Mindfulness refers to the ability to maintain awareness of the present moment with acceptance and without judgment.  Mindfulness helps strengthen the “muscle” in the brain that helps us focus our attention to the present moment (rather than ruminating on the past or worrying about the future).  Mindfulness can be beneficial in reducing dissociation, alleviating anxiety and depression, reducing chronic pain, and improving your focus and concentration.  Mindfulness helps us become more aware of our emotions and our needs.  In addition to mindfulness, this group helps participants gain coping skills to recognize, regulate, validate, tolerate, and appropriately respond to strong emotions with self-compassion as well as assertive communication skills.  The group is designed as weekly 60-minute sessions.  E-mail [email protected] or [email protected] for more information.

Women who have survived trauma come together and support each other by sharing coping strategies and connecting with one another.  Information/education about topics of interest to the group members is provided as requested; for example, past topics have included cognitive reactions to trauma (safety, trust, power/control, esteem, intimacy, guilt), dissociation, emotional processing, medication management, boundaries in relationships, and communication/assertiveness skills. The group is designed as sixteen weekly 60-minute sessions.

Families of trauma survivors come together to offer support and learn how to better help their loved ones.  No identifying information or details of trauma histories are shared, in order to respect loved ones’ confidentiality.  Instead, participants discuss and learn different ways of coping with their own emotions and responding to trauma survivors in helpful ways.  Education on the effects of trauma is provided, and participants are helped to cope with their own emotions and disrupted beliefs about the world following their loved ones’ trauma. The group is designed as twelve weekly 60-minute sessions.