I also want to name -- I know there will be times where I don't feel okay, where I don't feel steady. And I think this is why I am learning to really notice when steadiness is here -- to build it up as a resource for when I need it most. To feel anything at all during these times makes perfect sense and is just right. May we find our steadiness where it is; may we trust it can return when it feels far away. xx
Lisa, I'm working on a piece that essentially discusses being a therapist but not being neutral. It feels important for me to embody brave honest speech while aligning with the social justice that calls to my heart. I can hold space for diverse experience, very well. And... and.. I don't need to hide who I am and what I believe. If you have thoughts on this, i'd be curious.
Goodness, so much to say about this (it could be a whole book on its own!). I've never been neutral or a blank slate therapist -- mostly because of my values, but also because it feels impossible. I feel there is so much space to share who we are and what we stand for, while also staying rooted in compassion and curiosity. Folks get to choose who they align with, and that includes practitioners. Decolonizing Therapy by Dr. Jennifer Mullan explores this deeply, as do many feminist models of therapy, which I draw from in my work. I have much more to say but this is what I have for now -- perhaps I'll write more about this soon. xx
Thank you! Appreciate this and find your words confirming. Mmmm a book on its own, feeling that. And Decolonizing Therapy has been on my list for some time. Ah, the challenges of reading actual books while raising a toddler with another on the way ;-) Two pages and I'm asleep! xo
Thank you for this beautiful piece and offering. I felt more resourced just reading about your steadiness, all the ways you feel like an adult. The intimacy of the way I felt brought along, I could feel both my steadiness and weariness which immediately pointed to where to practice, to what I need. I appreciate you and your transmission here.
yes, all of this is so resonant. thank you so much for sharing your truths. (and all the resources—i loved the embodiment practice). grateful to be connecting creative, courageous souls in this moment of time. 🦋
Same. I wondered why I didn't feel so bad. Maybe stunned? I really think it had to do with all the work I have done, using the tools that I have learned in therapy. And I have had moments where it all hits. All your words. All the practice. <3 Hope you are feeling better!
I think for me, it isn't that I don't feel bad (I have and do -- moving through all the emotions and doing my best not to stay stuck in them); it's that I'm really recognizing all that is here *beyond" what's bad. Stunned is probably a piece, too -- I was telling my husband I wonder if/when shock will wear off and everything will come crumbling down. But to feel tethered to practice, to some point of solid ground, amid everything... feels like an unexpected gift. Thank you for sharing your experience 🧡
I, too, feel increasingly more like an adult in touch with myself and able to handle more than before. It doesn't exactly make things easier, but it makes them much richer and makes me able to be more present for them.
This has been such a common thread with the mothers I work with and within myself. Being able to be with what is in all its fullness even when we don’t know or can’t control the outcome. It’s an ongoing practice isn’t it. Thank you for your words on this ❤️
This is magical thank you. I love to practice. I teach somatic movement, dance and meditation and we teach that the practise is so that we can participate not escape. It’s so we can continue to create capacity and more fluidity to allow all that it, including the hard stuff. This has changed my whole way of being and your words in this resonated with that. A deep recognition so thank you ❤️
When I was a kid, there was a show on – and I can’t remember the name, but it must’ve been on in the 70s, where a young girl who with her father is lost in time (maybe ? Thats the name ?) . She meets herself as an adult and learns from her the path, knowledge, courage,… She needs for the tough things ahead of her.
Even though I am 61, reading, this made me feel like the child who meets the adult she wishes to become. I’ve been with some great therapists, the last few years and waiting impatiently for the new me to emerge. Thank you for this! I also feel seen and have been reaffirmed and encouraged by this. I have always been a person who feels too deeply the emotions of others and having recently learned that it is also a response from my CPTSD, I want to learn to sit - still! - and know that it’s still OK for me to get up and fight the injustices of the world.
Lisa, your words about practice as a rehearsal for living deeply resonated with me. It's a beautiful reminder that the way we approach our daily lives, our habits, and even our responses to challenges, shapes our capacity to navigate the larger currents of life. I've been thinking a lot about how cultivating presence, even in the midst of chaos, can be a form of resistance and a pathway to deeper freedom. It's like we're building muscle memory for the soul.
I also want to name -- I know there will be times where I don't feel okay, where I don't feel steady. And I think this is why I am learning to really notice when steadiness is here -- to build it up as a resource for when I need it most. To feel anything at all during these times makes perfect sense and is just right. May we find our steadiness where it is; may we trust it can return when it feels far away. xx
Lisa, I'm working on a piece that essentially discusses being a therapist but not being neutral. It feels important for me to embody brave honest speech while aligning with the social justice that calls to my heart. I can hold space for diverse experience, very well. And... and.. I don't need to hide who I am and what I believe. If you have thoughts on this, i'd be curious.
