February Newsletter: COLLABORATION & COMMUNITY INTEREST is out now!

Link in bio & comments to join the mailing list & receive the newsletter.

Excerpt below ...

Creativity flourishes in safe spaces
Creativity cannot thrive in an environment devoid of psychological safety. I realised how much the suppression of questions, exploration, and innovation stifles not just individual potential and well-being but also the whole team’s as well. This reaffirmed my desire to seek out or build spaces that celebrate diverse thinking and contributions and is one of the reasons I am delighted to be working at Neurodiverse Connection!

#educatevolveembody #embodiededucation #embodimentspirituality #inandthrough #fleshyknowing #beyondmind #creativity #communityinterest #collaboration #neurodiversity

January Newsletter
 
The first weekend of January 2025 ~

to use a friend’s words : The Tree of Life put on a white cloak

NAKED SIMPLICITY

 
Happy New Year - 2025!


Don’t worry if a ‘new start’ doesn’t feel aligned for you in January - we have plenty of other options throughout the year to ‘begin again’.  Perhaps the growing season New Year which doesn’t really start until Ostara - Spring Equinox, in March feels better for you or perhaps the learning season New Year feels correlated to the start of the new academic year in September, is your time for new beginnings.

Or perhaps intuitively your body, your nervous system, YOUR FLESHY KNOWING prefers another time of year.  

Beyond mind this knowing is rooted in your embodiment spirituality.

And this is the main message and theme I’ll be working with this year -

OUR FLESHY KNOWING : BEYOND MIND  

 
The Divine Nervous System
 
My latest Aberdeen University Practical Theology Hub blog - The Divine Nervous System - published on January set the scene and theme for 2025 perfectly.

Categorised as body theology & feminism you can read two extracts below blog in full by clicking here 
 

Making Love with the Divine
 
There is a whole chapter on ‘The Divine Nervous System’ in my book Making Love with the Divine: Sacred, Ecstatic and Erotic Experiences’ - which was considered so taboo when published but Girl God Books in Feb 2023!  No its not a sex manual!

I am hopeful that 2 years later we’re ready for it!

 More about the book : Making Love with the Divine 
 
The body – particularly the body of woman – remains firmly in the grip of the Patriarchy. Controlled, blamed, and ensnared in the narrative of The Fall, the fleshy encounter is deemed unholy and entirely separate from divinity.

Making Love with the Divine starts the process of unravelling and undoing this insidious and false programming, showcasing and story-telling the sacred, erotic, and ecstatic experiences of today’s ‘ordinary’ women, narrating and reflecting upon their accounts of day-to-day communion and union with the Divine. Inspired by their sharing, practises are offered in each section of the book for the reader to begin to forge their own unique and direct pathway of lovemaking with the Divine.

This book sanctifies the human mammal – our animal journey of ‘in and through’ and is an antidote to the poisonous lie that the Divine is ‘out and up’ and accessible only through religious or spiritual instruction. Making Love with the Divine bridges the schism of sacred and mundane and reinstates the extra-ordinary nature of everyday living and existence.

"Making Love with the Divine invites us to explore our experiences of the erotic current that animates our bodies and our lives. A current whose natural flow and vitality is often stifled, distorted and shamed within patriarchal culture. This book seeks to open up the conversation by asking us how we experience our own sexuality and eroticism, and how this flow of aliveness can be a portal to feeling the divinity inside of us, and beyond us. Based on her research and clear devotion to this path, Kay Louise Aldred has created a supportive year-long workbook that provides a practical framework for anyone who feels a call towards liberating their body and deepening relationship with their sacred erotic aliveness."
-Carly Mountain, Sex and Relationship Therapist and author of Descent & Rising.

 
Making love with the Divine and The Divine Nervous system, evidence EMBODIMENT SPIRITUALITY is part of BEING HUMAN


THIS IS OUR FLESHY KNOWING : BEYOND MIND

And to link it to my work last year, our education system needs to teach us about this and how to access these parts of of ourselves.  

EMBODIED EDUCATION, the paradigm I advocate for, blends metacognition, intuition and intuition, to support this.

More about the book : Embodied Education

 
This year I intend to start to sew together all the above ideas and creations & weave them into all of my future work, training and interactions in whatever sphere or forum:


OUR FLESHY KNOWING : BEYOND MIND

EMBODIED EDUCATION & EMBODIMENT SPIRITUALITY

Dear all,
It has only been one calendar month since my last newsletter, yet the world has undergone a significant transformation. A new era is dawning globally, and the landscape is still being shaped.

