Naturally Therapeutic

03/25/2025

Jenn is excited (and nervous) to be speaking in High River tomorrow night. She will share a bit about her journey through cancer and talk about the amazing Healing Journey program offered through Wellspring.

12/22/2023

Amazing message for the holidays and for grief in general 💜

Holiday host etiquette: If you’re inviting someone to your home and they’re grieving, be sure you’re inviting their grief to attend, too. It will be there, anyway.

Don’t invite someone with the goal of cheering them up for the holidays. Don’t expect them to put on a happy face in your home. Don’t demand they fake it til they make it or do something they don’t want to do, either.

Invite them with the loving intention of offering cheer and companionship and unconditional care during the holidays. To do this, you will need to honor and be responsive to their needs and emotions.

You can do this by privately acknowledging their grief when you make the invitation:

“I know this season is extra hard and your heart is hurting. You and your grief are welcome in our home. Come as you are, we’d be honored to have you with us.”

It’s also incredibly loving to honor the reality that it’s often hard for grieving folks to know what they will want, need, be up for, or able to tolerate at the holidays.

Giving them an invite without the need for commitment and permission to change their mind is extra loving:

“You don’t have to decide right now. If it feels good to be with us, we will have plenty of food and love for you-just show up! I’ll check in again the day before to see if you’re feeling up to coming over and if there’s anything you’d like me to know about how we can support you.”

Your grieving friends and fam need attentive care and responsiveness at the holidays, not plans to keep them busy, distracted, and happy.

If they’re laughing, laugh with them.

If they’re weeping, ask if they’d like your company or your help finding a quiet place to snuggle up alone for awhile.

If they’re laughing while weeping, and this is more common than you’d think, stay with them - this is a precious moment of the human experience that is truly sacred.

We don’t need to protect ourselves or each other from grief at the holidays. In fact, the more we embrace grief as an honored holiday guest, the more healthy, happy, and whole our holidays will be. 🙏

Sarah Nannen

02/19/2022

I absolutely LOVE this explanation of boundaries.

Boundaries are behaviors, feelings, and beliefs… but always my own.

06/08/2021

I feel honoured to have had several sessions this week discussing the impacts of residential schools on my clients’ families and communities. I feel grateful that I could offer to***co and smudge for the children finally found. I feel hopeful that more and more people are talking and learning about this part of Canadian history. My girls (including my youngest’s bff) and I have been working on this tribute to the children found in Kamloops. 215 orange ribbons for 215 children 🧡🧡🧡

05/28/2021

Happy Friday! I am planning content to share with all of you and I would love to know what you would like to hear or read about. Please take this quick poll:

Click the image to voice your opinion!