The Potency of Group Process
Before I launch into this week’s inquiry, I wanted to take a moment to acknowledge that these times are like nothing that many of us have lived through before. My 77-year-old passionate mother, who fought hard in her younger years for equality, has referenced the 60s often, yet continuously is in awe as to what is unfolding today…stating that she has never seen or experienced anything like what we are navigating now.
No matter what you believe, how you respond, or the choices you make in these times—remember to offer one another grace. Remember our shared humanness. We are all finding our way through and navigating the weight and complexity of this unfolding.
We all may fumble and fall in moments, say things that we may regret, collapse and feel overwhelmed…I often say that sometimes we “forget to remember”. Meaning that we can lose our center and do or say things that are out of alignment in moments and that in the repair of whatever it may be, we remember who we are and come back into our aligned and upright selves.
Over time, and with deepening awareness, we begin to come back into alignment more rapidly as the misalignment feels so icky.
All this to say, this is a moment to give ourselves grace and each other the same…to pour on the empathy, compassion, acceptance, and love. And, to remember this is foreign territory for so many (if not all!).
Self- accountability. Repair. Apologize. Aligned action.
The Potency of Group Process
Today I wanted to highlight the group process and why I am so passionate about it. Why I believe that it is essential to our collective healing, and why it is a foundational aspect of all the programs that I run.
When we sit in safe, accepting circles of women we have the opportunity to shed layers of shame, drop our armor, soften and open our hearts, and feel what it feels like to be seen and heard for exactly who we are.
This is quite foreign to many.
Here is a snippet from a past retreat participant about her experience sitting in the circles with fellow women:
“This retreat was truly a sacred experience. It’s difficult to establish the kind of trust cultivated in our women’s circle over a short period of time, and Alison created immediate safety to dive heart first, into vulnerability. I am armed with greater self-confidence and feel more comfortable than ever before to be my authentic self.” ~K.T.
When we resource ourselves in our bodies, allow our nervous systems to settle, and share with vulnerability in a safe circle of women, we can release generational trauma that so many women carry around being visible and accepted by our fellow women.
We can show up in our messy and vulnerable selves and feel loved and accepted for the whole of who we are.
Personally, I first experienced the potency of women’s circles in my early 20s while in a treatment center. As someone who had been on a solitary journey thus far in my life, sharing my deepest and darkest stories and challenges with witness and without judgment, gave me access to a deeply important layer of myself and my healing.
It was as if I was able to clear some imbedded cobwebs of my heart, my spirit, my soul, and, of course, my body, in those moments of being able to exhale and be REAL.
The group process and witness enhance our lives and healing in profound ways. Mixed into a retreat setting, our experience is magnified.
I have 2 more retreats on the calendar for 2025. Both will have their own magic in group process. If you are interested, let’s connect!
One thing I know for certain, in midst of so much uncertainty, is that we have to keep living our lives.
We must keep creating the opportunities to rest and reconnect, to nourish and heal, to soften and open our hearts, and to be in conscious and aligned community.
You are welcome here.
Sending unwavering love, care, respect, and faith near and far. I am always out here for support and/or connection.
Take good care of yourselves and be kind to each other.