“We are receiving a request to move on still further, from the psychological to the mythological stage […] That understanding is not behind us, but ahead of us.”
– Robert Bly.

“Only myth, in its sweeping ability to constellate an array of contradictory meanings, has the power to awaken, within the private and particular moment, an immediate sense of what matters most.”
– Daniel Deardorff.

~ THE WILDS OF THE DEEP HEART ~

a sheltering space for storytelling, feeling + the creative healing arts
offering earth-centered embodied story-work, gatherings + experiences
for reconnection, re-story-ation + re-membering of our true shapes + selves
held openly + lovingly, these practices + adventures
are therapeutic, generative, surprising, Deep (!!!) + fun <3

In the dismemberment proliferated by modernity, We Need sheltering spaces for Re-Membering. We Need peace-full places to be, to Encounter ourselves and others, in safe/brave ways. We Need the voices of those from the edge, who are Telling Different Tales– from what the overculture gives us. What the news and social media give us. Even from what the most utter destitute places in our hearts and bodies, give us. This is what I will Forever be devoted, to Being. and doing. Creating a variety of ecological, mythic-sheltering-spaces like the ones described below ….

* * * * * * * * *

I speak to people’s secret hearts.
I can listen, See, and sense into what is Underneath, buried, or in the Depths.

Hallo out there, I’m Audrey! I’m a multidisciplinary artist and researcher, oral tradition storyteller, sacred space-holder, writer/author/educator, and psychopomp (which basically means it’s my responsibility and special skill to get you safely from one realm to another, including the conscious to the subconscious and back, as a guide and mediator). I’m an empath and highly sensitive person; have done a lot of work around family and interpersonal dynamics including learning about healthy boundaries, codependency/enmeshment, and narcissistic abuse; and have expansive ideas on wellness, recovery, and the healing and deepening that comes from exploring the sacred ecology of earth, body, story, and spirit. [more formal bio here]

In my own healing journey I’ve worked with and in modalities and frameworks including Somatic Experiencing, ecotherapy, Internal Family Systems (IFS), polyvagal theory and nervous system regulation/awareness, Grotowski/Gurdjieff-inspired group work (in the vehicle of experimental performance/theatre), Somatic Movement Therapy, traditional healing arts, authentic movement and dance, ceremony and ritual, grief work, wilderness guiding/rites of passage, and 12-Step. 

In my storytelling and 1-on-1 or group sessions, I work within and from my own earthen and imaginal-based intuitive guidance and frameworks, woven with my special skills of listening to what is Under, being able to hold paradox as well as complex constellations and layers, and draw unexpected associative connections especially for/in situations that seem blocked or stuck. These ‘specialities’ and ways of Seeing are continually emergent and evolving, hard-won, and somatically grounded, informed by wisdom carried back from my own mental health and suicidality journeys, my ongoing explorations of wholeness and the ecological self, teachings from more-than-human kin, as well as my many years as an artist/poet/performer and event curator. I take very seriously the safe and loving holding of space, especially when it comes to witnessing and working with big, complex, intense emotions; the accompanying senses of guilt, shame, and exile; and being trusted with the things ‘no one else has ever been allowed to see.’ I am also forever an apprentice to the massive gift of being a carrier of the old stories and their ancient primordial energies.

* * * * * * * * *

~ CURRENT OFFERINGS ~

Within THE WILDS OF THE DEEP HEART, I offer a variety of unique and multi-layered experiences including:

— STORYTELLING OF THE OLD STORIES IN THE ORAL TRADITION
Held in sacred circle with communal sharing/’feeding the story’ in reciprocity for the story’s nourishment. (These gatherings can also be woven with inward journeying/creative intuition exercises.) When I say ‘old stories’ I mean myths, legends, folktales, and fairy-tales. My ‘style’ of storytelling is frequently described and celebrated as particularly ‘somatic, ‘immersive,’ and ’embodied.’ [see more testimonials below] My original teachers in the embodiment of this practice are Martin Shaw and Daniel Deardorff (their lineage is from whom ‘feeding the story’ comes), with a forever-grateful-bow to Clarissa Pinkola Estés who re-introduced me to the old stories in text via her groundbreaking book, Women Who Run With The Wolves, and Joseph Campbell whose hero’s journey mapping/framework helped save my life.

