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David Lukoff, Ph.D. a martial artist making a difference
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David Lukoff, Ph.D., a 1st degree black belt in Aikido, has been a pioneer in the fields of spirituality and mental health. He has been instrumental in bringing these two disciplines together, causing a fundamental shift in how spirituality is viewed by the fields of psychology and psychotherapy.
As a Transpersonal Psychologist, David understands the correlation between good mental and physical health, and one’s spiritual nature. A significant part of his work has revolved around indigenous spirituality. David realized early on in his career that indigenous peoples have spiritual insights that could promote a deeper understanding in the West of the links between one’s spiritual well being and the natural world. During a recent trip to Kyrgyzstan, where David was asked to present a course on Transpersonal Psychology, he was exposed to a culture where as he states, “…88% of the patients at the Republic Center for Mental Health had previously visited traditional healers.” He also had an opportunity to experience traditional healing first hand. A healer used a “fly whip” to drive any “evil spirits” away from David.
His work in the field of ‘spiritual emergency’ has resulted in this condition no longer being viewed as a psychopathological disorder, but rather one now recognized in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual- DSM-IV (which, as he notes, everyone calls “the Bible of mental illness”) as a valid psychological emergency. This critical work has helped end the pathologizing of a spiritual emergency or crisis—situations that can result from any number of body/mind practices such as yoga, meditation and qigong as well as from life changes.
David maintains the Spiritual Competency Resource Center site which provides information to both health professionals and the public “about types of spiritual crises, differential diagnostic issues, and treatment, as well as a spiritual emergency forum for posting personal experiences.” He has addressed a wide variety of issues over the years, from questions about the use of herbs to information requests about the validity of an on-line dream site as a resource for helping someone plagued by chronic nightmares.
He is also a member of Aiki Extensions and has been involved in this organization’s work since its inception. David recently organized a workshop as a benefit for Aiki Extensions on “Aikido & Psychotherapy.” Presented in Berkeley (CA) at Aikido of Berkeley, the workshop explored the fascinating intersection of these two disciplines.
David has been on the faculty of Harvard, UCLA, Oxnard College, the California Institute of Integral Studies and is currently teaches at The Institute of Transpersonal Psychology in Menlo Park (CA). He has had over 70 articles and chapters published and five clinical case studies. He noted in a recent article in “AHP Perspective” magazine that when he was in Kyrgyzstan, he shared some of his Aikido practices with those attending the workshop. He wrote in that article, “I also included experiential exercises such as sharing religious/spiritual histories, meditation, drawing one’s spiritual journey, and practicing aikido exercises.”.jpg)
He notes, “For me, aikido provides an experimental grounding in spirituality that is important in my own personal life as well as in my teaching graduate psychology students at the Institute of Transpersonal Psychology to conduct spiritually-oriented psychotherapy.”
For more information about David and his work, you may contact him at: drlukoff@comcast.net
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