Extending the invitation

Today feels like the day to revisit this Oriah Mountain Dreamer poem I've loved for years, so I've posted it below. Authentic connection and being truly present with another person is what I love the very most about my career as a therapist -- that is the purpose of this work I feel so honored to do.

The Invitation    

It doesn’t interest me what you do for a living. 
I want to knowwhat you ache for
and if you dare to dream
of meeting your heart’s longing.

It doesn’t interest me
how old you are.
I want to know 
if you will risk 
looking like a fool
for love
for your dream
for the adventure of being alive.

It doesn’t interest me
what planets are 
squaring your moon...
I want to know
if you have touched
the centre of your own sorrow
if you have been opened
by life’s betrayals
or have become shrivelled and closed
from fear of further pain.

I want to know
if you can sit with pain
mine or your own
without moving to hide it
or fade it
or fix it.

I want to know
if you can be with joy
mine or your own
if you can dance with wildness
and let the ecstasy fill you 
to the tips of your fingers and toes
without cautioning us
to be careful
to be realistic
to remember the limitations
of being human.

It doesn’t interest me
if the story you are telling me
is true.
I want to know if you can
disappoint another
to be true to yourself.
If you can bear
the accusation of betrayal
and not betray your own soul.
If you can be faithless
and therefore trustworthy.

I want to know if you can see Beauty
even when it is not pretty
every day.
And if you can source your own life
from its presence.

I want to know
if you can live with failure
yours and mine
and still stand at the edge of the lake
and shout to the silver of the full moon,
“Yes.”

It doesn’t interest me
to know where you live
or how much money you have.
I want to know if you can get up
after the night of grief and despair
weary and bruised to the bone
and do what needs to be done
to feed the children.

It doesn’t interest me
who you know
or how you came to be here.
I want to know if you will stand
in the centre of the fire
with me
and not shrink back.

It doesn’t interest me
where or what or with whom
you have studied.
I want to know 
what sustains you
from the inside
when all else falls away.

I want to know
if you can be alone 
with yourself
and if you truly like
the company you keep
in the empty moments.

~by Oriah Mountain Dreamer

The many varied expressions of art therapy

ATAbloghop

Throughout the month of June, the Art Therapy Alliance is featuring a different art therapist each day in a blog hop. I am so honored to be included among such inspirational healing arts professionals, as today is my day to be highlighted. Please visit the Facebook page for my practice, if you've not already done so, as I post daily inspirations and relevant articles, as well as updates on my offerings.

Please do follow along on the "hop" to learn more about 30 different and beautiful expressions of art therapy around the country and world. Let's celebrate this profound healing modality and so many of my awesome colleagues!

Pema Chödrön's Commencement Speech at Naropa (my alma mater)

Graduation season is upon us, which always reminds me of the fact that the word "alma mater" translates as "nourishing mother." Doesn't graduating in some way feel like leaving a safe womb and going out into the world on one's own? When I graduated from Naropa University with my Masters degree in transpersonal psychotherapy and art therapy, I certainly felt like I was leaving a protective and nurturing space and bringing all I had gathered there to share with the greater community. It's fitting that this year's graduation ceremony at Naropa University takes place on Saturday, May 10, the day before mothers' day. The commencement address will be given by Pema Chödrön. Naropa will be live streaming the speech, so visit this link and sign up to watch.

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Naropa University is a unique and amazing place for contemplative education. If you're unfamiliar with the way education is offered at Naropa, watch the quick video below for a taste.

Video streaming by Ustream

"To be fully alive, fully human, and completely awake is to continually be thrown out of the nest." -Pema Chödrön

New ways to think about self-care

With the first series of my self-care for therapists group now complete, I'd like to share our diagram where we brainstormed both tried-and-true and brand new ways we can honor the self:

Some of the phrases the group used to define self care included "honoring the self," "refilling the well," and "making time and space to be mindful of my parts." (You can see these around the center of the drawing, on the green petals.)

The image above contains collective wisdom about the ways many of us may already be working self-care into our lives, and it also contains ideas that might be new to you for considering how you might refuel and practice gentleness and kindness with yourself.

We looked at how we can offer ourselves care in the following categories, and I've listed just a few examples below:

Physical

• sleep/naps
• exercise (running, yoga...)
• diet/nutrition (gut health, eating breakfast...)
• self-pampering (massage, spa day...)
• medical care (regular check-ups, bodywork, natural supplements...)

Emotional

• therapy (self-study, self-inquiry)
• art (can also be physical, spiritual, and social!)
• writing (creative writing, journaling...)
• alone time
• travel

Social

• spending time with loved ones
• setting healthy boundaries
• community involvement
• picking up a new hobby

Spiritual

• daily  practice (mindfulness, prayer, meditation, ritual...)
• retreats
• energy work
• spending time in nature

Spatial

• declutter your space
• creating a sacred space at home (altar, resting place...)
• fresh flowers/plants and natural light
• playing music you love
• memorabilia or photos that are reminders of joy
• choosing clothes you feel good wearing

In discussing how therapists can honor their therapist selves around their work day, I presented ideas surrounding client sessions. For example, we covered:

• how therapists/healers might prepare for their work day (physically, spatially, mentally, spiritually)
• how therapists can honor (and not abandon) themselves during therapy sessions, and
• how therapists can cleanse, refuel, and honor themselves after their work day

Notes on these can be seen on the left side of the diagram above; however, it is important to create rituals that are personal and unique to you.

In my private practice, many of my clients are other therapists, therapy graduate students and interns, healers, and caregivers who wish to create personalized, sustainable ways of making self care part of their daily rituals. If you'd like to connect with me for a free 20-minute consultation to see if I may be able to help you, please contact me.

I plan to offer a similar group later this year, most likely in autumn. Stay tuned to find out when by signing up for my e-newsletter (over there in the right column) and by following me on Facebook and/or Twitter.

Self-care group for therapy interns & students

It is with great excitement that I announce a new offering: I'm gathering  a group of psychotherapy graduate students and interns for a nurturing, supportive, small group to discover ways to honor the self and to refuel. In the group, we will cover topics such as:

• the therapist identity
• empathy fatigue/compassion fatigue and burnout
• using mindfulness in the therapist chair
• ways to bring more self-care into our life and workday

In each session, participants will engage in art, journaling, and mindfulness exercises.

Details:

When?     Four Wednesday Evenings | March 12, 19, 26, April 2 | 7 - 8:30pm

Where?    Living Arts Center, 2680 Bayshore Pkwy, Suite 101, Mountain View

How much?     $185 for the series(includes art materials)

Interested?     Contact Jen.

Please feel free to share this blog post if you know of a psychotherapy graduate student or intern (any program or track including LPCC, MFT, PhD, PsyD, LCSW, etc.) who might benefit from this offering. To share, you can email the link to this post or share via Facebook, Twitter, etc.

To learn more about the facilitator, click the links below:

• Jen's Background
• Jen's Approach