It is only in recent history that stories became ‘just for kids.’ The ancestral stories, told in the oral tradition, were what carried us through rites of passage, long winters, deep uncertainty, and The Unthinkable. They are woven with humor, grief, beauty, transformation, and Healing– and their ancient earthen energies have been helping us move through and with the trouble and mystery of our lives for thousands of years. The old stories told in a held container of sacred space elicit an often profound revelatory and therapeutic effect, including stimulus in the body. I work with the stories as the Alive, ancient, wild and wise energies they are; as such, most often I let the stories choose which ones want to be told in the moment, as they know better than I do what the hearts in the room are needing to hear.

These sessions, though entertaining and performative, are *not* performances. They are moreso energetic transmissions during a co-created experience with a group. When we come together in this way around story, we are practicing intuitive intelligence; relaxing into receptivity; experiencing heart-eye seeing; receiving messages and guidance; listening and sharing to/with others; listening to our own bodies; and immersively experiencing the imaginal world (a world which is not ‘separate’– but woven through the world ‘as we know it’).

— 1-ON-1 LEGEND SESSIONS
These are named after “legend” as in a myth/story, and also “legend” as in the part of a map that can help orient you via associative images/symbols. These deeply intuitive 1-on-1 sessions are based around inner/outer journeying and sharing, can be somatic or playful, co-created, ease-full, power-full, very therapeutic but not therapy, and highly specific to what each journeyer is interested in exploring. Trauma-aware, heart-led. Frequency determined by the journeyer [ie: biweekly, monthly, seasonally or around important moments/holidays, etc!].

I have special sensitivities to what is held in the secret heart, what is in the exiled/orphaned/othered/abandoned spaces and places, what is down in the Underneath and buried; holding sheltering space for the emergence and development of intuitive gifts (especially for highly sensitive people/empaths with histories of relational or family trauma); learning how to create boundaries to harmful energies; folks looking to encourage self-love, worth, and trust; wanting to ‘unstick’ themselves from impossible-seeming situations including those going on for a long time; needing a new-and-ancient/associative/imagistic perspective on tricky or muddled circumstances; folks looking to navigate their mental health journey (including crises/suicidality) within a mythic context.

There are those I work with who are storytellers/writers/creatives, others are therapists/social workers/practitioners, but/and all folks want more connection to their mythic realms, their human bodies, and the earth. See below for some other broader ideas on the benefits of this work and why you’d choose to do it. Trust me on this: It’s never too late. <3

— OUTDOOR WORK + LEGEND SESSIONS (ESPECIALLY FOR THE MYTHIC-CURIOUS CITY-FOLK!)
Held outdoors in what I called ‘The Urban Mythic’ and public park spaces, this work can take the form of an outdoor 1-on-1 Legend Session; or a wild vigil, Quest, wandering walk, or ecotherapeutic sojourn. This is for someone interested in experiencing in real-time the co-creative dance of the imaginal/unseen and the physical/natural worlds, practicing how to read meaning, follow the body’s intuitive wisdom, create designated containers in which to Deep Listen, and/or have a short “adventure.”

My work is deeply grounded in my experience of the natural world and the primordial energies that work and move through me. Available for those in the NYC area and of course along the course of my out-of-state or wilderness travels!

— CRAFT + ETHOS OF STORYTELLING WORK

As a devoted oral tradition storyteller and Deep Listener with a specific way of working with the ancient earthen energies of story, I also sit with those who are looking for storywork accompaniment or mentorship. There is some overlap with thematics of the Legend Sessions here, since everything is interconnected, but/and this is a particular point of entry and work to do together, focused on the craft and ethos of being a storyteller/carrier and working humbly and authentically with these energies and what they are asking of you.

~ SOUND LIKE A YES? CURIOUS? NEXT STEPS … ~

I have offered this work online, internationally, and in person, in locations ranging from an eco-sustainable shop’s backyard to a rehab/recovery center to the East River waterfront to a contemporary church service to high school and college classrooms to Dr. Sharon Blackie’s Mythic Imagination Network. They are tailored to each individual, community, or gathering with discernment, integrity, and heart.

Email me with interest/for more info or to schedule an exploratory Zoom call. :) No pressure to work together or go forward. <3

I have a sliding scale for those who need it as well as standard rates. Online sessions are an hour at a minimum, but usually 1 hour and 15 minutes; in-person/outdoor work can be longer, usually 90 minutes to 2 hours.