Have you experienced a series of swift completions during this time?
In this final newsletter of 2024, I will share my completions, and then I will sign off for a while as I embark on a significant career change and new full-time job position—something I have consciously pursued this year so that I continue this work creatively and as service and humanity-focused activism.  

Sending you all capacity and courage for 2025.  
Kay x

​Completion 3:

2024 has been the year of sharing Embodied Education more widely :

online at lots of events, including today at the Supporting Children and Young People Impacted by Trauma (from Domestic Abuse) webinar hosted by Dr Ruth Smith, High Sheriff of North Yorkshire

and

in person in North Yorkshire, Oxford & Glastonbury

When we wrote this book (which was published in 2023 - link in comments) it felt like a vision no one would be willing to embrace because the changes it proposed for learning & sharing spaces constituted a complete paradigm shift from mind, top-down to body, bottom up approaches.

Just over a year later, humanity finds itself in a collective dark night of the soul & as a result some are now actively willing to reflect & consider what before was thought of worthless & taboo : the value of

divergence & diversity
embodiment & feeling
relating & presence
creativity & evolution

Don't give up now.

#educateevolveembody #embodiededucation #fleshyknowing #inandthrough

​Completion 5:

May this Invited Commentary - 'Safeguarding Neurodivergent Individuals from Spiritual Abuse' - which I wrote for the The Canadian Journal for Theology Mental Health & Disability 4 no. 2, Fall 2024 (ISSN 2563-9374) catalyse supportive change.

And be part of the solution.

It's a deeply personal ending & completion for me: #theology #anglicanchurch #neurodivergence #spiritualindustry #wellnessindustry #safeguarding

*
*
*

#educateevolveembody #embodiededucation #embodimentspirituality #inandthrough #fleshyknowing #spiritualneedsarehumanneeds

​Completion 6:

Ep 26. The Edge of Everyday with Sandra Bargman - going live here 2.12.2024
There Is Not A Normal Human: Embodied Spirituality + Neurodiversity with Kay Louise Aldred

Interested?  Here are the show notes ...

What is Embodied Spirituality? What is Somatic Shamanism? What is Neurodiversity?

Today we are #LIVEintheHIVE with author, teacher, and embodiment and spirituality-orientated theologian Kay Louise Aldred for a compelling + educational conversation about spiritual needs, safe spaces, understanding the nervous system, embodied ways of knowing, and neurodiversity.

If you, like me, are new to the term neurodiversity, and its relationship to spirituality, this is the conversation for YOU!

Kay is a multi-passionate educator, prolific author, and leader committed to questioning and challenging the absence of the body and earth in education, mental health and religion/spirituality. In this powerful conversation, we touch on:

• her book, Somatic Shamanism: Your Fleshy Knowing as The Tree of Life, and she unpacks her understanding of shamanism and it’s potential appropriation.
• Kay’s spiritual journey from childhood, through Anglican theology and having an academic (logos) understanding of spirituality, the discovery of liberation theology, into her embodied (eros) spirituality.
• Her work with the nervous system moved her into her understanding of her neurotype. Spirituality > Nervous System > Neurodiversity
• Understanding neurodiversity in profiles of strengths rather than on a spectrum.
• What makes a safe space? What is an intentional space?

And ... Kay and plant the seeds for a future conversation around her Grandmother and the Theatre of The Church!

All this and SO much more...

​So we find ourselves again in the darkest portion of the year (see below my latest NdC blog on tips for coping with seasonal change!) This November newsletter highlights my most recent and upcoming work.  Hope something resonates for you amongst it all.

Diversity of BodyMinds.


Humanity is a collective of diverse bodyminds. There is no 'normal' body or mind.

Institutional measures of 'normal' are ways of thinking, being & behaving which do not systemically challenge the status-quo & so ensure the current distribution of power, resources & opportunity continues.

Think about it.

Embodied Education:

why it is important to radically rethink how we educate

why embodied education - as a model which centres body-first and bottom-up perspectives - alongside nervous system education and co-regulation - is vital for classrooms and schools to become trauma-informed

Embodied Education: Creating Safe Space for Learning, Facilitating and Sharing:

relational, neuro-inclusive, and creative strategies and approaches for learning environments, as a way of supporting the shaping of non-abusive, positive and trauma-informed school culture, safeguarding student and staff wellbeing and educational outcomes.

