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About

The project and its creator

About This Project

This website was created as my Course 5 project for the Institute for the Study of Somatic Sex Education.

Through my studies in Somatic Sex Education, I realized how important it is to understand the foundational concept of "somatics" itself. The term appears across many diverse fields—from therapy and trauma recovery to dance, education, and social justice—yet its meaning can seem elusive or inconsistent.

I created this resource to serve as a central location for understanding what somatics is, exploring its principles, honoring the diverse voices who have shaped it, and providing accessible information for anyone curious about body-centered practices. Whether you're a student, practitioner, educator, or simply someone interested in the mind-body connection, my hope is that this website offers clarity, context, and inspiration for your own somatic journey.

On Incompleteness & Imperfection

This is a living document. The field of somatics continues to evolve, and so does this resource. As I learn more, discover new perspectives, and receive feedback from readers and practitioners, I update and expand the content here. I acknowledge that this project is incomplete—it represents my current understanding while remaining open to growth and revision.

Both this website and I, as its creator, are incomplete and imperfect. The information presented here reflects my current understanding—shaped by my training, my lived experience, and the inherent limitations of my perspective. I make mistakes. I miss things. I carry biases I haven't yet identified.

This is not a disclaimer of responsibility, but an acknowledgment of reality: all knowledge is situated, all understanding is partial, and growth requires recognizing what we don't yet know. I'm committed to learning, revising, and deepening my relationship with this material over time. The site will continue to grow as I grow. Errors will be corrected. New perspectives will be integrated. Blind spots will be illuminated—sometimes through my own inquiry, and often through feedback from others.

I'm open to new knowledge and recognize that this is not by any means a complete resource. There are many voices, lineages, and perspectives that I have yet to encounter or fully understand. If you have suggestions, corrections, or additional resources to share, please reach out. If you notice something missing, inaccurate, or incomplete, I welcome your input. This resource is stronger when informed by collective wisdom.

About Me

Donavon Lerman (he/him)

My Lenses & Identities

I approach this work through specific lenses that shape how I understand and interpret somatic knowledge. I am:

  • A white cisgender man
  • Able-bodied
  • Generation X
  • Based in Los Angeles, California
  • At least three generations in the United States
  • Raised white Protestant
  • High school education; did not attend college
  • White lower class background, raised by a single mother with government assistance

These identities inform the way I process, understand, and communicate this information. I acknowledge that I still have blind spots around this material, and I'm committed to evolving my knowledge and teachings as I encounter new information, perspectives, and feedback. This work is ongoing, and I hold my current understanding with humility rather than certainty.

My Training & Direct Lineages

My somatic education has been shaped by multiple lineages and teachers since 2017. Key programs and certifications include:

Formal Certifications

Extended Studies & Immersions

  • John Wineland - Advanced Practice Group, Valentine's Intensive, Embodied Masculine Leadership Training (EMLT) (2019-2020)
  • Michaela Boehm & Steve James - Radical Intimacy intensives, Yoga of Deep Intimacy (2017-2025)
  • Om Rupani - CTDM, BDSM Fundamentals & Scene Play Training, Tantra meets BDSM (2020-2022)
  • Rahi Chun - The 3 Keys to Genital Dearmouring for Reclaiming and Expanding Pleasure (2025)
  • Captain Snowden & Seneca Beth Miller - Together We Fly! Somatic Facilitation Skills for Sex Educators (2025)
  • Back to the Body Method - Training Weekend with Cosmo Means, Cort Vox, and Pamela Madsen (2025)

Additional Teachers & Influences

I have also trained with and been influenced by: Justin Patrick Pierce & Londin Angel Winters (Yoga of Intimacy), Laurie Handlers, Orpheus Black, Jaiya Ma, and many others across personal growth, rope bondage, BDSM, tantra, men's work, and somatic movement practices.

My Commitment to Accessibility, Equity & Justice

I am committed to creating a space that is accessible, equitable, and rooted in embodied respect for each person's autonomy and lived experience. Accessibility, for me, includes financial, emotional, physical, cultural, and nervous-system safety, and means meeting people where they are while honoring the pace and wisdom of their bodies. I understand my role as redistributing power back to the client, where consent, agency, and choice are not just professional standards but expressions of justice, and where your body is the authority. I am mindful of how privilege and systemic harm shape people's access to safety, pleasure, and belonging, and I hold this awareness with humility rather than certainty. My work is especially attentive to those carrying sexual shame, religious trauma, or marginalization around non-normative desires, offering a space where curiosity, self-trust, and pleasure can be reclaimed without pressure or performance. I know my perspective is limited by my upbringing, my privilege, and the many things I have yet to see, and I am continually learning about my blind spots and staying in relationship with feedback through inquiry and personal growth. At its core, I believe pleasure, agency, and embodied choice are not luxuries but birthrights, and creating access to them is both deeply personal and quietly radical.

Work With Me

Experience Somatic Education in Practice

If you're curious about experiencing somatic practices firsthand, I offer one-on-one, couple, and group sessions in person (Los Angeles) or online, integrating awareness practices, movement, guided inquiry, and—when appropriate—healing touch.

My approach is trauma-informed, consent-centered, and rooted in the principles explored throughout this website. Sessions are customized to meet you where you are, whether your focus is releasing tension, expanding self-awareness, exploring intimacy, or finding more freedom in your body.

Learn About Sessions Schedule Now

For questions, feedback, or collaboration inquiries about this website, please visit the Contact page.

Support This Free Resource

This educational website is freely available to everyone, with no paywalls, or ads. Creating and maintaining this resource—researching, writing, designing, and continually updating the content—takes significant time and care.

If this resource has been valuable to you, I welcome your support. Contributions help sustain this project and allow me to continue offering accessible somatic education for all.

Buy Me A Coffee

Every contribution, large or small, helps keep this resource free and accessible.

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