SURPRISES >> I’m now sharing my previously unlisted YouTube playlist of storytelling samples to get a feeling for my telling-vibes. Here’s a Dropbox audio file of my telling of ‘The Maiden King.’ <3 Here’s also another playlist of my general heart-work vibes.

~ BROADLY, WHAT THE WORK CAN HELP WITH ~

** I find that the folks drawn to working with me are finding me for Very specific reasons which become apparent fairly quickly inside the work. The work shows us what it is. You don’t have to Know. <3 These are just some broad strokes:

— Developing/reconnecting to inner resources including mythic guides and landscapes
— Nervous system regulation / developing a ‘noticing’/awareness of what it’s like to move through different states
— Experimenting creatively
— Personal map-making: expanding and connecting to interiority/interior space (so much of our modern world interactions are directed outwardly/exterior)
— Re-embodying imagination in an easeful way
— Developing and practicing intuition and associativity (associating/making connections to aid in meaning-making)
— Embodiment, noticing, mindfulness and greater connection to the body
— Linking the body and imaginal/spiritual realms
— Inhabiting spaces of play and wonder
— Exploring ritual and rites of passage
— Being witnessed
— Deepening connection to the earth and more-than-human kin

~ SOME INSTANCES IN WHICH YOU CAN CALL ME IN ~ 

— Feeling stuck or working with a time of grief/lostness/’depression’ or other crises
— Have a particular emotion or life-occurrence you want to make space around or hold a safe container for processing
— Create a rite of passage/ritual or mark a transition
— Want to invite in more internal guidance and inner resourcing- ‘re-weaving yourself to yourself’ and to your own ecosystem
— Interest in storytelling and/or re-story-ing your life, getting started as a storyteller, or evolving/deepening your writing or telling practice
— Help distilling difficult decisions down to Truth by practicing with images and somatic sensitivity
— Interest in meeting a particular trouble/issue/question in a new/different and creative way
— (and of course) Just to have fun, explore, try something new!

*

I give thanks always to Where It All Began: the old stories, the Great Mother and my more-than-human kin (lands, waters, plants, animals…), what I’ve come to call The Urban Mythic, Dr. Martin Shaw and Mythsinger Daniel “3D” Deardorff, as well as Joseph Campbell, Clarissa Pinkola Estés, Mars of ThruBody Therapy, and The Storytelling Circle.

* * * * * * * * *

~ WHAT THE PEOPLE SAY ~

So this is my official endorsement. You are the storytelling best!

– Dr. Sharon Blackie – award-winning and bestselling author and psychologist with a background in mythology and folklore

I have worked with Audrey Dimola as a myth-carrier, myth-teller, myth-singer and facilitator; I have witnessed the deep, all-encompassing and undeniably potent connection that she has with every story held in her bones; I have been inspired by the passion, care and commitment with which she goes about uncovering the depths of her soul, and then in offering her experiences as a guiding light for others on a similar path. Audrey embodies for me proof of the power that story can have in changing the course of our lives.

– Brendan Lucia (MA, HCPC, BADth) – Co-founder, The Storytelling Circle

Audrey is a masterful facilitator– both solo and in collaboration– and a magnetic storyteller. She has a unique gift at weaving together personal history, ancient myth, and political realities, shining a light on an increasingly urgent mental health crisis facing our world today. She is not afraid to explore stories in their entirety and at their most nuanced, modeling a bravery and vulnerability that is contagious to anyone attending to her performance. Bearing witness to Audrey’s talents is, in many ways, a powerful form of time travel: a lesson in holding space for the past, present, and future all at once.

Audrey’s work is essential in the context of transforming and refining our approach to mental health. She is not afraid to dwell in the liminal space of symbol and metaphor and meaning, a space that resonates deeply for those of us who struggle with mental health challenges, or identify as mad, neurodivergent, or disabled. Transformation necessitates engaging with crisis, and engaging in crisis often requires an embrace of all the unique talents Audrey brings and holds in her work with story.

– Jessie Roth – Director, Institute for the Development of Human Arts

Kirsten [Milliken, storyteller] and I met Audrey di Mola at Martin Shaw’s School of Myth in 2021 and were pretty much begging her to join The Roundhouse [Storytelling School/Community] by the end. With good reason. She’s not only a talented storyteller, she’s a true story carrier. She feels the stories she carries so deeply, and transmits that depth of feeling to her audience. She makes us slow down, pay attention, remember what is real and sacred. She’s also an amazing community member.

– Daniel Allison – storyteller, best-selling author, founder of Roundhouse Storytelling School

~ REFLECTIONS FROM 1-ON-1 LEGEND SESSIONS ~

Audrey creates such a unique and beautiful container in her legend sessions. She is a guide and a mirror, reflecting back to me the truth of myself, so I can “re-member” (as she says) who I am. This is done with such gentle compassion, care, and understanding, which helps me feel safe to be vulnerable with her. I feel so deeply seen in these sessions and I trust her so much. I am so grateful for the incredible resource these sessions have been for me. – Lana H.

I have been thinking so so so much about my last session with you recently. And the power of symbols. I really didn’t realize just how powerful it is to communicate with the subconscious in that way. It hit me like a ton of bricks yesterday. Symbols are so much clearer than words. – Alexandrine B.

Your session really sparked a radical honestly with my soul and SO MUCH has been unravelling since then. Lots of layers of ‘not-self’ have had to fall away and that’s been painful but also am deeply grateful for new expanded perspectives. THANK YOU for the magic you weave <3 – Carla H.

I simply cannot thank you enough for the amazing gift of your time & your being!  […] I am so excited about the work you are doing. You are truly a blessing– to me & to the world. Your love & energy & imagination illuminate so much! – Margery K.

as a trauma therapist, i have been searching for innovative ways to explore grief in my body. the [intro] legend session with audrey was exactly what i’ve been looking for. i was guided through 3-4 visual meditations that allowed me to feel less cluttered in my mind, more centered in my body, and i’ve felt directed and focused all week. i’m excited to use these sessions to better connect to my ancestors, intuition, and future self. pro tip: go in with zero expectations and let your intuition take the lead. 10/10 would recommend – Sonalee Rashatwar, @thefatsextherapist

~ REFLECTIONS / COMMENTS FROM ORAL TRADITION STORYTELLING + SPACE-HOLDING ~

You are truly a master storyteller. Your embodied expressions are not simply engaging. They invite us to join inside a safe container to envelop us in which we can all co-create and feed the story. I’m still moved and moving through my engagement in the myth and the aftermath. – Dori C., In the wilds of myth participant

The beauty of your work is how it ignites so much and allows for a new space where we can be and take hold of it with a truer presence and voice. – Claudia F., Mythic Imagination Network member

I feel like by holding and participating in things like this, that create that energy for our selves individually and for the collective, we are recreating something nurturing and positive. And by having a crew who believe in it too holds that space. […] I was thinking this morning about how stories like The Nixie can help me understand the mad rush of energies that course my body. That when the story was being told, Audrey, your face took on the different aspects of the characters, so when you said that we have all parts in us it made sense. It made me feel that we must limit ourselves as humans in our capacity, and I need to sit with that. – Carol T., story-space participant

Thank you for your beautifully crafted telling today. You are a true genius (as far as I’m concerned) of telling stories. – Carey M., story-space participant

When you tell stories you live them, but you also are able to bring us into that space so we can live them too. That is an almighty gift […] I am so grateful for your magical storytelling, so grateful for putting so much of yourself into what you do. – Matt B., In the wilds of myth participant

As I was thanking the 4 Directions this morning, I suddenly had an understanding the Magical Cauldron you brought to each Story Circle.  How you invited us to leap into the boiling Cauldron without hesitation, as his Horse counseled Ivan– carrying with us all of our journeys & all that we had experienced along the way– and to emerge stronger and more beautiful than ever, transformed by the energy of Story.  The magic of telling/hearing True stories!  As Ben Okri says (among many many other wise things) in The Mystery Feast: A story is not a thing.  It is a perpetual potentiality.  An endlessly coiled energy. It sleeps in its Elysium till it is brought into the realm of human beings. Thank you for bringing that Energy to life in your Storytelling and in your Legend sessions. – Margery K., original Mythic Imagination Network member, now story-space regular! :)

Your expression is an absolute gift, I feel like every time I hear you speak I feel like I’m in the presence of pure life force energy. – Carla H., Mythic Imagination Network member/facilitator

Your telling was brilliant!! It was so alive and natural, perfect pacing and pitch. So much heart! I was crying at the end. And what a rich and deep conversation! I went away nourished and warm. – Ruth T., story-space participant

