Accepting Our Humanity: Healing Shame Around Your Health

In this workshop, we will focus on healing the shame we feel around our health. In a culture that is so focused on "doing" and achievement, finding acceptance of our health challenges can be extremely difficult.

For some people, it looks like struggling with weight or fitness, while others have chronic pain or serious illnesses. Many of us have faced all those at one time or another! We want to find the magic solution so that we can feel healthy, fit, and vibrant all the time. However, sometimes our best attempts at improving our health don't yield fabulous results. This can make us feel like we aren't good enough or dedicated enough to heal. Even if we know that it's a genetic issue, we can torture ourselves with internal stories that if we just ate better or did "xyz", that we would find a way to overcome.

For many, even getting a cold or needing lots of sleep can be a source of shame. We criticize ourselves that we should have been able to prevent it, or that we should be able to push through how we're feeling and get just as much work done as ever.

This gathering is intended to be a safe space for people with health concerns of all kinds (including mental health) to discuss challenges and find loving acceptance of ourselves exactly as we are.

More information on the series:

In this series, we open a conversation around incredibly challenging topics that we, and our society, typically cast into the shadows of shame. Many of us are carrying a story, a belief or a secret that makes us feel ‘less than’, unworthy, or shameful. So we hide that part of ourselves, fearful we will be exposed to judgement or potential rejection.

Many of the subjects we will discuss are identified as shameful by societal, religious, familial, or other influences outside of ourselves. Through lively discussion, we will dive into the judgements and beliefs cast by these influences, and break down the wall that keeps us from sharing these life experiences with others. Let’s come together to share our own stories, discuss the burden of hiding our secrets, and support one another in moving from a place of shame to acceptance.

Our intentions for this series are to:

• Break down the wall of shame that keeps us from sharing these life experiences and hiding parts of ourselves.

• Provide a safe space to share our voice and vulnerability around challenging topics.

• Inspire courage to move stories from our shadow or shame space into a place of acceptance.

• Share in our humanity to increase compassion for ourselves and others.

• Deeply connect with one another and build genuine intimacy by seeing each other fully.

We ask for a $5-10 donation from each of you to cover the cost of renting the space.

The MeetUps will be every other Tuesday, and newcomers are welcome. This series is facilitated by Kelley Neumann ( http://Kelley-Neumann.com ).