West Coast 2003 Breakout Sessions

Walker Creek Ranch
Descriptions of the BREAKOUT GROUP TOPICS and FACILITATORS:

Keynote Address by Dr. Elaine Aron:
"From Feeling One Down to Being an Equal: Healing HSPs so They Can Heal the World" Saturday, June 14, 2003, from 9 am - Noon.

Obstacles to the HSP Good Life: What We Can (and Must) Do to Thrive
Learn how to live the "HSP Good Life" everyday by taking a holistic view of your own sense of "HSP Well-Being". Learn how to identify vulnerable areas of overstimulation, and create a healthy balance. We'll discuss general coping strategies as well as learn and practice two specific cognitive coping strategies Jacquelyn personally uses to help toward her continuing goal of becoming an empowered HSP. Bring your most challenging HSP obstacles or challenges, and share in our group dialogue and problem solving process.

Jacquelyn Strickland, LPC is a licensed professsional counselor and coach in Ft. Collins, Colorado specializing in blending therapeutic principles and coaching tools with a spiritual foundation. She works exclusively with HSPs and her other passion - helping families toward optimal health and happiness. Visit her web site at www.lifeworkshelp.com or call (970) 484-0840.

Personal Growth Through Spiritual Means
With our heightened sensitivity, many HSPs have an affinity with the higher resonance of Spirit. In this question and answer workshop, we will explore ways of accessing spirit for healing and life purpose. Topics may include dreams, meditation, guides, the Self, and active imagination.

Jay Lewis, Ph.D is a clinical psychologist with a private practice in Santa Cruz, California specializing in Jungian depth psychology and spiritual issues. He can be reached at (831) 458-3060.

Yikes! Work!: Coming to Terms with this Challenging Aspect of Being an HSP
Using Dr. Barrie Jaeger's concepts of Drudgery, Craft & Calling, this will be an informal opportunity to share in small group discussion about your own work experiences. We'll try to uncover what works for HSPs and what doesn't, why we have such difficulty in the American workplace culture, and what we can do to best find a niche to stay out of Drudgery, move into Craft, and have hope for a Calling. Bring your knowledge of your Myers Briggs type, (or take it at the Gathering). You will also have the opportunity to discover your RIASEC Code, by completing a Personality Mosiac inventory.

Facilitated by Jacquelyn Strickland, LPC.

Relationships that Work: The HSP/HSP Couple
Learn what's special about two HSPs in a long term committed relationship. Beila and Nick have been married for 15 years. They will share what makes their relationship work, how they deal with challenges and the unique ways they each manifest their own HSP-ness. There will be plenty of time for questions and answers and they are very open to talking personally about anything relevant to the topic.

Beila Krow, LMFT, is a licensed marriage and family therapist in the Santa Cruz area. Visit her web site at www.beilakrow.com or call her at (831) 477-1232. Nick Rodin is an engineer and a classical guitarist.

Sensitive Men
This open dialogue, leaderless group discussion is for sensitive men only. Join other like-minded men in discussing questions pertaining to society's view of sensitive men, how you cope, and what you are still challenged by as a sensitive man in our culture.

Nurturing Our Souls - Integrating Spiritual Principles Into the Daily Life of HSPs
It is possible to create more inner-peace and joy by practicing spiritual principles in our daily life. We will discuss the benefits of living in the present as shared by Eckhart Tolle, author of "The Power of Now", and examine the thoughts that arise in the mind shared by Byron Katie author of "Loving What Is". We will discuss how to integrate some of the timeless truths from the East into 21st century America including works by Thich Nhat Hahn, Buddhist author of more than 20 books on creating inner-peace; and Ammachi, a spiritual teacher from India who recently received the Mahatma Ghandi-Martin Luther King Aware for peace though non-violence. There will be a guided meditation as well as a walking meditation.

Ted Zeff has a Ph.D. in Psychology and is the author of several books on relaxation techniques, insomnia, meditatioin and spirituality. He is currently writing "The Highly Sensitive Person Survival Guide; How to Create Inner-Peace and Joy in an Over-Stimulating World." Ted teaches about stress reduction and healing insomnia, and has counseled highly sensitive people for more than 20 years. You may reach him at (510) 538-0373 and visit his web site at www.healinginsomnia.com.

The Healing Power of Nature
Remember that wonderful feeling you had the last time you were in your favorite natural setting? That feeling is what ecopsychologists call the Wilderness Effect and it illustrates the profound effect Nature has on our mental and physical well-being. Learn how to bring this feeling into your life on a daily basis. Discover how doing simple Nature activities no matter where we live can help heal life-style related stress, anxiety, depression and addictions. Find out why HSP's are already more easily attuned to Nature's wisdom and how to more fully enjoy our natural sensitivities.

Sarah Anne Edwards, LCSW, is the Director of the Pine Mountain Institute where she teaches and writes about the healing power of Nature. With her husband Paul, she has authored 15 books on creating and living your own lifestyle and has recently published her first novel Sitting with the Enemy, a inspiring tale about what we can do to escape our overly complicated lives. Note: Sarah regrets she will not be able to attend this year's gathering. In the alternative, she has sent a paper to be shared explaining the healing power of nature, along with an experiential nature exercise for our group.

This session facilitated by Claudia L'Amoreaux, an integrative life coach and educational consultant in practice in Berkeley, California. She brings a holistic approach to her work with concern for total well-being (mind-body-spirit). Claudia supports HSP adults and young people in reframing personal history and creating lives they love living. She has led wilderness retreats for 25 years and writes poetry inspired by her experiences in deep nature. You can contact her at (510) 665-9141, and visit her website at: http://www.learningconversations.com.

BONUS ACTIVITIES: