COMMUNITY

 "Through all our hardships, there is still hope and there is still life." - Ngan (Arriving by Boat)

The Creating Space Project offers a range of wellness-centred community programs. These include:

Mind-Body Skills Groups

• To help participants develop and practise mind-body skills: These are skills that help connect the brain, body, mind and behaviour. They include practices of meditation, storytelling, music, art, and movement. These skills are known to help alleviate symptoms of depression, anxiety, and PTSD, as well as increase quality of life.
• To assist participants in developing habits of self-compassion: Habits of self-compassion help to build resilience. Research demonstrates that self-compassion is linked to increased psychological wellbeing and decreased anger, depression and anxiety.  Self-compassion involves kindness towards yourself, a sense of shared humanity with others, and the ability to be mindfully aware of painful emotions in the present moment, without getting stuck in those painful emotions. Self-compassion increases a sense of social relatedness and general life satisfaction.

Mindfulness to Values Group

Mindfulness, according to Jon Kabat-Zinn, involves "paying attention in a particular way: On purpose, in the present moment, and non-judgmentally."

• Improve ability to be mindfully aware of and attentive to the present moment.
• Learn skills to pay attention to your own mind, body and surroundings.
• Mindfulness skills are used to develop and enhance the presence of desired values, such as compassion, empathy or generosity, in an existing group.

Building Hopeful Thinking Groups

• Hopeful thinking:
• • Is critical for resilient individuals and communities.
  • Assists with recovery from trauma and loss.
  • Impacts on emotional and physical wellbeing.
• Narrative therapy techniques are used to respectfully and gently facilitate group members in telling and exploring stories from their lives that reveal and deepen the presence of hope in their lives.

Tree of Life Groups

Use storytelling and art to build self-esteem and self-efficacy, and to work with trauma and loss through:

• Strengthening connection to values
• Strengthening connections to others

What is the Tree of Life?

The Tree of Life is a metaphor. It uses parts of a tree to represent different aspects of our lives (Ncube & Denborough, 2007). It has been used extensively with communities, in Australia and overseas, that have suffered significant and ongoing trauma.

Format

The groups are highly flexible and designed to suit the needs of a particular setting:

• The Creating Space Project can deliver a one-off experience or a series of workshops, depending on the individual requirements of the community group. 

Facilitator

All groups are facilitated by Ruth Nelson (Clinical Psychology Registrar; B. Psych (Hons); M. Clin. Psych; Psych. Reg. Number PSY0001637340). Ruth has extensive experience with working in cross-cultural settings and with people who have experienced trauma. Ruth has experience in several psychological modalities, including narrative therapy, mindfulness, CBT and DBT, as well as in community outreach practices.

We are a Social Enterprise

At The Creating Space Project, we are passionate about making these groups accessible to all members of our community. We operate as a Social Enterprise offering fee reductions and a limited number of free sessions for marginalised groups. If you believe your community group could benefit from our services and your budget is tight, please send us an email. We'd be happy to discuss the possibilities with you.