Eiko Elise Griffin Mizushima

OTR/L, LMT, Craniosacral Therapist 

Eiko is pronounced “A-ko” like “acorn”. They use she/her/they/them pronouns interchangeably, identify as queer, GNC, and are of Japanese and Irish descent. Eiko is an integrative occupational therapist and licensed massage therapist. Eiko will be slowly opening their practice in the late summer of 2023 on Fridays from 9a-4p. 

To integrate means “to touch, to handle”, to include the parts of us and the parts of the world which we need to embody to move closer to liberation and healing. Mitochondria integrated into our cellular systems, glowing bacteria make home in a squid’s primitive eye so the squid can mirror the moonlight, a human chooses to heal generational wounds to break patterns of pain and suffering in a family system. What people choose to integrate and to heal from makes people into who they are, and people are always in some form of becoming and evolving.

What Do OTs Do?

Occupational therapists (OTs) help people heal through meaningful activity and meaningful existence. Fear, depression, anxiety, and not knowing how to navigate our emotions and identities in the societies we live in interfere with living in a connected way. Eiko’s role as your OT is to help you navigate your healing goals one step at a time through deeply listening to you and providing the support you need to heal and live a life that is full of, well life. They are also trained in craniosacral therapy, myofascial release, postural adjustments, and massage therapy. She uses these modalities for stress reduction, chronic pain, PTSD, and TBIs.

Working Together

First schedule a consultation and if it seems like a good fit, more appointments will be set up. Eiko  will support you in doing things and feeling things that you are less able or unable to do until you feel more able to do so. Some activities people will always need community for, and Eiko can help you build and maintain community too. OT sessions will be only Telehealth for now. In person sessions will only be for hands on bodywork, craniosacral, myofascial release, and postural adjustments at this time. The bodywork Eiko offers is lighter to medium pressure and is moving away from deep tissue bodywork.

The Process

Each session will start by noticing what is alive in you and balance that with longer-term goals. Eiko blends the poetry of intuition and healing with the science of culturally informed evidence-based practice.

Services

Wabi sabi (the art of living an imperfect life)
Shinrin-yoku (forest bathing)
Stress reduction
Developing routines
Developing rituals
Identity exploration and grounding
Healing from racism
Sensory evaluations and interventions
Craniosacral therapy
Myofascial release
Postural rebalancing
Breathing and imagery as resources
Mindfulness development
Interpersonal Effectiveness education (DBT informed)
Distress Tolerance education (DBT informed)
Emotion Regulation education (DBT informed)

Methodologies I Use

Ecology
Intersectionality
Queer and Trans Theory
Disability Justice
Healing Justice
Trauma Informed Care
Integrative Medicine
Just Right Challenge
Kawa Model
DBT (Informed by Buddhism)
Biomechanical (positioning and chronic pain)
Occupational Adaptation and Compensatory Strategies

Clients Served

Eiko works with all ages though is newer to working with people younger than 18. She intentionally limits the number of people she sees a week, which enables her to focus on providing high quality care and follow through on your specific wants and needs. She currently works part time in a day treatment program and operates this private practice on Fridays only.

Financial Policies

Eiko takes medicare and medicaid and is working to obtain contracts with insurance providers. She can generate superbills for you which you can submit to your individual insurance provider based on your insurance provider’s requirements. It will be up to you to initially get a referral from your doctor, check in with your insurance provider to ensure coverage, and submit your billing statements to them if you’re creating superbills for them. If you are solely interested in craniosacral or massage/bodywork those sessions will likely be out of pocket unless it is covered through a specific diagnosis you have such as long term symptoms of COVID; check with your insurance provider if you are unsure. 

Consultation

Eiko has free consultations from 9:30-10a on Friday mornings starting in the late summer or fall of 2023. These are free fifteen minute get-to-know-you sessions for new folks looking to meet her. Come with your questions and anything else you’re curious about.

More About Eiko

Eiko has always felt most free and at home surrounded by forests, water, black soil, mushrooms, golden grass, and starry skies. Their communities have always sustained them and they are indebted to Black, Dakota, Anishinaabe, Asian, Mixed, Latinx, Swana, Queer, Trans, GNC, allies of all kinds, healers and organizers who have always fought for cultures of belonging and the sacredness of all life forms without exception. They work to honor these legacies in addition to creating their own.

They have been an OT for four years working in a day treatment program. They are an executive leader of the Asian Collective at the hospital they work at and believe in the healing power of organizing. They currently work there part time. Before becoming a OT they were an owner at the People’s Movement Center where they worked as a healing justice practitioner and massage therapist to center Queer, Trans, and BIPOC communities. They  have also been an organizer and educator working in public schools for environmental justice and racial justice.

Eiko knew that studying healing was critical for her after working in public schools and with educators trying to make our environment a more just and sustainable place. The wounds presenting in school environments and organizing spaces were so great that little progress was made unless people were intentionally working towards their own healing, the healing of the land, and of their communities. She saw healers and organizers struggling to embody their own values and decided learning a hands on modality would assist with moving from healing in theory to healing in practice. She studied massage therapy and craniosacral therapy at the New School for Massage, Bodywork, and Healing in Chicago, IL in 2013. This helped her to get out of the mind and more into the world of the body. 

At the New School for Massage, Bodywork and Healing Eiko completed 600 classroom hours and 80 clinic hours and became a federally licensed bodyworker through The Federation of State Massage Therapy Board. She learned Thai bodywork, Swedish massage, craniosacral therapy, myofascial release, and sports massage. She obtained a Masters Degree in Occupational Therapy at St. Kates in 2019. Her specific research at St. Kates was in non-pharmaceutical interventions for pain management and the implementation science behind incorporating non-pharmaceutical inventions within systems that demonstrate bias towards non-pharmaceutical interventions.

There are so many people who have been mentors to them. Eiko is in learning lineage with Alejandra Tobar Alatriz, Susan Raffo, Caty Royce, Lea Favor, Alina Wong, Seungmi Laura Cho, and her mother.

In her free time she likes to forage, tie knots, make art, and nerd out about things she loves.

Closing Thoughts

Healing is about learning to feel, to feel more while present and connected in your body, to your life, and the life of those around you past, present, and future.

Healing is a courageous and just act and Eiko believes it must happen at the individual and communal level to have an impact that is tangible. Community that is nourishing and the effervescent, oceanic, feeling of knowing, deeply knowing you are beloved is essential to go beyond the confines of individual healing which will only take you so far. Eiko highly encourages you to integrate community into your healing goals. Healing is where poetry and science meet, so there will be expected and unexpected outcomes to this process. Move at a pace that feels safe for you. Eiko will help you with this. Healing is non-linear and tipping points sometimes come at unexpected moments. They are looking forward to getting to know you.

If you would like to work with me please contact me through my website at the bottom of the home page. Please allow one week for me to get back to you and if it’s been more than that it doesn’t hurt to send me another email to check in. path.