As someone who is currently in A Dark Night of the Soul, your vulnerability around your struggles, and how you have come to work with them in such an amazingly imaginative way has offered me so much inspiration. – Bonnie G., Mythic Imagination Network member [after pilot session on The Urban Mythic]

So good to feel your channeling of story, my kin! And, loving how you tell with your hands, weaving worlds and threads of webs of story in this world and that world with your hands. So beautiful!!! Thank you for your heart and soul, pouring into story and pouring story through… – Sara M., fellow storyteller

Audrey – wow! You blew it out of the park – again! I’m so deeply moved by your presence and embodied storytelling! It clearly takes me on some deep journeys! – Stephen J., In the wilds of myth participant

Even as a normally ‘cynical teenager’ you, through your incredible storytelling and ability to encourage and bring out empathy within us that you broke me down and punctured what I had believed was going to be a continuing hardened-heart. […] You gave me a new love and passion for myth and the importance and beauty of physical connection through narrative and oration. – Navarro, youth participant of outdoor story session/ritual experience

Sitting and talking with you, I felt the most present I’ve felt in awhile. Your energy, confidence, and positivity was so powerful and I felt transported listening to your story. Thanks for helping me put so much stress and struggle into the context of the bigger picture. – Maisie, youth participant of outdoor story session/ritual experience

I’m stunned and in awe. […] Thank you for holding this Story Space so powerfully, so personally, and preparing the ritual food in just ‘The Right Way’ for us all on this day in this time. – Belinda W., In the wilds of myth participant

It was extraordinary! I am full of admiration and gratitude for Audrey’s courage and– I can’t even think of a word to use because ‘skill’ or even ‘art’ seem to be inadequate to express what was happening. I’m so glad I could be there! It was unforgettable. – Nerissa K., Roundhouse Storytelling School member

Phenomenal storytelling. So confident, so, so assured, so eloquent. Flow-Wolf! – Eileen, Roundhouse Storytelling School member

Audrey I was blown away by your presence, your powerful delivery and the way you invited everyone to be involved in the process […] You have a remarkable gift. – Dawn W., Mythic Imagination Network member

All parts of me were alive with curiosity and engagement during your session– and I, who have loved story all my life, feel like I can see it in a new way now, one that allows me to participate! – Jeanne B., Mythic Imagination Network member

I could feel your beautiful, authentic, spiritually loving energy all the way through. – Becky B., Mythic Imagination Network member

It was such a joy to not try to analyze, not to let my all-too-busy mind get in the way but simply to let Story flow into every fiber of my being– a whole-body and soul experience. I feel the way trees do after a much-needed rain. – Margery K., original Mythic Imagination Network member, now story-space regular! :)

 ~ ABOUT MY NEW WRITINGS ON SUBSTACK, THE ANGEL; FOR WRESTLING ~

Such an intimate read. You do this thing in your writing. Your words seem to bend the page (metaphorically) where the personal meets the mythical and it feels like an invitation to cross a threshold. It’s at once unusual and natural. – Jane Clark – author of Story Carrier and former writing professor

Audrey has something to offer to almost every one of my friends. This is because her roots are buried so deeply in myth they’re almost indistinguishable from it. Her story is one of precarious life and brutal strength, one that many of you may see yourselves in. Perhaps you’re looking for a fellow traveler on your difficult path, maybe it’s guidance you seek, all I can guarantee is that you will not regret incorporating her words, perspective and art into your inbox. – Kristin Becker – LCMHCA

~ THIS WORK DANCES WITH ~

The old stories + the oral tradition, earth connection and reciprocity, embodied creative experiences, explorations of inner and outer wilderness, mythologies of personhood and place, the body as compass/oracle, space for grief work, developing associativity/’leaping consciousness,’ holding paradox, deep listening, rites of passage, hero’s journey frameworks and trickster wisdom, imaginative thinking in mechanical times, weaving the Center and the Edge, rooted lived-experience perspectives on recontextualizing mental illness/spiritual emergence and suicidality, generatively holding the tension of the opposites in the both/and ‘mandorla’ space, developing and strengthening contact with inner mythic resources, landscapes, beings, and guides.

