Today we’d like to introduce you to LeeAnn Eakins-Barkman.
Hi LeeAnn, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I am a psychotherapist with over 18 years of experience who specializes in trauma treatment. Another passion of mine is martial arts. I am a Certified Instructor and 4th Degree Blackbelt with the Maududo Federation. I have combined my knowledge and expertise of these passions into helping people recover from trauma with martial arts to found, develop and implement a self-defense Trauma Informed Martial Arts, TIMA program.
When I’m not doing therapy or practicing martial arts, you can find me spending time with my daughters Lucy and Kimber, running, hiking or taking in a museum or jazz club.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
Setting up and designing the TIMA program has been a fairly smooth road. I am fortunate to have a lot of people who care about this program and who have been instrumental in helping me with knowledge and resources. Mike Franzen, owner of Martial Arts America and Founder of the Maududo Federation, listened to my ideas, has contributed to my planning process, and afforded me the opportunity to run classes at his school, Martial Arts America.
Jessica Freedman, founder of MamaShakti Prenatal Yogi, has helped me learn about trauma-informed yoga. Along with additional research on trauma-informed yoga, I have been able to incorporate many of those ideas into the TIMA program.
Some of the challenges include: Lack of research- there is always a lot of research when developing a program, but when I tried to research Trauma Informed Martial Arts, I found little to none. The design, implementation, and evaluation had/have to be completely developed.
Planning to avoid activation/triggers in class has provided an expected challenge. Of course, programs evolve as they are run and I’m thankful for this because one cannot plan for every situation in advance. As expected, at times in class there is the potential for a situation where a person’s fight or flight reaction is activated. Being able to jump in on the fly and manage that can be a bit of a challenge and does not usually happen in a typical martial arts program. At TIMA we are prepared for this and ready to help de-escalate and co-regulate the situation with you so that you can continue in class and be successful.
The other two biggest challenges have been marketing and getting the word out about TIMA, and measuring the results.
Evaluating the program to show efficacy and validity is currently in the works. Hopefully, I will be able to show that it helps decrease symptoms of trauma-related issues, builds self-confidence and self-worth, and aids in the overall healing from traumatic reactions to events.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next, you can tell us a bit more about your business.
TIMA is a trauma-informed martial arts self-defense class specifically designed to help people recover from trauma and build self defense skills. It is an 8-week long program that meets for one hour weekly. TIMA blends lessons from martial arts with recovery component. For example, every TIMA class has a theme. One theme is Redirection. Redirection is utilized in martial arts to block or avoid attacks. In recovery from trauma, we often have to redirect our self talk, our goals, our relationships, etc… In TIMA we connect those things to help regain power in our bodies, in our lives and to work on developing a mind-body connection. I do want to make it clear that TIMA is a martial arts program and we do not talk about or discuss our specific traumas. While TIMA does not substitute for treatment, it has been designed as an adjunct with treatment to help individuals achieve the overall goals of – Empowering others to: Find Your Personal Power, Find Your Voice, and Build Community!
What sets Us Apart? I didn’t just start a business to teach martial arts or to help people recover from trauma. It IS my passion to teach martial arts and help people recover from trauma!
TIMA’s President and Founder LeeAnn is a clinical social worker with over 18 years of experience. She earned a master’s degree in social work-University of Cincinnati, College of Applied Science in 2002, a bachelor’s degree in psychology-University of Southern Indiana in 1999, and a bachelor’s degree in music performance (voice)-Murray State University 1992.
She has extensive experience working in inpatient, outpatient, residential, emergency psychiatry, community mental health, and forensic settings. She is a trained mental health trauma responder who specializes in trauma treatment, dual diagnosis, severe mental illness and postpartum issues.
As an experienced clinical director of psychotherapy, she has successfully developed integrated behavioral health and substance use treatment programs and led the team at Alternative Interventions for Women, which earned the SAMHSA Science to Service Award. She is currently a Regional Clinical Director who runs outpatient psychotherapy services. LeeAnn focuses not only on serving individuals but also her community. She has served as an adjunct professor for the University of Cincinnati School of Social Work, has published research in the areas of dual diagnosis and welfare reform, and serves as an expert mental health content speaker to the community. She has appeared as a guest speaker both in person and on numerous podcasts featuring both mental health-related topics and trauma-informed martial arts.
LeeAnn is also a Certified Instructor and 4th Degree Blackbelt with the Maududo Federation. She is a current and 4-time Maududo Grand Champion, the current Ultimate Grand Champion, and was awarded Instructor of the Year 2019. She has competed at the national level in the World Karate and Kickboxing Commission.
In 2021 LeeAnn began combining her passions of helping people recover from trauma with martial arts to found this Trauma-Informed Martial Arts, TIMA program. Classes started in 2022 and have hit the ground running.
What quality or characteristic do you feel is most important to your success?
That we pledge to boldly deliver our services while showing:
- Integrity
- Humility
- Courage
- Empowerment
- Compassion
Pricing:
- $99 per 8-week session
Contact Info:
- Instagram: TIMACincinnati
- Facebook: Trauma-Informed Martial Arts https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100086214147917&mibextid=LQQJ4d
Image Credits
Julia Woods
