for an emotion without needing to explain it right away. She is open to working with children, adolescents, adults, and couples, and is particularly interested in helping people understand the connection between their past experiences and present lives while discovering new ways of relating to themselves and to others. Olivia sees therapy as a place to slow down and pay attention to what is happening in your life, relationships, and body.

Email address: ogarces@uchicago.edu