In November of 2018, I was certified in the I AM Yoga Nidra method offered by the Amrit Yoga Institute (https://amrityoga.org/yoga-nidra/). For two weekends from Thursday through Sunday, I was immersed in the experience of learning about and practicing Yoga Nidra. Yoga Nidra invites the body into a deep state of relaxation using a series of breath, body, and awareness exercises which moves the practitioner from a state of doing to a state of non-doing. Part of the process of engaging in Yoga Nidra includes the use of an intention to guide this sleep-based meditation. During the training, my teacher, Kamini Desai, led me in a practice of setting a primary intention which served as my personal North Star, a guiding light of hope and inspiration. First, I was asked to explore what is not currently working in my life. Then I was prompted to think about the habit I engage with which supports negative thinking. Finally, I was asked to imagine what I would feel like if I no longer engaged in this thinking. I wrote: “I would make time and space for creative energy to flow, for something to spontaneously arise, to move into uncertainty with more openness, to make room for clarity, calm, and quiet. I want to quiet my mind, and deeply trust in the process of my life.”

It was during this contemplative exercise I discovered my intention: I hold space for creative healing.

This realization birthed the name of my practice and my hope to provide a space for those I work with to engage in creative healing.

Creating can be different for each and every one of us, but I believe we are always creating. We are a part of the life force—constantly changing and evolving. Creating is healing.

As a social worker, I believe in the creative power of developing relationships. It is within a therapeutic relationship where one may choose to take a slow, careful, steady dive into something unexplored, shadowy, or unknown. It is here, in this space of the unknown, where energy is alchemized. Within the context of a relationship, a reflection is offered. This reflection offered by the therapist, gently invites one to enter a place of re-discovery where one’s true nature may emerge without judgment or fear. This is good medicine. One moves into a state of becoming where healing is possible. This transition into a space of healing invites acceptance and self-love to roam freely.

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