Each week I post an update called Tuning In on what I'm up to and ideas for grounding, connection, and discovering vitality in your life. Most of the links on this post are informational only, but a few are affiliate links that help me keep up my website. 

Events:
October 26th is National Pumpkin Day 
October 28th is National Chocolate Day and National First Responders Day 
October 29th is National Cat Day 
October 30th is Candy Corn Day 
October 31st is Halloween 
October is Adopt a Shelter Dog Month, LGBT History Month, National ADHD Awareness Month, National Book Month, National Bullying Prevention Month, National Domestic Violence Month, and Vegetarian Month 

​Ideas for Grounding: One way to ground is by using your imagination. Call to your mind things that are pleasant and calming for you: falling rain, a blooming flower, a still lake, an open window with a cool breeze, a beloved pet, a waterfall. Notice how long you are able to stay with the image, you will likely move in and out of it. Notice the impact of the image on muscle tension, the breath, and your connection with the ground through your feet or sit bones. 

Ideas for Connection: Halloween is one of the best holidays for connection. We get to dress up and become someone else for a day. It's a day that gives us permission to act out of social norms and feel a little more free. My Halloween plans are simple--sitting on my front porch and watching children grab candy from a bowl on the stoop a safe distance away. This will be the most interaction I've had with my neighbors in many months. I'm looking forward to feeling more connected to the neighborhood. 
​
Ideas for Creating Vitality: Why should children have all the fun on Halloween? What are some ways adults can get into the spirit and create vitality? I'll leave that up to you, but the options are unlimited. Personally, I like to eat candy corn (see meme below), go to a pumpkin patch, and watch Ghost Adventures. 

Why grounding, connection, and vitality? Because these are the ways we regulate the nervous system. Spending intentional time in a regulated state allows our nervous system to wire in the direction of safety and aliveness. In other words, it's a big piece of the puzzle of how we repair the survival response of trauma.

What I'm Reading Related for Therapy: What Happened to You? Conversations on Trauma, Resilience, and Healing by Bruce D. Perry, MD, PhD & Oprah Winfrey

"Oprah Winfrey and renowned brain development and trauma expert Dr. Bruce Perry discuss the impact of trauma and adversity and how healing must begin with a shift to asking 'What happened to you?' rather than 'What's wrong with you?'" 

Relational and Body-Centered Practices for Healing Trauma: Lifting the Burdens of the Past by Sharon Stanley 

My Somatic Transformation consultation group is re-reading this book and doing a study group. Every time I pick up this book, I discover something new. 

What I'm Reading for Fun: The Bowl of Light by Hank Wesselman, PhD. 

"Ancestral Wisdom from a Hawaiian Shaman." 

(I'm a proud member of the sloth reading club, so what I'm reading will not change weekly.) ​

TV Show or Movie I'm Watching: Ghost Adventures on Discovery+

Song on Repeat: "Changes" by David Bowie 
​​
Projects I'm Working On: Self-development book on trauma and worthiness, book of poetry, ongoing content for various publications. Considering next steps in career training—psychedelic assisted therapy, biblio/poetry therapy training, or yoga teacher training. 

Poem: 

A Song on the Water
by Thomas Lovell Beddoes 
​
                      I.
As mad sexton’s bell, tolling
          For earth’s loveliest daughter,
Night’s dumbness breaks rolling
               Ghostily:
   So our boat breaks the water
               Witchingly.
                      II.
As her look the dream troubles
          Of her tearful-eyed lover,
So our sails in the bubbles
               Ghostily
   Are mirrored, and hover
               Moonily.

Meme of the Week:

​Quote of the Week: "Every bit of darkness is only for now. The light always wins." - Stephen Colbert
​
​I'd love to hear how you are grounding, connecting, and creating vitality. What is helping you feel calm and alive? Or comment below on what books, podcasts, songs, shows, poetry, or quotes are resonating with you right now. 

Each week I post an update called Tuning In on what I'm up to and ideas for grounding, connection, and discovering vitality in your life. Most of the links on this post are informational only, but a few are affiliate links that help me keep up my website. 

Events:
Facilitating: Living with Cystinosis Web-Based Support Group, Tuesday October 19th, 2021 at 4pm PST
October is Adopt a Shelter Dog Month, LGBT History Month, National ADHD Awareness Month, National Book Month, National Bullying Prevention Month, National Domestic Violence Month, and Vegetarian Month 

Ideas for Grounding: Recently my husband Zach joked that our dog Scooter and I have a lot in common—we both like to go to our neighborhood coffee shop every day. In that moment I realized that humans and dogs thrive on routine. I love going to the coffee shop in the mornings, because it helps ground me in my day.

Ideas for Connection: Have you noticed lately that most of what we talk about with people is what we're streaming on TV? Then sometimes there's that twinge of guilt, like we should be talking about something else. I say lean into it. There are amazing things to watch and talking about it with others is a wonderful way to connect. It's one of the best ways to find out about new things to watch. My friends and I intentionally leave time to talk about what we're streaming during our video chats. 
​
Ideas for Creating Vitality: Have you visited an apple orchard or pumpkin patch yet? They are full of vitality and excitement for fall. It's something that comes around only once a year, so take advantage of the energy around it to lift your spirits.  