Nov 5th 2024 10am - 3 pm

FREE DAY ONLINE WEBINAR
SUPPORTING CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE IMPACTED BY TRAUMA
(from domestic abuse)

Hosted by Dr Ruth Smith, High Sheriff of North Yorkshire. Interested in joining? Emai
[email protected]

I'm really looking forward to supporting this event.

As the second speaker, I'll be presenting at 11am on Embodied Education.

#educateevolveembody #embodiededucation #fleshyknowing #inandthrough #trauma #traumainformed #domesticviolence #domesticabuse #children #schools #education #neuroinclusion #northyorkshire

I am so delighted that our piece - Embodied Education: Weaving our Way Beyond Mind. Radically rethinking learning and sharing spaces - was selected to be featured in this diverse and inclusive upcoming @womancraft_publishing compendium of contemporary women’s wisdom, one which will carry us forward through these strange and uncertain times.

Superbly edited by @lucyhpearce & it's an honour to be part of this alongside @carly_mountain & others

Weaving our Way Beyond Patriarchy is available for pre-order now from Womancraft Publishing.  
Click here - ships on Nov 15th

#educateevolveembody #embodiededucation #embodimentspirituality #inandthrough #fleshyknowing

October Newsletter 👉
https://mailchi.mp/7242a6baaae1/cyclical-living-embodiment-community

Click to read, share & join the mailing list 👆

#educateevolveembody #embodiededucation #embodimentspirituality #inandthrough #fleshyknowing #trauma #neurodivergence #recovery

​In this three-part series of blogs, as Neurodiverse Connection Development Lead I examine the complex entanglement of Neurodivergence and trauma, and the implications this has for the concept of “recovery”. In this first part, I explore how natural rhythms, such as the seasons, can illuminate an understanding of trauma and recovery. 

"Whatever our rhythms, connecting to nature shows us that just as the seasons turn and the trees bud, bloom, shed and rest, and the sun rises, shines, sets and disappears, and the moon waxes to fullness, and wanes to darkness, so do we need to find our unique rhythm, which is our best season and do our utmost to find out which environments echo that to support us be most regulated."

Full blog here
https://ndconnection.co.uk/blog/trauma-and-recovery-part-1

In this second part, I explore how connecting to the body can illuminate an understanding of trauma and recovery. 

"It is vital for recovery that all individuals reconnect with embodiment to make sense and find meaning and belonging in being alive in the body they have. This is especially important for Neurodivergent individuals and their regulation, who have unique and often amplified sensory and emotional processing differences. 

It is important to remind ourselves here that, as Nick Walker writes, the ‘mind is an embodied phenomenon’ and that Neurodivergence is a difference in embodiment. So, when I say that neurodiversity is the diversity among minds, I’m really saying that it’s the diversity among bodyminds’."

Full blog
https://ndconnection.co.uk/blog/trauma-and-recovery-part-2

In this third and final part, I explore how connecting to community can play a part in recovery from trauma. 

"And here is the double (or triple) bind, in which we can find ourselves as Neurodivergent people.

Within interpersonal relationships and community, we can experience a lack of connection and harm is a frequent occurrence for Neurodivergent individuals.

This leads to trauma.

Trauma leads to not feeling safe and difficulty trusting people, leading to a lack of connection.

We need co-regulation and connection with others to heal from trauma, so we seek connection and community, but in doing some previous trauma is triggered or more trauma ensues and we are re-traumatised.

Recovery is impeded. 

So, what can we do?"

Full blog here https://ndconnection.co.uk/blog/trauma-and-recovery-part-3-community where I discuss what we can do & the importance of connecting to communities which are:

* #Nervoussystem and #traumainformed
* Focused on #culturalchange
* Understand #intersectionality & are #antiracist

We would like to invite Headteachers, Deputy Head Teachers and Safeguarding Leads to a free online workshop:  

Supporting Children and Young People Impacted by Trauma (from Domestic Abuse) hosted by Dr Ruth Smith, High Sheriff of North Yorkshire on Tuesday 5th November 10am – 3pm


The aim of the session is to:

• Give you a better understanding of the impact of trauma (specifically Domestic Abuse) on children
• Understand more about how the impact presents itself in children and young adults
• Share some practical tools and techniques to support children
• Build an awareness of the various organisations and charities in the region who can help

We will be joined by various speakers from a number of different organisations throughout the day.  You will have the opportunity to hear from a wide range of speakers and there will be chance to ask questions. Speakers include:

