No problem. In my experience leading groups for survivors, participants rarely addressed their experiences directly. Even so, there was a relief knowing that everyone in the room understood the deep, life altering impacts of being subjected to sexual violence.

Similarly, in this group, there will be mutual understanding that each individual is engaged in deeply personal healing work.

We will cultivate consent in communication founded on deep respect for the sacredness of each individual's personal process.

In many arenas of our culture the body is synonymous with sexuality. Redefining sexuality as one aspect of our embodied experiences, and recentering our body (and its lived experiences) as sacred fundamentally shifts our understanding of many, many experiences.

In other words, as women, we can be sexually objectified in any setting, be it academic, work, medical, family etc. Many valuable insights emerge when we allow ourselves to consider how sexuality has infused every dimension of our lives.

I am interested in creating spaces for our bodies' truths to tell.

Consider this quote by Maggie Turp from her essay, "Working with Body Storylines", "Body Storylines have both a history and a present reality. They stretch back far into the past, encompassing experiences of touch and movement from infancy onwards. Body Storylines encompass the pleasures and difficulties issuing from fundamental physical experiences, such as eating and sexual self-expression."

Both are welcome in this group, especially because we will not be centering traumatic experiences. Think of a garden whose land has been impacted by invasive species or whose soil is toxic - it is equally important, if not more so, to add to the soil, to add native plants and beneficial insects, to cut back other plants to allow more light in. In this same way we will be building skills, and adding resources, especially through practical, sustainable self-care practices to nourish ourselves, body, mind and spirit, thereby minimizing the impact of trauma.

I also ascribe to Diane Fosha's belief that trauma stems from "unwanted and unwilled overwhelming emotions in the face of helplessness or aloneness". Processing these experiences and their accompanying emotions in supportive relationships is the way to resolve trauma.

I believe all of our bodies hold trauma. I facilitate spaces that are designed to build participants inner-resources such as emotional-containment, inner peace and clarity. Through 1-on-1 sessions I will help participants process what comes up through our group work.

No problem, lots of people dislike groups. I have worked to develop awareness and skills to help individuals stay connected to themselves while in a group. Our virtual setting also enables women to maintain their personal space.

I created that collage in the fall of 2022 while I was working on a 7 generation genogram. When I looked 4 generations before, including my mother, my grandmothers, great grandmothers and great-great grandmothers - I counted 13 women with 71 children between them. There were no divorces, and the average number of children each woman would have had was 5.

This was meaningful to me because I only have two children, and chose to end my committed relationship with their father.

For me, words and concepts such as ancestral healing, breaking generational patterns, carried transgenerational trauma are not abstractions.

If/when there are more than 10 women interested I will begin a second group.

My intention is to develop this work to the point where I can have topic-focused groups. For example, a Sexual Memoir group where everyone in the group shares common experiences.