Marina Compean, LCSW

02/20/2026

Recovery Update 💛

I wanted to share a small but meaningful update.

I’m continuing to make steady progress in my recovery, and I’m deeply grateful for how far I’ve come. The healing process has required patience, consistency, and a lot of support — and I truly feel that support from this community.

I’m now in the final stages of my medical leave before returning to work. While this feels hopeful and significant, I’m still not fully back to baseline. My return will be gradual and carefully paced so I don’t undo the progress I’ve worked so hard to make.

As I prepare for this transition, the financial impact of extended leave is still very real. Income won’t fully resume right away, and there are ongoing medical and living expenses to bridge during this period.

If you’ve been meaning to give, or feel moved to help carry Milo and I through this final stretch, a contribution of any size truly helps. Link is in my bio. Sharing the fundraiser is also deeply appreciated. This last push would give me the stability to return to work thoughtfully and sustainably.

Thank you for walking alongside me through this chapter. Your support — practical and emotional — has mattered more than I can say.

With deep gratitude,
Marina 💛and Milo 🐾

02/03/2026

I’m sharing this fundraiser with care and humility.

In late 2025, while walking my dog in a marked crosswalk, we were struck by a vehicle. Both of us survived, and I’m deeply grateful for the medical care and community support that helped stabilize us in the immediate aftermath. My dog, Milo—a trained psychiatric service animal—was thankfully not injured and is helping me recover with his sweet, loyal companionship.

Although my doctors expect a full recovery, the reality has been a prolonged and demanding healing process that has included hospitalization, ongoing medical appointments, rehabilitation, and a 6 month loss of work capacity. Much of this recovery work is invisible, time-intensive, and not fully covered by insurance.

This fundraiser is intended to help offset medical expenses, rehabilitation costs, and basic living expenses during this period of drastically reduced income, allowing me to focus on healing safely and sustainably. And helping me to get back to the work I love!

If you are able to contribute, I am profoundly grateful. If not, simply sharing this page or holding us in care is equally appreciated. Your support—financial or otherwise—helps reduce the strain of recovery.

Thank you for taking the time to read and for any support you’re able to offer. Link in my link tree…

With appreciation,
Marina

09/27/2025

Today we paused to celebrate and honor the strength, brilliance, and heart of Latino physicians. Your presence in medicine carries forward a legacy of resilience, service, and deep commitment to community care.

I’m grateful to have been part of this special day, offering a grounding practice to support participants’ reconnecting with your breath, your body, and your purpose. 🫀🌱

To every physician who shows up with presence, compassion, and dedication—you are needed, you are valued, and you belong here. 💙

✨ May you continue to find encouragement, restoration, and community as you walk this path of healing.

10/24/2024

Exciting News! 🎉 I’m thrilled to announce my partnership with Headway, which allows me to accept even more insurance plans, making therapy more accessible for you!

Starting November, I’ll be in-network with Headway and Alma, providing trauma-informed, somatic, and culturally affirming therapy to individuals and professionals who want to heal, grow, and thrive—without barriers.

If you’re ready to start or continue your healing journey, reach out today! Let’s make therapy work for you.

🌿 Virtual sessions
🌿 Bilingual services (English & Spanish)

09/19/2024

Empowering BIPOC and first-gen professionals to heal and thrive with trauma-informed, somatic-relational therapy. I emphasize safety, connection, and an authentic , lighthearted yet profound approach to healing. Accessible care with insurance coverage available via Alma. Link in bio.

09/12/2024

🌿 Calming Surfaces: Stand or walk or touch on cold surfaces like tile or grass, or submerge your feet in a cool foot bath for immediate relief.

5️⃣4️⃣3️⃣2️⃣1️⃣ Grounding Technique: Notice 5 things you see, 4 things you touch, 3 things you hear, 2 things you smell, and 1 thing you taste to bring you back to the present moment.

👤 Body Scan & PMR: Scan for heat or tension, then focus on cooler body parts. Tense and relax each muscle group from feet upward to release tension.

💆🏽‍♀️ Self-Massage with Cooling Oils: Use peppermint or eucalyptus oils to gently massage temples, neck, and shoulders.

🫶🏽 Calming Touch: Place hands over your heart or abdomen, breathe deeply to activate relaxation.

🏝️ Guided Imagery: Visualize calm, safe, protected settings like waterfalls or shaded paths to shift focus to comforting places.

🧘🏽‍♀️ Movement: Try slow yoga poses or tai chi to calm the body without generating heat. Alternatively, try shaking gently or bouncing up and down to discharge nervous system energy.

🍉 Hydration & Nourishment: Eat hydrating foods like watermelon or drink cool water in small sips to regulate body temperature.

🧠 Body Awareness & Self-Compassion: Notice body sensations, offer yourself compassion, and engage in gentle self-talk to ease discomfort.

These strategies help ground and calm the body during stressful times. 🌿

06/03/2024

Phew!
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04/02/2024

Boom!
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01/21/2024

A wall push can help reset our stressed nervous system by releasing the energy from our body.

Find a sturdy wall with a spot you can push against and place your hands (not fists 😉) 🫸🏽on the wall as if you’re going to perform a 🫸🏽 standing push up.

Start pushing firmly as you bring attention to how your muscles and body begin to release. Keep pushing,

Do you notice:
💪🏽 Your arms, legs, or core begin to shake or quiver?
🥵 Changes in temperature throughout your body?
🗣️ An urge to make a sound?
🥹 Tears or sweat?

These are some (not all) sensations that can indicate your body has discharged some stuck energy and is “resetting” from a stress response.

Take a break, step back from the wall and see what you notice. Does your breath seem different? Do your muscles now feel more relaxed? Do you feel the urge to repeat the wall push? If so, repeat it and continue to check in with yourself.

There are many somatic techniques that can help us release stuck energy and emotions. If you’re “somatic curious” and would like to explore other similar somatic exercises to practice, comment “release” below for a link to purchase Somatic Practices Journal.

01/11/2024

Happy to share Somatic Practices Journal is now available to purchase! The journal offers prompts with room to explore your experience with somatic strategies. It is intended as an introduction and exploration into mind-body techniques that can be integrated into daily practices.
My hope is that you find it an accessible and helpful resource!

Somatic Practices Journal: Mind-body exercises for stress management, enhanced resilience and self-awareness

01/10/2024

One of the prompts in my forthcoming Somatic Practices Journal is on Grounding. Grounding can help regulate our stressed nervous system by bringing us back into connection with the present moment. There are several ways we can practice grounding strategies, and one of my favorites is Earthing.

Earthing is to sync the body to the natural rhythms of the earth. This somatic practice can yield restorative benefits for our rattled nerves and stressed spirits.

The earth beneath us gives us a surface to sit, stand, walk, run, swim, climb, play, and build on. It provides us with sustenance and water. We are ALL connected by it, with it, to each other. It also provides us with something very surprising - electrons. When we touch the ground with your bare feet or body, the electrons flow into us, grounding us with nourishing energy from the Earth.

I like to spend time in nature and my little burgeoning garden, feeling the soil in my hands—getting a little dirty is good for your mental health!

I take a few moments to breathe in the cool crisp air, I notice my body relax and my lungs fill. I can smell the green, grassy, peppery scent of my arugula and kale. I notice my tummy gurgle in anticipation of my lunch salad! 😋! 🥬🍃🥗

Curious? Interested in this somatic practice? What might you notice by spending more time in nature?

01/09/2024

I love to work with…

🌺WOC whom, despite being high achievers, struggle with worthiness and guilt

🥀BIPOC sorting through relational and intergenerational trauma

💐 Young professionals seeking to align with purpose and passion work.

🌻Tender beings who struggle with loneliness and belonging

🌈People who not only seek to be witnessed and understood, but also thrive and feel more embodied.
 
⬆️ Is this you? ⬆️

Are you curious about Resiliency and Attachment Focused Somatic therapy?

Have you wondered if EMDR or Brainspotting could be helpful to you?

Te comunicas mejor en Español?

⬆️ Is this you? ⬆️

📲 Can’t wait to meet you and get started! 📧I’d love to support you with gentle, culturally affirming therapy to support your healing.