• David Trickey, a consultant Clinical Psychologist who specialises in working with traumatised children, young people and their families since 2000
• Kay Aldred, an experienced teacher and author who specialises in ‘embodied education’
• Lindsay Oliver the CEO of New Beginnings Peer Support, a charity which supports women and their children who have experienced domestic abuse
• Teesside Mind, an independent charity who have undertaken a recent project to involve young people in designing effective mental health support based on lived experience
• Gail Donnan, the founder and CEO of The Wellness Gateway, who is the author of two mental health and wellness books on trauma and childhood adversity
• Brigid O’Reilly and Kerri Rose of IDAS, a prominent Yorkshire charity focussing on supporting adults and children and young people experiencing domestic abuse
  
  
  

The workshop brochure is attached and/or can be viewed online here.


Places are limited so please confirm your place as soon as possible:  To reserve your place, please contact [email protected]

In this three-part series of blogs, as NdC Development Lead I examine the complex entanglement of #Neurodivergence and #trauma, and the implications this has for the concept of “#recovery”. In this first part, I explore how natural rhythms, such as the seasons, can illuminate an understanding of trauma and recovery.

Extracts below. Link to read the whole blog & to the Neurodivergent Wellbeing Approach Training in comments: 

"In the Neurodivergent Wellbeing Approach course, I talk about the importance of connecting to and eventually honouring and structuring our life around our unique energy rhythms, through observing, being mentored by, and communing with nature’s rhythms. These #cyclical rhythms include the #seasons and the #lunarcycles.

Living coordinated with our inner seasons leads to better nervous system regulation and more sustainable living habits. This is especially important for Neurodivergent individuals who may ‘buck the trend’ (as I do) of being most energised and uplifted in summer.

Whatever our rhythms, connecting to nature shows us that just as the seasons turn and the trees bud, bloom, shed and rest, and the sun rises, shines, sets and disappears, and the moon waxes to fullness, and wanes to darkness, so do we need to find our unique rhythm, which is our best season and do our utmost to find out which environments echo that to support us be most regulated.

Trauma is healed through connection and nature offers us connection in a gentle and comforting way. It reassures us that we can be a wild, non-conformist, fast-growing climber (think some types of clematis) which can’t/won’t be tamed and flourishes in peak heat or a sturdy, reliable, prickly holly bush which dependably produces red berries, nourishing the birds in the hardest, coldest winter.

Everything is welcome; there's space for all ways of being a plant, tree, or flower. Seasons remind us that we, as living beings, need to figure out how long it takes and what we need to bud, bloom, harvest, and rest. That is why I advocate for cyclical living education in schools, mental health care, and therapeutic intervention within the Neurodivergent Wellbeing Approach training."


Neurodivergent Wellbeing Approach Training starts Oct 1st. More info here: https://ndconnection.co.uk/ndwatraining


Read the full blog https://ndconnection.co.uk/blog/trauma-and-recovery-part-1

Last Tuesday I started facilitation of the latest round of the #Neurodivergent #Wellbeing Approach #Training for Neurodiverse Connection.

The Neurodivergent Wellbeing Approach is a holistic, Neurodivergent-friendly well-being curriculum that offers education and practical strategies for the #mind, #body & #spirit of Neurodivergent individuals, their family members, friends, caregivers, and professionals who support them.

This #nervoussystemfriendly system & #traumainformed programme is based on the concept of ‘experience to share’ and is designed to promote the wellbeing of participants, which they can then share with those they care for and support.

The next round of early evening training starts on Oct 1st & there are only a few places remaining.


Neurodivergent Wellbeing Approach Training starts Oct 1st. More info here https://ndconnection.co.uk/ndwatraining

In addition fellow Neurodiverse Connection Development Lead Grace Lee @somegalart examined in another blog how Neurodivergent minds can be vulnerable to #exploitation and #radicalisation by by far-right narratives and deliberate #misinformation.

As an appendix (below) I considered what can be done to find a way forward:

"#Safeguarding #neurodivergent communities against racism and radicalisation involves creating supportive environments that are growth-orientated; aware and reflective, equity-focused, and inclusive, proactively educational, and responsive. Supportive, safe, and regulated environments mean there is a willingness within the community or organisation to engage with and sit with ‘taboo,’ triggering and uncomfortable questions, and topics, be messy and make mistakes in discussions, and individually and collectively assess bias, privilege, power, as well as acknowledge and bridge knowledge deficits.  

