For Groups
Seekers and Healers Book Club (Virtual)
Many of us are naturally inclined to be seekers, which means we tend to be attracted to personal growth and wisdom books. This thirst may mean that we buy many books but either do not read them at all or never finish them. If this is you, not to worry – I have been there too!
The Seekers and Healers Book Club is a virtual space where we come together to read and reflect in order to make meaning of our lives. A loose structure invites us to connect with a like-minded community while creating accountability. It is also a safe place to share how our own experiences relate to whatever we might be learning from the book. We bring in all parts–the things we love, the things that are challenging, what we are taking away that I want to practice in my own life. As a group, we value introspection, reflection, and safety.
Frequency: Each session of the group meets approximately four times over the course of a month to complete and discuss the entire book. Participants join based on their interest in the selected book.
Examples of past books:
- The Parenting Map by Dr. Shefali Tsabary
- The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle
- US: Getting Past You and Me by Terrence Real
- Atlas of the Heart by Brene Brown
- Fierce Self-Compassion by Kristen Neff
Sign up to be notified about the next book group. You can also join the Seekers and Healers Book Club Facebook group to learn more or suggest a book you want to read with the group.
Calling All Moms Support Group (In Person)
In this space, the goal is simple: we offer safety and support for moms at any stage of the parenting journey. Whether you are a new mom, a mom with toddlers, a mom with teenagers, or a mom to adult children, we are a listening space where you can feel held, supported, seen, and heard. No coaching, no advice. Just lots of vulnerable sharing with the safety of knowing you won’t have anyone telling you what you should or could be doing better. I find that the act of coming together in a supportive circle to share can take away the shame and isolation so often associated with being a mother. Instead of continuing to believe, “I’m the only one struggling with this,” we hear the stories of other moms who are also grappling, and we receive the gift of a new perspective, an awareness that we are not alone. Together, we revel in the opportunity to be rooted in our common humanity.
We gather in a circular structure of moms supporting moms in authentic community. In this space, we honor you for bringing in the real, the raw, the messy. Through grounding exercises, readings and open-ended sharing, we fill each other’s cups with so much compassion that we can then take the overflow and offer it generously back to ourselves and others in our daily life
when things get tough.
If the Calling All Moms Support Group is something you would like to be a part of, sign up today to be placed on the Waitlist so you can be notified next time slots are available.
Meditation (Virtual)
To those who know me, it is no secret that meditation has been the single most transformative element in my parenting journey. I was initially introduced to meditation as a treatment for postpartum anxiety and depression. At the time, my therapist suggested meditation.
To develop a routine, I made an initial commitment to myself that I would not leave my kids’ room after putting them to bed each night until I had meditated for at least two minutes. Picture me lying on the bedroom floor, both children asleep next to me, listening to a guided meditation. I felt restless and uncomfortable. My skin would literally crawl. But I somehow knew deep down that the only way to get past these feelings of discomfort would be by going through them.
Although at the time I had no knowledge that this is an important wisdom teaching, I somehow knew I just needed to keep sitting. Eventually two minutes became five, and five became ten, etc. Over time, as I continued to sit with the discomfort, it naturally began to dissipate. Later I
learned to replace the judgmental thoughts with self-compassion, which helped me soften into my sitting practice and continue to expand my capacity to be with my discomfort.
There are still days when I sit in meditation and my mind races the entire time. On these days, I remind myself that it is the act of sitting still that matters. If I have just one moment, just one breath of mindfulness during the entire session, it’s one more moment, one more breath of presence than I had before. And it reminds me that I am worthy of sitting down. That in and of itself is enough. Each moment builds on the last, adding up to create a sizable ripple effect on my life, ultimately changing the way I show up in my parenting, in my relationships, and with myself.
I often hear people say, “My mind just doesn’t stop. That’s how I know meditation just isn’t for me.” Today, I understand that this is not abnormal – we are all thinking beings. And the point of meditation is not to stop thinking. The point is to become an observer of the thoughts.
I like to think of it this way: if we travel the same road every day from work to home, but we’re always in a car, we just pass by, getting from point A to point B really quickly, without noticing what we might find along the way. But if we walk this same path regularly, we may begin to notice daily, incremental changes in our environment. This helps us become more present to what is already here, to recognize that between the stimulus and response, there is a space. Mindfulness and meditation can help us expand that space between the stimulus and the response so we can choose to respond instead of react.
Today, I teach meditation practices that people can use in their daily lives to cultivate mindfulness and compassion and awareness — what I call mindful self-compassion. My meditation practices are influenced by Tara Brach, Kristin Neff, Chris Germer, and other wisdom teachers.
Sign up to be notified about my next meditation offering.