What we’re about
For those of you with a chronic invisible illness * and allies *
I am a Psychology major from SMU with Fibromyalgia, Hypothyroid, EBV and anxiety/depression. I learned a great deal through intense study of personal development programs such as meditstion, peer counseling, and compassionate communication, before I transferred to SMU from community college. I currently do soft yoga and training in thai bodywork. I constantly seek to make the world a better place, and help others do the same, starting with the Visionary Club I created at community college and other groups I led or co-facilitated including conflict resolution, meditation, and emotional intelligence programs. I love to sing and write songs, Create, hug and kiss furry animals, be around positive people, learn new things, relax in natural environments (as long as the weather isn't flare weather) and synthesize new ideas. My grand goal is to have a retreat center for emotional healing and life enrichment in the mountains when I am older. I love the phrase, "reach for the moon, land among the stars" and I also love the quote, "you may see me struggle, but you'll never see me quit." <br>I often try to keep things structured a certain way to make sure we make the most of our time. I pull knowledge from MANY modalities PLUS my degree PLUS my life experience PLUS incoming and new research and experience. <br>Our goal is to support each other, have a place to connect and feel understood, but also incorporate new behaviors, habits and information into our lives to lead us towards either reduced symptoms or remission! It's a journey, are you up for the quest? Our view of the term WARRIOR: a warrior is not someone who is physically strong, but someone who is strong within their heart. Able to keep going. If they can't run then they walk, if can't walk they crawl. The heart of the warrior has true compassion for themselves and others. They do the difficult task of staying present and mindful and accepting their current reality while continuing to improve. <br>Do you have Fibromyalgia? MS? LUPUS? Arthritis? Are you undiagnosed but suffer with at least some of these main symptoms: <br>Fatigue, Pain that fluctuates but never goes away, Difficulty thinking and brain fog, minor or nonexistent refreshment from sleep, Is your sickness is affecting your life and ability to care for yourself or others or to attend events? Are people getting tired of hearing you complain? Have these symptoms potentially caused depression or anxiety for you? Enter CII Warriors: <br>A Dallas based group (currently) that is structured in a specific way to promote a place for support, connection, bonding, and opportunities to learn possible new methods or incorporate new habits and behaviors that attempt to lessen our pain, improve our life quality, and work towards the big goal of remission. We both accept you where you are at, and gently push you to become better, but all from the perspective of those who know what you're going through, not someone to call you names or insist it's all in your head. We are all on a different path so different things work for different people and we will respect that, but never give up.
<br>We have: <br>-venting sessions (structured and time limited, in safe environment) <br>-Mindset restructuring (with take him exercises to discuss next time) <br>-Meditation (to calm our minds and heal) <br>-Yoga and Thai Chi (customized for capabilities) <br>-Book Club (where we discuss books about healing or changing our perspective) <br>-Field trips (to places that help us relax and heal. Ex: Arboretum, King Spa, etc) <br>-Highly structured support group meetings and information for healthier communication and self perspective (important when we are in such chronic pain to be patient with ourselves AND others who don't understand) <br>-Consciousness (we have no religion but we are a SPIRITUAL group*) <br>-we respect science and research and discuss our own perspectives as well. <br>-AND MORE *Chronic invisible illness: Of physical nature. accompanying mental diagnoses such as anxiety and depression are welcome. Often physical and mental issues are quite linked, but must have physical invisible illness. In essence, no "mental illness only" individuals. <br>*Please, no cancer patients. We are not prepared to deal with this category at the present moment. Apologies. *Allies must attend an ally training in order to attend meetings, this is a requirement. This is a safe haven for those with chronic conditions and the space should be respected with knowledge, even if you think you already know. *No specific religion but spiritual: we believe in unity, something higher than ourselves, energy, and connection. We understand that each of us sees these things in a different light and respect that. -We also try as much as possible to respect scientific knowledge and work to avoid PSEUDO-Cures that are Unproven and have no backing.
* regarding "rules", they have not yet been formulated. For now, the tenets of compassion (for self and others) respect, and openness are all we ask. We all have different perspectives for what those words mean, so please feel free to inquire. <br>*remember that I (Nini, group organizer/leader) have chronic illness too and I'm not perfect but we can all strive to keep going and keep being better every day. Every day is a new day, even if some of the same old pains follow us. Sun still rises.
