An Inspired Chat with Bridgit Dengel Gaspard LCSW of Brooklyn, NY

Bridgit Dengel Gaspard LCSW shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.

Hi Bridgit, thank you so much for joining us today. We’re thrilled to learn more about your journey, values and what you are currently working on. Let’s start with an ice breaker: What is something outside of work that is bringing you joy lately?
I like this question because as a psychotherapist, Voice Dialogue Senior Trainer and author, I love what I do for work. But outside of that, dancing ecstatically for a couple of hours 1-3 times a week (yes!)… and not at a club and not in my kitchen…is bringing me joy bordering on bliss! Two years ago I discovered 5Rhythms.com, actually created decades ago by Gabrielle Roth. This is not about dance technique but is a ‘movement as medicine’ practice reconnecting body, heart, mind, soul, and spirit. I take whichever class fits my schedule as every single teacher here in NYC is excellent. I’m inspired by their distinctive DJ styles and sometimes long-time 5Rhythms collaborator, the drummer, Sanga Of-The-Valley plays live with us! I encourage people to look up the juicy details themselves – there are classes in 40+ countries!

But joy is my focus here and dancing and moving has always delighted me. It’s blasting away burnout I’ve been struggling with, igniting my energy, playfulness and creativity which spills over into what I bring into my sessions with people struggling with creative blocks, anxiety, depression, relationship issues and more.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
While searching for creativity tools years ago when I was a professional performer and stand-up comic, I stumbled upon Voice Dialogue, whose premise is our healthy personality consists of many different inner selves – also called alter egos, sub-personalities, etc. Through this revolutionary technique, you literally access your different alter egos and discover their wisdom, their gift and their sting. It was developed by the Drs. Hal and Sidra Stone, who became my mentors. As I trained in this modality and witnessed the rapid and intense healing it repeatedly initiated, I shifted my focus and went back to school to become a psychotherapist.

Then, in my private practice I had an epiphany. My clients were a variety of smart, dedicated, talented people who were serious about their goals and worked hard. But when they would get 7/8 of the way there, they would mysteriously stall in front of their finish line—unable to reach their cherished goal, whether it was in career, relationships, financials, health, creativity or personal growth. I coined this failing within sight of victory, ‘The Final 8th.’ Examples abound of that last little undone bit that can plague people for years; not losing the final 5 pounds; having a great business idea with investors lined up and never finishing the business plan!; feeling ready for their life partner, dating productively, and continuing to cut things off when it becomes intimate. It’s probably familiar to many of us. You think you want your goal with every fiber of your being, but the secret is not all of you wants what you think you want—and for excellent reasons! So I wrote my book, “The Final 8th: Enlist Your Inner Selves to Accomplish Your Goals” as a step-by-step guide how to dialogue with your different alter egos and discover their wisdom and concerns. In the Final 8th process, you embrace every part of yourself when you learn that each alter ego has the noble purpose of protection. And that means every part — the Inner Critic, the Avoider, the Anxious One, the Substance User. They all have genuinely good reasons for not wanting to go to the next level. When you deal with these concerns directly, you’re able to enlist the alter ego with the precise superpower necessary to accomplish your goals! It’s invigorating.

Thanks for sharing that. Would love to go back in time and hear about how your past might have impacted who you are today. What was your earliest memory of feeling powerful?
When I played a court jester in my 6th grade play, I had no lines and yet I slayed! The only expressing I could do as the character was physical. I became enlivened when I improvisationally responded to something in the plot with my body and the audience laughed which inspired me to keep going. I felt playful, loose, free, connected, appreciated and had so much fun. I see now that my 5Rhythms practice is my adult version of this, because you can be silly, sensual, soulful and anything else on the dance floor.

Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
This is a painful question, especially because I didn’t almost give up. I gave up. It’s at the heart of my book, “The Final 8th: Enlist Your Inner Selves to Accomplish Your Goals,” because of course, I had similar stuck points that were glued tight via shame and devotion to my core negative beliefs. Long story short, when the internet was just starting to get into mainstream, I created and co-produced a cyber sit.comedy called MUDDERS, which got a lot of publicity and was great fun. It starred a single mother who competed in Monster Truck. She was surrounded by a cast of wonderful characters including her Rottweiler Mascot named Notnow. When it stalled several months later, I had the opportunity to pitch it to a large advertising agency who would have been an ideal partner to bring it to the next level. I froze. I never took that step. I didn’t do the Final 8th work of making my project viable. I stalled at the once in-a-lifetime intersection of a revolutionary new technology supporting narrative content. I retreated from my Final 8th dream created by my imagination and hard work. I gave up. Although I didn’t realize it at the time, a few parts of me were terrified of being attacked for my creative output, something that had happened throughout my life. Of course, if I’d gone ahead, MUDDERS, the first cyber sit.comedy, might have failed but that’s not the point. The point, and the thing that hurts, is that I abandoned myself and my projects. That’s why I wrote my book — to help others NOT do that. The world needs our gifts, no matter what we may have been led to believe and especially in these turbulent times.

So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. What’s a belief or project you’re committed to, no matter how long it takes?
I didn’t set out to have a lifelong commitment to the power of being able to access and embrace our different inner selves, often with competing agendas. But that’s what happened and I’m quite happy about that. In fact, I believe and support accessible wellness to such a degree I made a FREE ‘Introduction to Voice Dialogue Webinar’ which includes a step-by-step guide to facilitating your own inner selves privately and at your own pace and schedule. Please help yourself: https://www.udemy.com/user/bridgit-dengel-gaspard/ Over 1000 people have found it helpful.

Okay, so let’s keep going with one more question that means a lot to us: What do you understand deeply that most people don’t?
I seem to understand the energetics and dynamics of emotional depth, and can sense when people are cutting themselves off. As a psychotherapist I invite strong emotions and I’m comfortable with that. I try to make it safe to share vulnerability as that is the channel to healing, intimacy and connecting to one’s core positive belief (and release the FALSE negative beliefs people were told about themselves and the world.) I want to be clear: core negative beliefs are painful indictments like ‘I am not enough’, ‘I am bad/broken/unlovable,’ etc. and are NEVER true. What IS true is they believed the core negative beliefs and made decisions as if they were true (like walking away from a dream because internally they didn’t feel they deserved it.) I deeply understand that contrary to popular belief, the idea of success can be terrifying to many people — mostly unconsciously. Success issues are often hidden inside feelings of failure. We are all born with our unique blueprint, our unique essence and re-connecting to our innate positive creative appetites and impulses is the journey of embracing our extraordinariness. I am honored to be a part of that journey for myself and for others.

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