Essential Communications Skills Group Starting in 2023! This two-part workshop series starts on January 19, 2023 and will be facilitated by Diane Duan, M.A. and Antonia Jurkovic, Psy.D.. What is the Communication Skills workshop? The Communication Skills workshop is a virtual skills-building group consisting of two parts: “Speaking Your Truth” and “Difficult Conversations.” Each part […] Read more “COMMUNICATIONS ESSENTIALS & BEYOND”
Category: Mindfulness
A Conversation About Queer Mindfulness
Every Tuesday, our very own Antonia Jurkovic, Psy.D., hosts the Queer Mindfulness Drop-In Practice Group. We spoke with her recently about what this group is and how it can be a useful space for the queer community. What is the Queer Mindfulness Drop-In Practice Group?Queer mindfulness is weekly, virtual, drop-in support group where queer folks […] Read more “A Conversation About Queer Mindfulness”
And just like that, everything’s changed.
Last Tuesday, I emailed attendees who were signed up for my workshop at the end of the month, letting them know we intended to hold it. Twelve hours later, we cancelled it. We’re in a strange new reality. For most of us, it’s like nothing we’ve experienced in our lifetime. For others, this is not […] Read more “And just like that, everything’s changed.”
The Art of Noticing: Exploring Shifts in Attention
Theoretically I am a strong believer in carving out creative time. I believe as a practice, it aids in self-reflection, cultivates connection and in turn, empathy. It has the power to remind us why we live. In the last several years though, I have struggled to make time for creative expression and prioritize it as […] Read more “The Art of Noticing: Exploring Shifts in Attention”
Anchoring Rituals
Staff Favorites is a monthly installation for 2019 featuring the mental health and self care picks of our very own LifeWorks Staff. We have been highlighting books, self-soothing items, blogs/instagrams, places to move your body around Chicago, and more — all personally endorsed by LifeWorks staff. This month we are talking about anchoring rituals. Anchoring […] Read more “Anchoring Rituals”
8 Ways to Love Yourself thru the Holidays
This is your life and your holiday experience. You get to design it, enjoy savor it, and exercise the power of loving yourself, and the holidays are no different. Try out 8 embodied ways you can love and take good care yourself through the holidays: 1. Align Yourself to Your Desired State of Being What would you […] Read more “8 Ways to Love Yourself thru the Holidays”
Becoming the Gateway
LifeWorks therapist, Brandon Haydon, submitted this quote from #virginiarosenberg for our reflection and yours. “Presence is a practice. At times, the work of presence is so deeply uncomfortable. And then there are these moments, these cellular sighs of relief, when we quit resistance. We exit fight/flight/freeze, and simply belong to the time we’re inhabiting. In […] Read more “Becoming the Gateway”
Polar Bear Nature
This morning, just like every other morning, I was out walking. But this morning it was a frigid 5 degrees, a temperature I long for all year. I know, for some, this is absolutely crazy! But for me, nothing makes me feel more, alive, more vital, one with nature. I absolutely love the feeling of […] Read more “Polar Bear Nature”
When We Go Inside Ourselves And Stay — Finding Still Center
Lisa Marks is a colleague and Process Work Diplomat who spends half her year in the Pacific Northwest and half the year in the upper Midwest. Where ever she is, she is strongly aligned with the environment and natural world — both within and without. We are pleased to re-post this essay at this time of […] Read more “When We Go Inside Ourselves And Stay — Finding Still Center”
A Gratitude Experiment
“Thank you.” Two words most of us say countless times each day. Saying ‘thank you’ recently came up in a client session and we started processing what that phrase means. Are we saying the words when we are expressing gratitude or just out of habit? I remember my mother (as many parents do) training me […] Read more “A Gratitude Experiment”
Power: A User’s Guide
We are excited and pleased to announce that our friend and colleague, Julie Diamond, Ph.D., has a new book out — Power: A User’s Guide. Power corrupts. The question is: how? What are the traps of power and how we can avoid falling into them? From bosses to parents, politicians to protesters, power rests in […] Read more “Power: A User’s Guide”
Five Steps to Mindfulness Meditation
Basic meditation is the practice of doing nothing and being tuned in to your own mind at the same time. At first, it can be frustrating, but research shows meditation reduces stress and increases focus. Mindfulness is an exercise in training the mind to notice thoughts, sensations and emotions, and not get too attached to them […] Read more “Five Steps to Mindfulness Meditation”
Meditation Is Not What You Think: Meditation Practice Tips
Often, when we take up meditation, yoga, or other mindfulness practices, we inadvertently create obstacles for ourselves. We fall into assumptions, believing there is a “right way” to meditate. If you are struggling with meditation in any form, here are a few practice tips gathered over time that may help you. 1. Relax When you are working […] Read more “Meditation Is Not What You Think: Meditation Practice Tips”
The Colorful Wisdom of Autumn
This post comes from Sarah Evenson of Bridge Between Retreat Center, in Denmark, Wisconsin, just south of Green Bay. It spoke to me of the power of nature to connect us to the earth and move us to recognize something greater than ourselves. The picture above was taken this fall in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area […] Read more “The Colorful Wisdom of Autumn”
Beliefs and Success: What Box Did You Crawl Out Of?
Beliefs and success – are they connected? How much do your expectations influence your ideas about success? And where do those deeply-held beliefs originate? Our friend and colleague, Julie Diamond, has written extensively about these issues, and we would like to share the following article, which originally appeared on her site. One day, early in […] Read more “Beliefs and Success: What Box Did You Crawl Out Of?”
Thich Nhat Hanh
Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh is a global spiritual leader, poet and peace activist, revered around the world for his powerful teachings and best selling writings. This quote got such a strong positive response when we posted it on Tumblr, that we wanted to share with you too. People have a hard time letting go […] Read more “Thich Nhat Hanh”
Unconditional
One of our readers was inspired to send us the poem below, Unconditional, by Jennifer Welwood. Her website offers an insight into her work, “Jennifer was propelled onto the spiritual path at the age of 15 by the sudden and unexpected death of a close friend, which catalyzed a profound recognition of impermanence and a yearning […] Read more “Unconditional”
Meditation on Weathering
Weathering My face catches the wind from the snow line and flushes with a flush that will never wholly settle. Well, that was a metropolitan vanity, wanting to look young forever, to pass. I was never a pre-Raphaelite beauty and only pretty enough to be seen with a man who wanted to be seen with […] Read more “Meditation on Weathering”
Impermanence
Pema Chodron, in her book entitled Comfortable with Uncertainty (2002), writes: “Nothing in its essence is one way or the other. All around us the wind, the fire, the earth, the water, are always taking on different qualities: they’re like magicians. We also change like the weather. We ebb and flow like the tides, we […] Read more “Impermanence”
We Are One
Recently, as a way to express his gratitude for deep and vulnerable sharing in a group, a friend of mine spoke these words, in the Lakota language “Mitakuye Oyasin,” meaning “we are all related,” or similarly understood as “we are one.” The effect it had on me was visceral and profound. As I had been […] Read more “We Are One”