Why grounding, connection, and vitality? Because these are the ways we regulate the nervous system. Spending intentional time in a regulated state allows our nervous system to wire in the direction of safety and aliveness. In other words, it's a big piece of the puzzle of how we repair the survival response of trauma.

Poem: 

At the Threshold
by Gunilla Norris

Stand at the kitchen door with me. 
Honor the heart of transformation. 
Honor your own heart
where everything is 
always changing. 
It is the very same dwelling. 

Pause at the door. 
Your heart needs this. 
My heart needs this time 
for recognition or it will go astray. 
It will forget to reach for 
its real joy...its true becoming. 

Pause at the door. 
This is good and necessary
for this is every room.
The world lives here. 
Pausing each day helps us know
nothing is outside of us. 

Honor that heart that can feel
the joy and the terror of
the world in you and in me. 
Only what is truly human
can walk this path, walk though 
and be constant. Bow to that heart. 

Hold my hand. I need you for courage. 
We become who we are together, 
each needing the other. Alone is a myth. 
The path leads through this door. 
I cannot go to the kitchen without you. 
Let us enter together.  
​
Meme of the Week:

Quote of the Week: "People who need help sometimes look a lot like people who don't need help." - Glennon Doyle

​I'd love to hear how you are grounding, connecting, and creating vitality. What is helping you feel calm and alive? Or comment below on what books, podcasts, songs, shows, poetry, or quotes are resonating with you right now. ​

Each week I post an update called Tuning In on what I'm up to and ideas for grounding, connection, and discovering vitality in your life. Most of the links on this post are informational only, but a few are affiliate links that help me keep up my website. 

Events:
Facilitating: Center for Chronic Illness - Living with Thyroid Eye Disease Support Group Saturday, October 16th, 2021 at 9am PST
October 11th is Indigenous Peoples' Day 
​October 11th is National Coming Out Day 
October 17th is Black Poetry Day 
October is Adopt a Shelter Dog Month, LGBT History Month, National ADHD Awareness Month, National Book Month, National Bullying Prevention Month, National Domestic Violence Month, and Vegetarian Month 

Ideas for Grounding: When people are in shock they often describe themselves as feeling cold, so we want to move toward things that are warm: the sun on your face, a warm cup of tea, a heating pad, a shower or bath... What does your body feel like when it feels warm? Where in your body do you feel it?   

Ideas for Connection: Many of us live far distances from our loved ones, but there are numerous ways to communicate across the miles: phone calls, emails, texts, FaceTime, Zoom...the list goes on. Take a moment to remember all of your options and reach out when you are feeling a lack of connection. 
​
Ideas for Creating Vitality: How often do you turn on music and dance around your house? Joyful movement is a straight line between you and your innate vitality. It loosens your muscles and helps your body break free of fixed action patterns. May I suggest starting with the Britney Spears song I've included below. 

Why grounding, connection, and vitality? Because these are the ways we regulate the nervous system. Spending intentional time in a regulated state allows our nervous system to wire in the direction of safety and aliveness. In other words, it's a big piece of the puzzle of how we repair the survival response of trauma.

What I'm Reading Related for Therapy: What Happened to You? Conversations on Trauma, Resilience, and Healing by Bruce D. Perry, MD, PhD & Oprah Winfrey

"Oprah Winfrey and renowned brain development and trauma expert Dr. Bruce Perry discuss the impact of trauma and adversity and how healing must begin with a shift to asking 'What happened to you?' rather than 'What's wrong with you?'" 

Relational and Body-Centered Practices for Healing Trauma: Lifting the Burdens of the Past by Sharon Stanley 

My Somatic Transformation consultation group is re-reading this book and doing a study group. Every time I pick up this book, I discover something new. 

What I'm Reading for Fun: The Bowl of Light by Hank Wesselman, PhD. 

"Ancestral Wisdom from a Hawaiian Shaman." 

(I'm a proud member of the sloth reading club, so what I'm reading will not change weekly.) ​

TV Show or Movie I'm Watching: The Morning Show on AppleTV

Song on Repeat: "[I've Just Begun] Having My Fun" by Britney Spears 
​
Projects I'm Working On: Self-development book on trauma and worthiness, book of poetry, ongoing content for various publications. Considering next steps in career training—psychedelic assisted therapy, biblio/poetry therapy training, or yoga teacher training. ​

Poem: 

Island
Langston Hughes

Wave of sorrow,
Do not drown me now:

I see the island
Still ahead somehow.

I see the island
And its sands are fair:
​
Wave of sorrow,
Take me there.
​
Meme of the Week:

Quote of the Week: "As long as autumn lasts, I shall not have hands, canvas, and colors enough to paint the beautiful things I see." - Vincent van Gogh

​I'd love to hear how you are grounding, connecting, and creating vitality. What is helping you feel calm and alive? Or comment below on what books, podcasts, songs, shows, poetry, or quotes are resonating with you right now.  ​