* * * * * * * * *

~ SELECTED PAST EVENTS, GATHERINGS + PRESENTATIONS ~

Sound + Story: an improvisational exploration in trusting the expression of soul-full rhythms and ancient stories // on-the-spot collaboration with multi-instrumentalist and circle-singer Yuma Is – August 2023

Secret City: Encountering the Urban Mythic – pilot session on Dr. Sharon Blackie’s Mythic Imagination Network – April 2023

Wild Body Dreaming with Audrey – monthly storytelling sessions for Dr. Sharon Blackie’s Mythic Imagination Network – April to December 2022; continuing on with stories, shares, and unique offerings, March to August 2023

Active member of the international Roundhouse Storytelling School – throughout 2022

At Valley Spirit Acupuncture + Internal Arts in Beacon, NY: Wild Body Dreaming- Letting The Stories Lead Us – October 2022

Community, Storytelling, and Immersion into the Mythic – outdoor telling of The Handless Maiden woven with a mini wilderness vigil in Astoria Park – October 2022

Therapeutic Story Sessions for the recovery community at addiction treatment center, Reality House – ongoing; started late Summer/Fall 2022

The Way Out Is In: Letting The Stories Lead Us – workshop for Tam Orlando’s Reclaim Your Creative Expression virtual retreat, storytelling in the oral tradition interwoven with Personal Legend/imaginative journeying – August 2022

Their Ways Are Wise & Wild: An Evening of Storytelling – interwoven with Personal Legend/imaginative journeying, in-person at Earth&Me in Astoria, Queens – July + August 2022

Immersion Session: The Woman Who Married Coyote – for Roundhouse Storytelling School – June 2022

Moving Through Myth – The Way Out Is In story session (La Loba, The Moon Palace, Prince Lindwurm) for Qoya/Wiracocha Foundation’s fundraiser for the Q’ero weaving women – March 2022

Long-form storytelling events (with breaks for ‘feeding the story’!) of The Handless Maiden and Parsifal for UK-based The Storytelling Circle – 2021

Integrating the Hero’s Journey into your Life and Practice, presentation/workshop facilitated in collaboration for Institute for the Development of Human Arts – 2021

How to Convert Your Life into Legend: Inside the Hero’s Journey – solo presentation/workshop for Institute for the Development of Human Arts – 2020

Validating Psychosis: The Missing Narrative essay published on Mad in America – August 2020

THE WAY OUT IS IN – Creative Intuition Sessions [what would become the ‘Legend Sessions’] piloted online with diverse groups and 1-on-1’s – 2020

THE BOOK OF LEGEND – personal essay and original mythos including the core myth that saved my life – self-published Sept 2019

A Prayer To See & Be Seen: Creative Reframing for Mental Health – 2-part event with guest speakers including documentary screening of ‘CRAZYWISE’ – 2019

PROVENANCE – performative mythology / original ritual theatre on themes of mental illness, spiritual emergence, selfhood and origination – 2018

HOW WE CREATE & HOW WE COPE: intersections of art & mental health/mental illness – showcase reprised + expanded as part of LaGuardia Performing Arts Center’s Rough Draft Festival – 2018

Church of the Sacred Body – fireside showcase exploring stories held in the body through writing, ritual, and music – 2018

HOW WE CREATE & HOW WE COPE: intersections of art & mental health/mental illness – sold out showcase, panel + mini exhibition debuted at Queens Council on the Arts – 2017

Women Who Run With The Wolves – showcase inspired by Clarissa Pinkola Estés (of course) and weaving story, poetry, music, and ceremony – 2016

MASHUPS! – holding space for a painter, dancer, writer, and musician to riff off each other and improv in the moment for a series of several ‘mashups’ – 2015

Nature of the Muse – fireside literary event exploring the interrelation between polished/edited work and writing that happens LIVE to randomly selected prompts written by the audience – 2013 to 2015

Upcoming and full list of past events will be listed HERE.

*

Sometimes
if you move carefully
through the forest

breathing
like the ones
in the old stories

who could cross
a shimmering bed of dry leaves
without a sound,

you come
to a place
whose only task

is to trouble you
with tiny
but frightening requests

conceived out of nowhere
but in this place
beginning to lead everywhere.

Requests to stop what
you are doing right now,
and

to stop what you
are becoming
while you do it,

questions
that can make
or unmake
a life,

questions
that have patiently
waited for you,

questions
that have no right
to go away
– david whyte

* * * * * * * * *

~ ON A BROADER NOTE / THE IMPORTANCE OF ALTERNATIVES ~

“There is a place for professional intervention, such as psychotherapy, for some, and psychoactive drugs that help avert acute crises.