As a learning organisation, at Neurodiverse Connection, we are committed to becoming anti-racist and are making space to explore how we can safeguard our organisation and community against racism and radicalisation.  

Last year, as part of our #Grooming and #CoerciveControl Summit, the red and green flags around communities and groups in our NdC curated resource Safeguarding Neurodivergent Individuals from Spiritual Abuse and considered the applications of it to online hate speech promoters and influencers, such as Andrew Tate. The points made in this resource around why neurodivergent individuals might be more at risk of spiritual abuse – social exclusion, challenges in discernment, a desire for belonging, reliance on authority figures, difficulty in self-advocacy and isolation - might equally apply to specific vulnerabilities of risk of radicalisation. 

We recognise the importance of understanding diverse cultural backgrounds within the Neurodivergent communities to address internalised and structural racism by seeking representation, voices, and perspectives. Our focus on service and community accountability, some of the green flags listed in the resource means that we look to create safe space, peer support, allyship and collaboration opportunities."


Full blog here https://ndconnection.co.uk/blog/unpacking-radicalisation

Happy Full Moon and Equinox and I’ll write again in October.


Best wishes, Kay

​TRANSITION : the process (time period) of shifting (changing & transforming) from one state (place, belief system, way of being & doing) to another.

September is always the beginning of transition - our yearly opportunity to shed old skins & leaves

And prune our branches (for those is us in the northern hemisphere that is) ready for new growth.

The month starts with receiving more insights & awareness & we have the impulse to create new daily & weekly routines alongside a strong physical foundation, to support our nervous system regulation.

Then we reach the transition (& decision) point Autumn Equinox (Mabon) & the shedding begins

We need to NORMALISE living REFLECTIVELY, CYCLICALLY & SEASONALLY - sync with the earth.

And embed this #embodiededucation & these rhythmic reflective practises into institutions & workplaces in society - especially education & healthcare.

AND make it policy & procedure - make it how societal institutions run. Make it systemic.

These are some of the first steps towards EVERYONE having access to wellbeing, nervous system health & being respectful of the earth.

We need SYSTEMIC wellbeing, regulation & respect.

And then we might have a chance of reinstating a #humane #humanitarian #humanity. A human collective which is less in hyper-individualism & survival & more in interdependence & connectedness.

The August bank holiday signals for me the start of the transition into autumn.


For the past few years I’ve spent that bank holiday weekend facilitating the final Somatic Shamanism and Energy Medicine skills practise weekend at the Acorn.


This photo was taken this year’s final training day and is a celebration of a stellar group the 2024 Somatic Shamanism Energy Medicine Deeper Immersion & Practitioner Skills Training Cohort who were an absolute pleasure to teach & hold space for.

I'm so grateful

Thank you @sls_daretodance for superbly assisting with this training

Thank you @acornretreat for the stunning land & space to facilitate on & in

Thank you @acorn_sarah  @thisliberatinglife  @rebecca_brereton_art_therapist  @the_mindfulfox  @amy.at.sacred.sounds  for creating such a beautiful constellation

This training will not be running this academic year - after facilitating for seven years straight it's time for me to pause, reflect, regroup & replenish.

If you'd like to join the waiting list for a Sept 2025 start you can do so by emailing me.

More about those final training days …


There's no learning without the body.

Every year I say this. And that all educational spaces need to incorporate experiential methods & outdoor learning opportunities.

One of my favourite moments of the facilitation of this year training is teaching students to do this complex practice: the rebirth rite.

As a teacher by profession & qualification I know through my own academic study & lived classroom experience (as well as intuitively) how humans learn best. Whether teaching GCSE English, A-Level Psychology, coaching skills or shamanic practises (all of which, & much more, I've taught for real) good teaching & learning happens in the same way.

There's preparation, exploration, reading & study to do in advance. Learning builds on what goes before - it's titrated & cumulative.

There are boundaries & freedom (yes, this is possible!) & the teacher leads by example.

I demonstrate the rite & we discuss it; the real life application of the process, when & when not to do it & crucially how to facilitate in a trauma informed & nervous system friendly safe way.

I provide a written template & diagram of the sequence & I model it again. Students can ask questions at any point.

Together we individually lay out stones on the earth creating the energy structure of a body & we repeat the sequence, several times (remembering our left & right, anticlockwise & clockwise rotations, & the movements around the body) until it becomes a muscle memory.

I give my students space to process, allowing their bodies to integrate the learning overnight & then the next day there's opportunity for clarification & questions before they do it for real, practising on each other.

