"Living in Balance": From the Start
I remember the moment I realized this approach was important.
It was around 2005.
I started noticing a common reaction in women when I asked them a simple question, "What are your needs?"
It was a question I was asking women who had come to me to help them work on overcoming their own personal barriers to becoming happy, whatever that meant to them.
The common reaction, to many -- what caused this sudden stall in our conversations -- was, what I witnessed to be a deer-in-the-headlights look as each woman realized they were being asked this question.
I mean, who asks this question? Not to women!
Then I would watch their eyes slowly drift up and to either the right or left, pondering what their needs were.
Very few had much to say.
Some were afraid to answer, avoiding presumed criticism. Others laughed at themselves as they mumbled a few needs, minimized to their bare bones.
Most just didn't know.
This was an eye opener for me.
And yet, I understood it completely because this was my mindset for the first 30 years of my life.
It was around 2005.
I started noticing a common reaction in women when I asked them a simple question, "What are your needs?"
It was a question I was asking women who had come to me to help them work on overcoming their own personal barriers to becoming happy, whatever that meant to them.
The common reaction, to many -- what caused this sudden stall in our conversations -- was, what I witnessed to be a deer-in-the-headlights look as each woman realized they were being asked this question.
I mean, who asks this question? Not to women!
Then I would watch their eyes slowly drift up and to either the right or left, pondering what their needs were.
Very few had much to say.
Some were afraid to answer, avoiding presumed criticism. Others laughed at themselves as they mumbled a few needs, minimized to their bare bones.
Most just didn't know.
This was an eye opener for me.
And yet, I understood it completely because this was my mindset for the first 30 years of my life.
I broke it down...
So then, I casually started verbally throwing categories of life to them. What are your social needs? What are your creative needs? What are your physical needs?
Each time, their eyes all returned to mine, slowly showing signs of understanding.
This was easier. This made it easier for the women to begin to identify a few, if not more, of their own personal needs.
So then, I casually started verbally throwing categories of life to them. What are your social needs? What are your creative needs? What are your physical needs?
Each time, their eyes all returned to mine, slowly showing signs of understanding.
This was easier. This made it easier for the women to begin to identify a few, if not more, of their own personal needs.
I began to develop a workshop, "Living in Balance".
This was a three-hour workshop designed to be flexible to fit a professional development day or retreat for businesses and non-profit organizations.
My background includes a specialized training in group facilitation, so the workshop included different learning styles, individual exercises, pairing up and small group assignments, both addressing serious topics and experiencing moments of fun and silliness - a powerful balance in itself.
In 2013, after running this workshop several times in the Niagara Region, I expanded the 3-hour workshop into a 12-week group. I whittled the life categories down to 12 and created a weekly session for each category, facilitating it in my own workspace. It was run in Welland and in Ridgeway.
Every rotation was different, modified to the collective interests, skills and issues brought to the sessions. We enjoyed a variety of field trips. From visiting the 550-year-old Comfort Maple and then a park in Fenwick, cemetery in Ridgeville, nature walk on Merritt Island, to some inner-child fun on Clifton Hill.
I ran this 12-week rotation, back-to-back, for five years, the last group celebrating their completion with a party and certificate presentation in Ridgeway the spring of 2018.
This was a three-hour workshop designed to be flexible to fit a professional development day or retreat for businesses and non-profit organizations.
My background includes a specialized training in group facilitation, so the workshop included different learning styles, individual exercises, pairing up and small group assignments, both addressing serious topics and experiencing moments of fun and silliness - a powerful balance in itself.
In 2013, after running this workshop several times in the Niagara Region, I expanded the 3-hour workshop into a 12-week group. I whittled the life categories down to 12 and created a weekly session for each category, facilitating it in my own workspace. It was run in Welland and in Ridgeway.
Every rotation was different, modified to the collective interests, skills and issues brought to the sessions. We enjoyed a variety of field trips. From visiting the 550-year-old Comfort Maple and then a park in Fenwick, cemetery in Ridgeville, nature walk on Merritt Island, to some inner-child fun on Clifton Hill.
I ran this 12-week rotation, back-to-back, for five years, the last group celebrating their completion with a party and certificate presentation in Ridgeway the spring of 2018.
Now the journey returns!
By taking the categories that are similar and combining them, I've created a more concentrated version of the original 12-week journey.
This Autumn, 2023 version has been updated to address needs we might have in today's world. Life has changed. So have our needs.
By taking the categories that are similar and combining them, I've created a more concentrated version of the original 12-week journey.
This Autumn, 2023 version has been updated to address needs we might have in today's world. Life has changed. So have our needs.
Autumn Adventure
Challenging women to live their lives the way they are meant to!
~A balance of energies~...
~A balancing of needs met~
Discover a holistic approach to healing, stress management, gaining personal power and living life authentically!
Challenging women to live their lives the way they are meant to!
~A balance of energies~...
~A balancing of needs met~
Discover a holistic approach to healing, stress management, gaining personal power and living life authentically!
THURSDAY EVENINGS 6:00-8:00 pm
The journey begins
NOVEMBER 2, 2023.
LIFE AREAS
Tying Up Loose Ends
Re-visiting Childhood
Mental Stimulation
Expression of Emotion and Creativity
Physical Focus and Connecting to the Earth
The Interpersonal Experience
Sometimes we laugh ~ Sometimes we cry ~ We gather with like-minds.
We listen and we are heard ~ And together we discover, learn, heal and grow.
We are…..living in balance
Now offered in 6 sessions.
Modified for post-pandemic, 2023
NEW CHALLENGES! NEW ACTIVITIES!
Returning members very welcome.
6 sessions
Pay by session $40/session - $240
or
Pay in full at registration and GET $40 OFF
Maria's Downtown
301 Ridge Rd N
Ridgeway
Group Facilitator
Christine Whelan, Social Services Worker
Over 25 years’ diverse experience
For more information or to register, contact Christine
Email: [email protected]
Text: 289-321-0468
The journey begins
NOVEMBER 2, 2023.
LIFE AREAS
Tying Up Loose Ends
Re-visiting Childhood
Mental Stimulation
Expression of Emotion and Creativity
Physical Focus and Connecting to the Earth
The Interpersonal Experience
Sometimes we laugh ~ Sometimes we cry ~ We gather with like-minds.
We listen and we are heard ~ And together we discover, learn, heal and grow.
We are…..living in balance
Now offered in 6 sessions.
Modified for post-pandemic, 2023
NEW CHALLENGES! NEW ACTIVITIES!
Returning members very welcome.
6 sessions
Pay by session $40/session - $240
or
Pay in full at registration and GET $40 OFF
Maria's Downtown
301 Ridge Rd N
Ridgeway
Group Facilitator
Christine Whelan, Social Services Worker
Over 25 years’ diverse experience
For more information or to register, contact Christine
Email: [email protected]
Text: 289-321-0468