About ...
Creator of Baby Bare Stephanie Johnson MA, R- DMT, LPC
Therapist-Educator-Author-Speaker
Ms. Johnson began her career as a public school teacher and was one of the original teachers at the FAIR School, Crystal where she taught until 2004. In 2007 she received a Master’s Degree in Somatic Psychology from Naropa University in Boulder CO. Somatic Psychology is a body based psychotherapy that can be used with people of all ages as an alternative or complement to traditional talk therapy methods or occupational therapy. Ms. Johnson uses developmental movement therapy and somatic counseling to treat clients of all ages who have symptoms of attention/learning challenges, depression and anxiety as well as those who are experiencing overwhelming circumstances. Using the wisdom of early movements and reflexes, Stephanie supports her clients by revealing the origin of symptoms rather than employing a series of coping mechanisms that overlook the root of the problem.
In addition to her work with individuals, Ms. Johnson is the author of the award-winning book Baby Bare: A bottom-up approach to growing strong brains and bodies. Stephanie is an internationally sought speaker and trainer who is known for her warmth, humor, and clarity.
Ms. Johnson lives in Minneapolis with her 9-year-old son, August.
"I wish I would have known this when he was a baby!"
This is what so many parents have told me over the years when they realize how vital movement time is for babies. In fact, many of the skills needed for self-regulation and academic achievements are developed in the first 18 months of life. As a therapist serving children with attention and learning challenges, I use a unique method to treat symptoms and help guide them to revisit early movements that may have been incomplete or skipped altogether as an infant. By doing this, the nervous system reorganizes creating an increased sense of joy and ease as well as enhanced academic confidence and performance. Baby Bare was designed to help new parents understand that experiencing each action between birth and walking is absolutely necessary for optimal well being and school readiness. It's so common to hear a proud parent state that their baby skipped crawling and walked very early. We have all been led to believe that doing something early is best, but that just does not apply to child development. Each action a baby does is responsible for brain development and when we rush the baby to walking there is a chance they may skip something essential that will not be easily detected until their school-age years. Baby Bare is my gift to new parents, I invite you to slow down and enjoy the squirms, rolls, and belly crawling and rest assure your baby knows just what to do and will be walking soon enough!
'Mounting evidence shows that movement is crucial to every other brain function, including memory, emotion, language and learning. Our "higher" brain functions have evolved from movement and still depend on it.‘
John Ratey, M.D.,
Harvard Medical School Professor and Author of
A User's Guide to the Brain