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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 - Parenting Cystinosis Web-Based Support Group, Tuesday September 21st, 2021 at 2:30pm PST, Living with Cystinosis Web-Based Support Group, Tuesday September 21st, 2021 at 4pm PST September 22nd, 2021 - Autumnal Equinox (first day of fall) September 26th, 2021 - National Pancake Day September is National Suicide Awareness Month and National Self-Care Awareness Month Ideas for Grounding: This Tweet (below) spoke to me. Mindfulness and grounding are interconnected. We can't have one without the other. Something was can do to encourage mindfulness is to learn to identify when our brain is filling in the blanks. These are the stories we tell ourselves; they are always incomplete and almost always untrue. Identify what you actually know about the situation and what parts of the picture you are painting for yourself. Do this in a loving way, as this is an automatic process and not something you are doing on purpose. Overtime this will become a skill you can use to help ground yourself in what you really know.
Ideas for Connection: As we know, many people adopted pets during the past year and a half, because they were searching for additional connection in a time of isolation. Our connection with our animals is undeniable and one of the greatest resources we have for connection. In your extra moments this week, love on your pets. Notice how your feel when you give them extra belly rubs or stay sitting a little longer when they curl up next to you. 
Scooter after he got stuck in the couch
Ideas for Creating Vitality: It's a sunny fall day today in Seattle. We won't have many more like this before the rainy season. The sun is an instant source of vitality for our nervous systems. If you are able, spend a few minutes outside today. Remember, when you lack vitality, it can be difficult to go outside. Instead, find a sunny spot in your home, or spend a few minutes looking outside and notice how the sun illuminates all the colors. 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. 
Great Blue Heron at low tide in Puget Sound
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 Last Season by Eric Blehm "Randy Morgenson was legendary for finding people missing in the High Sierra. Then one day he went missing himself." (I'm a proud member of the sloth reading club, so what I'm reading will not change weekly.) Song on Repeat: "Fire and Rain" by James Taylor TV Show or Movie I'm Watching: The Great British Baking Show 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. 
Lincoln Park in West Seattle
Poetry: My close friend died a week ago today from COVID-19. She had just turned 40 years old. This poem is dedicated to her. On the Death of the Beloved by John O'Donohue Though we need to weep your loss, You dwell in that safe place in our hearts, Where no storm or night or pain can reach you. Your love was like the dawn Brightening over our lives Awakening beneath the dark A further adventure of colour. The sound of your voice Found for us A new music That brightened everything. Whatever you enfolded in your gaze Quickened in the joy of its being; You placed smiles like flowers On the altar of the heart. Your mind always sparkled With wonder at things. Though your days here were brief, Your spirit was live, awake, complete. We look towards each other no longer From the old distance of our names; Now you dwell inside the rhythm of breath, As close to us as we are to ourselves. Though we cannot see you with outward eyes, We know our soul's gaze is upon your face, Smiling back at us from within everything To which we bring our best refinement. Let us not look for you only in memory, Where we would grow lonely without you. You would want us to find you in presence, Beside us when beauty brightens, When kindness glows And music echoes eternal tones. When orchids brighten the earth, Darkest winter has turned to spring; May this dark grief flower with hope In every heart that loves you. May you continue to inspire us: To enter each day with a generous heart. To serve the call of courage and love Until we see your beautiful face again In that land where there is no more separation, Where all tears will be wiped from our mind, And where we will never lose you again. Meme of the Week: 
Quote that is Inspiring Me: "We don't have to do all of it alone. We were never meant to." - Brené Brown 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.
