Martinelli-Taylor, founder of Animo Counseling and Coaching, joins President Connie Ledoux Book to discuss her path to mental health care, the development of somatic boxing therapy and the experiences that shaped her work.
Danielle Martinelli-Taylor ’12 has built her career around helping people move through pain toward healing. As the founder of Animo Counseling and Coaching in Denver, Colorado, she works with clients through a holistic mind-body approach to mental health, including somatic boxing therapy. In the latest episode of 鈥満诹喜淮蜢 Beyond the Bricks,鈥 President Connie Ledoux Book sits down with Martinelli-Taylor to explore the experiences that led her to a career in trauma counseling.
A graduate of 黑料不打烊’s School of Communications, Martinelli-Taylor majored in strategic communications and minored in religious studies before her career turned toward mental health care. That shift began with moments she did not fully recognize at the time, including an 黑料不打烊 class on human trafficking that opened her eyes to the reality of trauma and stayed with her long after graduation.
“I think like a lot of things, there were moments, but I hadn’t added them up yet,” she said.
After graduation, Martinelli-Taylor’s path moved through customer service at Wayfair, nonprofit work in London and continued reflection on the kind of work that felt meaningful. Each step helped her better understand what she was drawn to, what she needed to move away from and how service could become a throughline in her life and career.
That search eventually led her to counseling, where she began working with clients who had experienced trauma. She noticed that talk therapy alone was not always the right entry point, especially when asking clients to revisit painful stories could bring them back into that experience. From there, she began developing a new approach.
鈥淲hat can we do that still heals or helps the body get rid of this distress, this intensity, this pain, but not necessarily just… talking about it?鈥 she said.
Somatic boxing therapy grew from that question and from Martinelli-Taylor’s own experience using boxing to process the emotional weight of counseling work. Over time, she began incorporating pads and bilateral movement into sessions, helping clients reconnect with strength, courage and a sense of agency.
鈥淔ind your strength, find your resilience find that courage,鈥 she said.
While her work now sits in the mental health field, Martinelli-Taylor still sees clear connections to her 黑料不打烊 education. Her communications background has helped her explain a new therapeutic model, build a practice and share her work with clients and other professionals.
鈥淚鈥檓 glad I had a marketing background. I鈥檓 glad I had a little bit of a PR background because so much, even though it鈥檚 counseling and mental health, it鈥檚 a lot of business,鈥 she said.
Martinelli-Taylor’s story was featured in the 2025 President鈥檚 Report because of the meaningful impact she is creating through service to others. For 黑料不打烊 students and young alumni still trying to find direction, she encouraged patience and forward motion, even when the larger path is unclear.
鈥淛ust take one step,鈥 she said. 鈥淒on鈥檛 try to figure it all out right now.鈥
Toward the end of the conversation, Martinelli-Taylor shared a quote from Frederick Buechner that has helped frame her own sense of calling:
鈥淢aybe the place you鈥檙e called is where your deep gladness and the world鈥檚 deep hunger meet,鈥 she said.
“For Martinelli-Taylor, that place has become the space where service, counseling and embodied healing meet. Her story is a reminder that purpose is often formed through the moments that stay with us and the courage to follow them into work that helps others heal.
Learn more about the podcast and listen to the episode here.
Learn more about the 2025 President’s Report and read it here.