This is #embodiededucation & #embodimentspirituality

Normalising & anchoring spiritual & holistic healing modalities into the mundane and also ensuring training is accessible, thorough & safe & that practitioners are safe, accountable & professional.

​The training container I craft aligns with the recent excellent work of Stimpunks and Autistic Realms.  I facilitate what they call Cavendish Learning Spaces.


Cavendish Learning Spaces - places to nourish #bodymind - we need them in schools, in universities, in mental health settings, in religious & 'spiritual', retreat & wellbeing & all other community settings ..

Campfires: Spaces for learning with a storyteller — teacher, mentor, elder or carer. Education facilitators need to subvert neuronormativity actively. They need to embark on their transformative neuroqueer journey so their re-storying can inspire neuro-cosmopolitanism.

Caves: Spaces for quiet reflection and self-directed or inter-dependent exploration, recovery and rest. Introspection and self-directed learning. A private space to transform learning from external knowledge to internal belief. Home of reflective construction.

Watering Holes: Spaces for social learning with or alongside peers and carers in validating neurodivergent ways by embracing parallel play and body doubling experiences.

More fantastic work by @autisticrealms & @stimpunks - check them out!

"Helen Edgar (Autistic Realms) and Ryan Boren (Stimpunks) have been exploring radically inclusive learning environments. Cavendish learning spaces are based on flexibility, interaction, movement and the role of embodied responsive experiences. We reject the boundaries of traditional classroom settings and look at how they not only restrict embodied experiences but lead to disembodied experiences and can cause harm."

Contents from two articles Spaces For Multi-Sensory Learners and those with Profound and Multiple Learning Disabilities & Neurodivergent Base Camp

Honoured that the book Embodied Education, which Dan & I co-authored, is referenced

Whilst on the training we learn somatic shamanic practices and get to know our shamanic self, we do not (I do not) call ourselves Shamans.


Those who truly follow the shamanic path are rare.

Ancient indigenous Shamans were rare. Modern neo-shamans are rare.

Why? Because the shamanic process of 'hollowing out' - becoming a 'hollow bone' - tends to happen through a series of painful human life experiences. Chronic illness, traumatic events, abuse, bereavement.

It's not about the 'I' - the 'me' or 'my'.

There is no bypassing. To 'hollow out' we must face, address, process & resolve our human trauma, difficulties & challenges. Continually.

The shamanic path is the most HUMAN & INTERDEPENDENT spiritual path there is because the focus is on SERVICE & the post traumatic recovery of the collective.

As a 'hollow bone' those who have 'hollowed out' open up their mind & body to allow power & 'spirit' (life force) to flow in & through & OUT of them with the intention of supporting others & earth.

The purpose of the shamanic (& I would argue any spiritual/healing) path is to REHUMANISE:

* to ENGAGE with poverty, inequity & all other social justice issues
* to establish a hospitable world - PRACTICALLY - the systems & infrastructure
* to support the RESOLUTION OF TRAUMA & re establishment of a humane, humanitarian, humanity

#educatevolveembody #rehumanise #inandthrough #embodimentspirituality #embodiededucation #fleshyknowing #humane #humanitarian #humanity

The end of August & beginning of September are always a time of transition. The new term looms, there are lots of emotions & this can take its toll on families.

Check out this great FREE ebook resource.

#Embodiment: Supporting #family #wellbeing during #transitions

FREE #Neurodivergent #community EBOOK inspired by the webinar I delivered in June for @the_pdaspace

Brilliantly designed & curated by Helen @autisticrealms

Get your free ebook - link in bio - and share widely


Access the book click here
​

Looking ahead to November … Supporting Children and Young People Impacted by Trauma (from Domestic Abuse)


Nov 5th 2024 10am - 3 pm * FREE DAY ONLINE WEBINAR *

Hosted by Dr Ruth Smith, High Sheriff of North Yorkshire. Invites are being sent to North Yorkshire schools.

I'm really looking forward to supporting this event.

As the second speaker, I'll be presenting at 11am on Embodied Education.

This will be a short talk on why it is important to radically rethink how we educate and why embodied education - as a model which centres body-first and bottom-up perspectives - alongside nervous system education and co-regulation - is vital for classrooms and schools to become trauma-informed.

This talk will also share content Embodied Education: Creating Safe Space for Learning, Facilitating and Sharing and relational, neuro-inclusive, and creative strategies and approaches for learning environments, as a way of supporting the shaping of non-abusive, positive and trauma-informed school culture, safeguarding student and staff wellbeing and educational outcomes.


