“If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude” (Maya Angelou). Optimism is a significant component of sense of coherence as it relates to a general sense that all things will work out and a reasonably expectation that the future will turn out favourably because of a sense of control … Read more
Aligning with trauma informed practice principles, choice is a luxury for many. When we come to a challenge with confidence, enthusiasm, and optimism (high sense of coherence), we have a greater ability to view stimuli objectively and are more likely act in ways that are congruent with our values and goals. When we come to … Read more
A recent meta-analysis of over 40,000 college students from North America and the United Kingdom found that perfectionism, whether self/socially/or other prescribed is on the rise, especially among our younger generations (Curran & Hill, 2019). Societal pressures are further compounded by professions with idealized standards imbedded in their culture, setting an unsustainably high bar for … Read more
Using EMDR, CBT, and other exposure techniques (on our own or with another) to reduce stress When we fall into states of fight-flight or freeze, we cannot objectively work through difficult thoughts and resulting emotions, often leaving them unresolved, fuelling the same old cyclical event-response behaviour. However, the theory behind exposure therapy is that by … Read more
Kristin Neff, a seminal researcher on Self-Compassion, developed a short and affirming exercise called the self-compassion break (2019) and it is a favourite of mine. For this adapted exercise, you begin by closing your eyes and recalling a person or event that is triggering a stress response. Focus on the situation, engaging your heart and … Read more
… like a diamond, pressed down time and time again, until all that is left is a powerful gem, shining for all the world to see. May you take this journey, fully and deeply realizing that the path that led you to today, the suffering you continue to feel, is no longer a threat to … Read more
Follow the Clues: Anxiety and Depression Between unresolved trauma and biological imbalances, dropping into the inner space to self-soothe can be too painful, making it difficult, and for some even impossible, without an intervention. We all have unique needs. Some people may resolve much of their anxiety and depression by removing the the emotional charge … Read more
The in-person gatherings of the Roots to Thrive program take place of the ancestral and unceded territory of the Snuneymuxw First Nation at the Hulit Lelum (Health Centre), and also on the homelands of the Coast Salish, Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw and Nuučaan̓ułʔatḥ (Nuu-chah-nulth) Peoples.
Integral to Roots to Thrive’s approach to healing, re-connection and remembering who we are, are these Guiding Principles. By embodying these principles we intend to honour and give thanks to the Snuneymuxw and all First Nations, the teachings they carry and lands they steward, and to join in working for Truth and Reconciliation.