However, the idea that these interventions are somehow superior to lifestyle changes, relationships, or non-technical approaches like yoga is an idea that is solely based on ideology and vested interests in maintaining professional standing and power. It is not based on science, and, in fact, may actually defy it.

People are different, and difference from the dominating norm is not necessarily evidence of inferiority and disease. Further, trauma, oppression, and adversity are a part of life, whether we wish to acknowledge or appreciate it or not. And, long-term healing happens through changes in the environment; changes that have been common sense for centuries prior to the advent of industrialization.

Relationships matter. Relaxation matters. Nutrition matters. Hope and purpose matter. Nature matters. Love matters.”

– Noel Hunter, Psy.D., from ‘Trauma & Madness in Mental Health Services’

There will Always be the reality that I came to This Work and these continually emergent abilities/sensitivities/capacities from my time in the underworld, my time in the throes of what can be described as mental health crisis and suicidality (read my 2020 Mad In America article here and this more recent Substack article here). I’m more than willing to discuss and offer my own perspectives and most helpful experiences/resources, many of which are listed below. I am extremely sympathetic to those looking to carve their own path through the pathless wilderness and find new ways of Seeing/recontextualizing a diagnosis, time in crisis, suicidality, or mental health journey.

In general: There are so many alternatives to the traditional biomedical/biopsychiatric model for working with mental illness, trauma, and chronic stress. It was not for me, personally, but/and I am not anti-medication; I am anti-lack of choices, education, and imagination in the mental health space. There are so many ways to move forward (and deeper!) from the disempowering ‘sick brain that needs to be fixed’ diagnosis phraseology of the DSM.

Folks have asked in the past why I still use DSM language re: my own diagnosis, etc.– it is because we are currently in the narrow place of the in-between’s from one world consciousness-construct to the next. We need reference points, map-points to help people find the way from this current worldview to what is continually emergent– something more ecological, integrated, imaginative, Free. I’m here to keep helping that next consciousness-construct into being.

REFER TO THIS LIST IF YOU LOSE HOPE. JUST A SMALL FRACTION OF WHAT IS ~OUT THERE.~ THERE IS ALWAYS ANOTHER WAY!

– Yoga (for ease, try Yoga With Adriene online!)
– Storytelling
– Hero’s Journey frameworks
– Grief work
– Meditation/Mindfulness
– Ceremony, ritual, and earth-based practices explored safely/bravely with co-creators, guides and practitioners who are continually doing their own work
– The film ‘Crazywise‘ (pivotal for me)
– Internal Family Systems (IFS) therapy- nice bridge from talk therapy to something more mythic
– Dance and movement
– Somatic Experiencing
– Sensory deprivation floating
– Breathwork
– Working with myth and archetype (see below for ‘mythopoetic communities’)
– Qoya: a movement practice for living wise, wild, and free
– Contextual-Conceptual Therapy / Suicide Therapy (which works with METAPHOR as a huge component)
– Ancestral healing work
– Visualization/journeying
– Sound healing
– Sitting with and learning from plant medicine (CRUCIALLY important who holds ceremony for/with you and can integrate with you afterwards)
– Spending time outdoors, in nature, communing with the earth and more-than-human kin
– Care for/awareness of our bodies including sleep and nutrition (literally, what you eat!)
– Community (retreats, group support, sharing circles; see below as well)
– Healthy boundaries (!!!)
– Twelve Step programs (Codependents Anonymous / CoDA changed my life)
– Non-verbal creative modalities like music, art, collage…
– Peer-supported alternatives to the mainstream mental health model featuring events, community, resources, and trainings such as the Institute for the Development of Human Arts (IDHA), Icarus Project (archives), Project LETS; not to mention mutual aid hubs like Intuitive Public Radio Network, podcasts like Back from the Borderline […]
– Supportive mythopoetic communities (online and/or in-person) like The Fifth Direction, The Great Mother New Father Conference, the Minnesota Men’s Conference (and their EXCEPTIONAL archives on YouTube of life-saving wisdom)
– Clarissa Pinkola Estés, ALWAYS (author of ‘Women Who Run With The Wolves’), including on Audible. ‘The Power of the Crone’? YES.

You have choices. You have options. You have rights. Remember that.

MORE LIFE. <3