Goodness, so much to say about this (it could be a whole book on its own!). I've never been neutral or a blank slate therapist -- mostly because of my values, but also because it feels impossible. I feel there is so much space to share who we are and what we stand for, while also staying rooted in compassion and curiosity. Folks get to choose who they align with, and that includes practitioners. Decolonizing Therapy by Dr. Jennifer Mullan explores this deeply, as do many feminist models of therapy, which I draw from in my work. I have much more to say but this is what I have for now -- perhaps I'll write more about this soon. xx
Thank you! Appreciate this and find your words confirming. Mmmm a book on its own, feeling that. And Decolonizing Therapy has been on my list for some time. Ah, the challenges of reading actual books while raising a toddler with another on the way ;-) Two pages and I'm asleep! xo
I relate so so much -- it's hard to find the time (and energy)! But just know you're not alone in the exploration 🧡
Thank you for this beautiful piece and offering. I felt more resourced just reading about your steadiness, all the ways you feel like an adult. The intimacy of the way I felt brought along, I could feel both my steadiness and weariness which immediately pointed to where to practice, to what I need. I appreciate you and your transmission here.
Thank you for this, Chela -- the steadiness and weariness, yes. Feeling them both in a dance. Always so grateful for what you share, what you give. <3
yes, all of this is so resonant. thank you so much for sharing your truths. (and all the resources—i loved the embodiment practice). grateful to be connecting creative, courageous souls in this moment of time. 🦋
So glad it resonates -- and that embodiment practice was such nourishment for me. I will definitely be returning to it. Thank you for reading <3
Gorgeous. Thank you! Deep bows of gratitude.
<3 <3 <3
Love all of this so much!
Thank you for reading 💛
Same. I wondered why I didn't feel so bad. Maybe stunned? I really think it had to do with all the work I have done, using the tools that I have learned in therapy. And I have had moments where it all hits. All your words. All the practice. <3 Hope you are feeling better!
I think for me, it isn't that I don't feel bad (I have and do -- moving through all the emotions and doing my best not to stay stuck in them); it's that I'm really recognizing all that is here *beyond" what's bad. Stunned is probably a piece, too -- I was telling my husband I wonder if/when shock will wear off and everything will come crumbling down. But to feel tethered to practice, to some point of solid ground, amid everything... feels like an unexpected gift. Thank you for sharing your experience 🧡
Thank you for reminding me of a favorite and timely poem!
Such a good one 💛
My heart is full reading this. May the forest hold you and comfort you in the clearing 🌿✨
And you, too <3
As always, your writing is such a balm. Thank you for sharing. Lots to sit with and return to here. Especially that gorgeous poem.
Thank you for reading -- so grateful. I return to that poem so often and it always renews in some way. <3
I, too, feel increasingly more like an adult in touch with myself and able to handle more than before. It doesn't exactly make things easier, but it makes them much richer and makes me able to be more present for them.
Not easier, but more present --- yes to this. So resonant.
This has been such a common thread with the mothers I work with and within myself. Being able to be with what is in all its fullness even when we don’t know or can’t control the outcome. It’s an ongoing practice isn’t it. Thank you for your words on this ❤️
This is magical thank you. I love to practice. I teach somatic movement, dance and meditation and we teach that the practise is so that we can participate not escape. It’s so we can continue to create capacity and more fluidity to allow all that it, including the hard stuff. This has changed my whole way of being and your words in this resonated with that. A deep recognition so thank you ❤️
When I was a kid, there was a show on – and I can’t remember the name, but it must’ve been on in the 70s, where a young girl who with her father is lost in time (maybe ? Thats the name ?) . She meets herself as an adult and learns from her the path, knowledge, courage,… She needs for the tough things ahead of her.
Even though I am 61, reading, this made me feel like the child who meets the adult she wishes to become. I’ve been with some great therapists, the last few years and waiting impatiently for the new me to emerge. Thank you for this! I also feel seen and have been reaffirmed and encouraged by this. I have always been a person who feels too deeply the emotions of others and having recently learned that it is also a response from my CPTSD, I want to learn to sit - still! - and know that it’s still OK for me to get up and fight the injustices of the world.
Thank you!
Lisa, your words about practice as a rehearsal for living deeply resonated with me. It's a beautiful reminder that the way we approach our daily lives, our habits, and even our responses to challenges, shapes our capacity to navigate the larger currents of life. I've been thinking a lot about how cultivating presence, even in the midst of chaos, can be a form of resistance and a pathway to deeper freedom. It's like we're building muscle memory for the soul.