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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, September 18th, 2021 at 9am PST September 15th, 2021 - First Day of Hispanic Heritage Month September 18th, 2021 - Puppy Mill Awareness Day September is National Suicide Awareness Month and National Self-Care Awareness Month Ideas for Grounding: Have you heard of the Transformational Touch Technique? Neither had I. It was created by life coach, Cynthia Garcia (I wanted to give her credit even though I couldn't find any links to her online). I did find this video of Amber Stewart walking us through the steps. I tried it and found it to be calming and a good exercise for down regulation when feeling activated. Ideas for Connection: As the pandemic continues we can continue to feel isolated. But that pandemic has also increased the number of support groups that are available online. If this is something you think you may be interested in, check out the platform Hey Peers. The majority of the groups are for people with chronic illness or mental health issues. I facilitate groups provided by the Center for Chronic Illness, which are all led by professionals. I can't vouch for the groups not affiliated with CCI, but wanted to share as a potential resource. Ideas for Creating Vitality: A good word to think about when wanting to increase vitality is "novelty." Going to new places, doing new things, or even trying a new hair color stimulates the brain. Even if it is something that is just slightly unfamiliar, like driving down a different street, we can create vitality through novelty. There are unlimited things to experience in this world, so there is always an opportunity to try something new. 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.  "Luna Girls" statue by Lezlie Jane in Seacrest Park, West Seattle 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 Last Season by Eric Blehm "Randy Morgenson was legendary for finding people missing in the High Sierra. Then one day he went missing himself." (I'm a proud member of the sloth reading club, so what I'm reading will not change weekly.) Song on Repeat: "How Far I'll Go" by Auli'i Cravalho (from Disney's Moana) TV Show or Movie I'm Watching: Ted Lasso on Apple TV 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.  Seacrest Ferry Dock in West Seattle Poetry: Invisible Work by Alison Luterman Because no one could ever praise me enough, because I don't mean these poems only but the unseen unbelievable effort it takes to live the life that goes on between them, I think all the time about invisible work. About the young mother on Welfare I interviewed years ago, who said, "It's hard. You bring him to the park, run rings around yourself keeping him safe, cut hot dogs into bite-sized pieces for dinner, and there's no one to say what a good job you're doing, how you were patient and loving for the thousandth time even though you had a headache." And I, who am used to feeling sorry for myself because I am lonely, when all the while, as the Chippewa poem says, I am being carried by great winds across the sky, thought of the invisible work that stitches up the world day and night, the slow, unglamorous work of healing, the way worms in the garden tunnel ceaselessly so the earth can breathe and bees ransack this world into being, while owls and poets stalk shadows, our loneliest labors under the moon. There are mothers for everything, and the sea is a mother too, whispering and whispering to us long after we have stopped listening. I stopped and let myself lean a moment, against the blue shoulder of the air. The work of my heart is the work of the world's heart. There is no other art. Meme of the Week:  Quote that is Inspiring Me: "The body knows things a long time before the mind catches up to them." - Sue Monk Kidd 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 - Web-Based Rare Chronic Illness Support Group September 7th, 2021 at 4pm PST Attending: The Clinician's Suicide Prevention Summit September 9th & 10th, 2021 September 6th, 2021 - Labor Day September is National Suicide Awareness Month and National Self-Care Awareness Month Ideas for Grounding: Grounding is about slowing down and settling your body. It is about connecting to yourself and to the earth. Something that helps me ground is watching videos of orca whales surfacing and diving in the water. They move with a slow rhythm and watching them can help our bodies connect to that rhythm ourselves. Give it a try with these amazing orcas in British Columbia. Ideas for Connection: During this pandemic we have lost our casual daily encounters with our baristas, grocery workers, and neighbors. We used to allow our dog to meet other dogs in the neighborhood and it helped us interact more with our neighbors, now we cross the street to keep everyone safe. Little did we know how important those encounters were until we didn't have them anymore. If it is safe for you, try to find ways to have more casual connections in your day. Ideas for Creating Vitality: I recently stumbled upon this quote from Thich Nhat Hahn, "Even the air we breathe can be a source of joy." I have always thought of the breath as a source of grounding and down-regulation, but reading this helped me understand it can also be a source of up-regulation and vitality. If you are feeling low energy or low mood, try stepping outside and taking a few breaths of fresh air and notice if it creates any vitality in your nervous system. 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.  Constellation Park in West Seattle 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?'" What I'm Reading for Fun: The Last Season by Eric Blehm "Randy Morgenson was legendary for finding people missing in the High Sierra. Then one day he went missing himself." (I'm a proud member of the sloth reading club, so what I'm reading will not change weekly.) Podcast Episode with Impact: (Trigger Warning: Suicide) TedX Shorts "How I advocate for missing and murdered Indigenous women" Song on Repeat: "Feeling Good" by Nina Simone TV Show or Movie I'm Watching: The Other Two on HBO Max 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.  Constellation Park in West Seattle Poetry: The Cure by Albert Huffstickler We think we get over things. We don’t get over things. Or say, we get over the measles but not a broken heart. We need to make that distinction. The things that become part of our experience never become less a part of our experience. How can I say it? The way to "get over: a life is to die. Short of that, you move with it, let the pain be pain, not in the hope that it will vanish but in the faith that it will fit in, find its place in the shape of things and be then not any less pain but true to form. Because anything natural has an inherent shape and will flow towards it. And a life is as natural as a leaf. That’s what we’re looking for: not the end of a thing but the shape of it. Wisdom is seeing the shape of your life without obliterating (getting over) a single instant of it. Meme of the Week:  Quote that is Inspiring Me: "Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished." - Lao Tzu 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. |
WelcomeI'm Kerry (She/Her/Hers) and I am a licensed therapist, writer & speaker. This is a positive space focused on how to thrive in any situation and the transformative power of suffering. 
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