Healing the Mind, Body & Spirit Through the Creative Arts, Education & Advocacy

Hope, Healing & Help for Trauma, Abuse & Mental Health

“Out of suffering have emerged the strongest souls; the most massive characters are seared with scars”. Kahlil Gibran

The Surviving Spirit Newsletter September 2023

Hi Folks,

Welcome to the September issue of the Surviving Spirit. Fall is definitely in the air here in New Hampshire, pleasant days and chilly nights...a sign of what's to come.

Hoping to be able to 'unveil' the new website soon, it is being worked on and lots of updates and fixes. It's long overdue, but as we know, life's unexpected bumps and detours happen.

Very excited to share this news – my daughter Michelle and I have been practicing some songs together for the past few months and we co-wrote this tune. I wrote the music while reflecting on some losses and grief, Michelle added her voice and melody along with her thoughts and feelings with the lyrics. Here's the tune recorded on an I-pad...unfortunately when we went to record the song, my recording application decided to have technical issues for the day. We still captured the essence of the song posted here at You Tube. We will add a a separate vocal microphone for her for future recordings.

Please take a listen - Finding Peace Without You – YouTube 3:55 minutes

Stay tuned, more songs to come!

Take care, Michael

- It can be read online via this & you can also subscribe - http://ml.survivingspirit.com/...tter/20230920194119/

or this - http://newsletters.survivingsp...r_September_2023.pdf

Contents List:

1] The Aplomb Project – uses the transformative power of art to uplift trauma survivors, promotes creative healing and presents inclusive artistic opportunities.

2] Disability Advocacy and Research Network [DARN] - A community for disabled psychology scholars and allies.

3] She Was Headed to a Locked Psych Ward. Then an ER Doctor Made a Startling Discovery. By Sandra G. Boodman @ the Washington Post [shared via Pocekt Worthy – no firewall]

4] How to Identify Financial Abuse in a Relationship by Sherri Gordon @ VeryWell Mind

5] The life events most likely to change your personality by Ross Pomeroy @ Big Think

6] He survived sexual abuse in the Boy Scouts of America. Now he wants justice by Ed Pilkington with photographs by Anna Watts @ The Guardian

7] Harvard psychology expert shares the No. 1 thing she sees holding people back by Dr. Luana Marques @ make it

8] California Black Women's Health Project - is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, empowering women to become active participants in improving their health status.

9] Now Unquiet: The Journey of Pianist Jonathan Biss - Anxiety & Mental Health Recovery – YouTube

9a] Music & Anxiety Recovery: The Journey of Pianist Jonathan Biss by Glenn Holsten @ OC87 Recovery Diaries

10] MaleSurvivor: Who We Are - YouTube - This five-minute video will tell you who we are, what our mission is, and introduce you to the MaleSurvivor community

11] Lindsay Swan Artist Statement - Creating art therapeutically can help cope with stress, work through traumatic experiences, facilitate memory recollection, and increase self-awareness

12] Moments That Matter by author Kate Butler

13] I learned to love my disabled body – why can’t my non-disabled friends love theirs? By Lucy Webster @ Health & well-being - The Guardian

14] Opinion: Sexual assault should never be part of a prison term by Judge Reggie B. Walton @ CNN

15] The Grassroots Collective Poetry Reading - Four poets will be reading their writing of Suffering and Healing

16] Walk With Me – Live performance @ You Tube - A song addressing the stigma & discrimination for those labeled, "mentally ill."

“Human beings, by changing the the inner attitude of their minds, can change the outer aspects of their lives.” - William James

“When other people see you as a third class citizen, the first thing you need is a belief in yourself and the knowledge that you have rights.” - Judy Heumann