Participants engage in one-on-one Focusing sessions, where one person (the focuser) is guided in a process by the other (the companion) to connect with an inner felt sense of a particular situation or with whatever arises within the body that wants to be felt in the moment. As the companion holds space, the focuser allows herself to stay present with the part of herself that emerges as it evolves, staying open to the possibility of fresh insights and emotional movement. This psychotherapeutic technique facilitates the development of a compassionate, non-judgmental presence for all the different parts within oneself that may appear, including the parts that may have stayed hidden from the mind but are remembered by the body. Like meditation with a partner, focusers can take turns keeping other company for these sessions of psychic spelunking, exploring inner landscapes that are ever changing and wishing to grow.

Xiaojue Hu, MD is a psychiatrist, therapist, and researcher. She is an assistant clinical professor of psychiatry at New York University School of Medicine, where she conducts psychedelic research investigating the impact of psilocybin on depression.

Dr. Hu incorporates a humanistic, holistic approach to psychiatric practice through psychotherapy and responsible medication management. She has an insight-oriented, trauma-informed style that aims to treat clients from a whole perspective, integrating considerations on diet, lifestyle, beliefs, sociocultural contexts, as well as neurochemistry. Her areas of expertise and interest include cultural psychiatry (such as issues around identity, migration, race), women’s mental health, spirituality, and integrative approaches to mental health. Dr. Hu is also trained in psychedelic integration therapy and Focusing, a mind-body therapeutic approach.

Dr. Hu is a diplomate of the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. She completed her adult psychiatry residency and fellowship in psychosomatic medicine at NYU. She is a graduate of the Program in Liberal Medical Education at Brown University, where she received her M.D. and a B.A. in comparative literature. She has appeared on podcasts and radio shows, and has also been featured in GQ and World Journal.

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