​Equinox signals the peak of the transition is done …


Once the Autumn Equinox, Mabon, calendared on Sept 21st/22nd has past the peak of the transition is done.  Between now and then I’m presenting at the Oxford and York conferences and will have started the next round of the NdC Neurodivergent Wellbeing Approach training, all of which I mentioned in the August email.


If you missed this and in interested in any of the above click on the links below to learn more.


Creative Bridges, 2024 : Embodied Consciousness, Psyche and Soul in Research & Practice 4-8 Sept in Oxford


Fri 13th Sept @yorkstjohn to the Neurodiversity in Higher Education 2 #NDinHE2 


NdC Neurodivergent Wellbeing Training course

Option 1 :
Starting Tuesday 10th September 2024
4 x Half Day Sessions (9.30am-1pm)

Option 2:
Starting Tuesday 1st October 2024
8 x 1.5 hr Evening Sessions (6-7.30pm)
Best wishes and I’ll write again with updates from Oxford and York later this month!


Kay

Latest @girlgodbooks anthology is OUT NOW!

Wounded Feminine : Grieving with Goddess
 
superbly coedited by @cladorartandwords Trista and Pat

"Wounded Feminine is a magnificent chorus, which wades in the mind/heart/soul of the reader churning the long-lasting waves inwardly. Animating the legacy of the collective grief and strife for love and connection with the whole, many voices of the anthology reshape the consciousness of what was lost and transform the subconsciousness into the power of the Cosmic Mother. This anthology is the seeds of deep thoughts, the indispensable steps for matriversal soteriology."

-Helen Hye-Sook Hwang, the author of Reader: Toward Magoist Cetaceanism (Mago Books, 2023)

Available from @girlgodbooks website or online stores
 
 

1. Me and the Inquisitor. An Abridged Version. As my Body Remembers it.
   
   One of two featured submissions I have in the powerful latest @girlgodbooks anthology Wounded Feminine : Grieving with Goddess superbly coedited by @cladorartandwords Trista and Pat
   
   Available from @girlgodbooks website or online stores
   
   In this piece of writing I outline the inherent misogynistic nature & 'witch-hunt' energies of my (failed!) experience of the Anglican Priesthood Ordination Discernment Process.

 

1. Breaking the Spell and Lifting the Curse - What was I looking for from the Christian Religion and Anglican Church?
   
   
   
   "I was searching for a devotional and authentic community committed to spiritual growth and healthy relating. As a Priest I hoped to facilitate this.
   
   The construction - the breaking down ...
   
   THEY DON'T WANT THAT. THEY DON'T VALUE THAT.
   
   ... I see it clearly.
   
   I was both repeating and trying to resolve, trying to repair, through the Church, my family of origin trauma patterning"
   
   
   
   Second of two featured submissions I have in the powerful latest @girlgodbooks anthology Wounded Feminine : Grieving with Goddess superbly coedited by @cladorartandwords Trista and Pat 
   
   Available from @girlgodbooks website or online stores

​Deconstruct : 'to break something down into its separate parts in order to understand its meaning, especially when this is different from how it was previously understood' (Cambridge Dictionary)

It's not usual August energy. 2024 hasn't been a year of the 'same old'. We are a choice point #evolve or

This is the POINT of wellness & spiritual practices, of education - to support us to deconstruct (individually, collectively, institutionally) - to go #inandthrough - and rebuild a humane, humanitarian, humanity.

I was raised in a working class northern mining village (near Sunderland where the recent race riots & far right violence have taken place). My grandfathers were miners. I was surrounded by poverty, hostile, racist language and attitudes, domestic violence, abuse and misogyny.

And I was fortunate to escape that cycle through education, reconnecting to my body and soul and through the ongoing deconstruction of (and divesting from) the internalised constructs of racism, ableism, classism, misogyny, colonialism etc etc.

I'm not an expert. This work is not done. And it's messy & painful.

And, I continue to do it because I value humanity, feel a moral obligation to repair/heal on behalf of past generations and evolve for the sake of future generations. And I recognise interconnectedness - and therefore the futility of doing anything other than this.

Divest : to get rid of (Cambridge Dictionary)

This is what we are being called to do during these times. Deconstruct & divest from external & internalised, conscious & unconscious constructs, attitudes, thought forms, language, behaviour and repetitions of racism.

