With Rev. Therese Bimka, LCSW, Kim Schneiderman, MSW, LCSW, Celeste Cipriano, LCSW and Ben Brown
A DHARMAKAYA CENTER STILL PROGRAM FOR VETERANS
It is no secret that—throughout history—all those who have experienced combat bear deep invisible wounds. They return home not just drained, but profoundly affected by the impact of war which is by nature very complicated and traumatic. We know re-entry can be difficult. Veterans wrestle with grief, guilt, survivor syndrome, and other forms of mental trauma. The pandemic only magnified these issues by initiating an epidemic of loneliness that remains a mental health concern, especially for veterans who can often isolate.
This free program—held in a safe and restorative environment—offers those who have given heroic civic duty the space and the tools to process trauma and to restore their inner balance.
PROGRAM DESCRIPTION
This retreat provides a diverse set of health and wellness trainings for veterans, using Evidence Based Skill Building for stress reduction, which fosters inner resilience and equanimity. The weekend will offer a combination of knowledge and lived experience through meaningful activities.
Downregulating the Nervous System: These tools teach us to skillfully navigate the terrain of the mind, helping us reduce reactivity and increase response-ability. In this segment we will learn evidence-based techniques that support resiliency, increase focus, reduce stress, and help de-activate the nervous system. These capacities bring us into contact with our aliveness and help us grow embodied presence so we can learn to be an embodiment of calm in the middle of the storm. These are practical and portable life skills that veterans will learn and be able to practice at home and in community.
Understanding Trauma: Understanding trauma is the necessary first step to shifting from reactive to pro-active. In this segment, we will learn how trauma functions within our bodies and how we can down- or up-regulate our systems when the four F’s of trauma appear: Fight, Flight, Freeze, and Fall Asleep (distractions). This session will provide the tools to attune to our inner landscapes, including an assortment of easy-to-incorporate embodiment techniques that will help us respond to the world with greater ease and empowerment.
Cultivating Resiliency: It is essential that we create and fortify our internal container so that it can help us navigate the turbulent waters of these times with more ease and capacity. Resilience has historically been defined as the capacity to withstand and recover from challenges. However, recent research shows that resilience can also encompass Post-Traumatic Growth, a positive psychological change that some individuals experience after a life crisis or traumatic event(s). In this session, we will mine our stories of adversity for growth and uncover examples of resilience.
RAIN (Recognize, Allow, Investigate, Nurture): In this powerful mindfulness practice, we recognize our experience, allow it to be as it is, investigate it with curiosity, and nurture it with self-compassion. It is a useful took for emotional self-regulation in real-time as challenging emotions arise.
Nonviolent Communication: The tools of NVC are accessible and help increase our emotional vocabulary; through them we learn to identify and name what we feel, and, in turn, articulate clear requests to get our needs met. These skills tap into what Marshall Rosenberg (founder of NVC) calls Universal Needs and Universal Feelings.
Heart Meditations: A few heart meditations will be taught over the weekend. These are useful as they help unleash compassion, self-compassion, equanimity, and loving-kindness. The heart can offer a place of refuge, rest, connection, and wisdom as opposed to the mind – which can be steeped in fear, scarcity and separation. It is in the heart space that we can experience more spaciousness and embodied resiliency. These heart meditations help generate a sense of inner peace and increase our ability to connect with ourselves and with others.
Further, the retreat setting provides an opportunity to experience restoration through the calm and beauty of the campus, the excellent food, the beauty found in nature and having access to experienced facilitators and wonderful healing practices. These combine to create a synergy of healing that can only be found in a multiday immersive retreat setting.