Spiritual and wellbeing practice of the week : BE ACTIVELY ANTI-RACIST.

​This week has highlighted (again) the urgent need for all of us to move from non-racist to anti-racist.

This is a process and one which is much needed in family, educational, academic, healthcare, therapy, wellbeing, religious & spiritual spaces.

I speak only to what I have direct experience of - it is of course needed everywhere.

Brilliant model by Andrew M. Ibrahim MD, MSc which I'm reflecting on today as I assess where I am (& the circles I mix in are) on the journey & where to go next to learn, grow & evolve.

Resensitise : to make someone sensitive to (= aware of or affected by) something again (Cambridge Dictionary)

The systems, structures & institutions in patriarchal & colonial societies are designed to desensitise us - make us insensitive, unaware of our common humanity, unaffected by the suffering of others.

For me the purpose of 'healing' and of spiritual & wellbeing practices are to provide tools to develop the capacity to FEEL more & communities where we become aware of our interconnectedness, our common humanity, & are affected & moved by the suffering of others.

The purpose is for us to be fully resourced & feel so deeply, with such compassion & empathy, that we are mobilised to take action for collective change & justice.

Rehumanise : to make human again, to make it suitable for humans again (no dictionary definition needed)

We finish our time in education dehumanised, dissociated & disembodied, after hours sat at desks, separated from nature & creativity, being fed a colonial curriculum.

We enter into a dehumanising society, working in dehumanising institutions, operating in dehumanising structures.

Being fed dehumanising & colonial narratives this time by the media.

May those of us who are providing pathways away from this - creatives, artists, writers, poets, activists, advocates, holistic & nature based therapists, wellbeing practitioners, social justice communities - focus on REHUMANISING.

REHUMANISING not only individuals, collectives, communities but essentially organisational, institutional and structural policy, procedure, & practice.

Let's make society & its institutions humane, humanitarian & hospitable for humans - at a mind, body & soul level.

​BYSTANDERS

"In recent years, I have begun to contemplate the idea of a fourth and final stage of recovery, and that is justice. If trauma is truly a social problem, and indeed it is, then recovery cannot be simply a private, individual matter. The wounds of trauma are not merely those caused by the perpetrators of violence and exploitation; the actions of the bystanders - all those who are complicit in or who prefer not to know about the abuse or who blame the victims - often cause ever deeper wounds"

Truth and Repair ~ Judith Herman

Sometimes a book puts into words your #fleshyknowing & resonates deeply with your lived experience & validates you so profoundly that your life is forever changed by it.

Reading this book, this weekend, has had that impact.

Thank you for writing this book Judith Herman #trailblazer #truthteller #justiceseeker

COMPLICITY

"Acknowledgement on a massive scale means recognition not only of the crimes committed by individual perpetrators but also of the complicity of all the people who enabled them.

... they wanted the church to stipulate 'that the abuse was not the fault of the victims, and that the shame belongs only to those who did the abuse and those who covered it up.'"

Truth and Repair ~ Judith Herman

A transferable & relevant extract which validates my #fleshyknowing that the institutions in society we go to for our moral compass, justification & solace are in fact a-moral in their complicity in abuse (of all kinds), victim blaming & dehumanisation.

Whilst survivors may creatively find comfort in the spiritual realm - directly in relation with the Divine - ultimately trauma can't be resolved & healed without a HUMAN community which is not complicit, does not deny or stay silent to abuse & actively seeks justice.

A humane, humanitarian, human community forging a humane, humanitarian humanity.

I've found that some of the most victim blaming, retraumatising & dehumanising spaces are 'moral' 'theological' 'religious' 'spiritual' 'wellbeing' & 'therapeutic' spaces.

VISIONING JUSTICE

The radical (or root cause addressing) survivors vision of justice needs "truth and repair -acknowledgement, vindication, apology, and amends - from their moral communities"

"Because many people in their communities enabled the abuse they endured, they seek community amends in the form of institutional & cultural change"

Truth and Repair ~ Judith Herman

I've had a #fleshyknowing of this for a while. I now have research & evidence based text to say I'm not alone in this vision.

No more victim blaming. No more bystander apathy & silence. No more collusion.

In our homes, families & friendship groups, schools, churches, wellbeing retreats, spiritual communities, universities, mental health services, court rooms (& all the other spaces we inhabit)

Actively educate - deconstruct, divest, resensitise & rehumanise - evolve & embody JUSTICE.

Words for these times.
 
I’ll leave it there for now.
 
Kay x