Oct 2024 Newsletter

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The Chris Walsh Center is packed with amazing Fall 2024 Events! These include the next two installments of The Power of Resilience and Social Emotional Learning for Educators and The Resilient Caregiver, both taught by Dr. Simone Kotraba. In Addition, you can attend Empowering the Hero in Your Journey, as well as our Fall 2024 Caregiver Support Group. Make sure you keep up to date with all of our upcoming offerings by being subscribed to this newsletter and following us on Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

Thanks to a generous grand from the Sudbury Foundation, The Resilient Caregiver is free to attend. However, registration is required.

The Resilient Caregiver

Improving Wellbeing and Mental Health with Families and Community

In this experiential session, participants will explore the transformational process of resilience techniques developed by the HeartMath Institute. It includes simple on-the-go tools that empower participants to build emotional, mental, physical, and spiritual resilience. With practice, participants will connect more deeply with the power and intelligence of the heart during their daily routines. Adding the qualities of the heart helps create the important shift to change stressful thoughts and emotions to achieve inner peace and happiness. Participants will understand the importance of resilience to improve wellbeing and increase deep connection with themselves and loved ones. Participants will tune into their hearts, minds, and bodies to identify depleting and renewing emotions and develop emotional awareness skills that lead to greater self-regulation and co-regulation.

Who is Dr. Simone Kotraba?

Dr. Simone Kotraba is the founder of HeartMind Solutions. She is a parent of 11-year-old twins. Simone is a wellness facilitator and coach who guides families on a journey of growth and expansion, helping them unite their hearts and minds. With her light-hearted wisdom and vibrant energy, Simone creates a welcoming and supportive environment for participants to have courageous conversations, practice using their strengths, and tap into their highest potential. Simone has spent her entire career working with families, teaching, and leading in K-12 and higher education settings. She holds multiple licenses and certifications and is passionate about alleviating human suffering.

When: Thursday, October 24th, 2024 at 7:00 PM

Who: Dr. Simone Kotraba

Where: Hosted online by the Chris Walsh Center

To register for The Resiliant Caregiver with Dr. Simone Kotraba CLICK HERE. If you know someone who would benefit from attending this event, please feel free to forward this email, as well as share the included social media tile.

We are each the writers, directors, narrators, and main characters in the stories of our lives. So how do we create the story line that we want to live? How do we essentially become the hero in our own journey? The answer to this question lies within.

Our thoughts and our emotions are interconnected, and they shape the way that we see and navigate the world. Traditionally, we have placed a lot of importance on the role of the brain, but it is key to remember that the brain does not work alone. The heart, you see, is far more than a pump. It is a neurological network that holds short and long-term memory, and it develops and begins beating in a fetus before its brain begins forming. In fact, the heart sends far more information to the brain than the brain sends to the heart. Some psychologists refer to the heart as the first brain.

In fact, by using biofeedback called heart rate variability (or hrv for short), we can measure the communication of the heart. That’s right. We can actually measure the energy from the heart as it is in motion. We call these emotions. And what we now know is that our emotions have far more power over our well-being than was previously understood.

Our emotional states are a leading factor in our mental health and over time, even how resilient and healthy we are in general. And by tapping into the measurable energy from the heart and by harnessing the power or coherence of our emotions, we can become the intentional creators of the chapters that unfold in our lives’ journey.

In this hands-on session for all, we will discuss the energetic role of the heart and its impact on our mental health, clarity, and creativity, as well as our physical well-being and our relationships. Most importantly, we will practice easy skills that regulate our emotions, build coherence and ultimately help us to become the hero in the journey of our lives.

Thanks to a generous grand from the Sudbury Foundation, Empowering the Hero in Your Journey is free to attend. However, registration is required.

When: Thursday, November 14, 2024 at 7:00 PM

Who: Jenna Moniz

Where: Hosted Online by the Chris Walsh Center

To register for Empowering the Hero in Your Journey and learn more about Jenna Moniz, CLICK HERE. If you know someone who would benefit from attending this event, please feel free to forward this email, as well as share the included social media tile.

Unmet needs is a broad category. Yet, unfortunately, many of our children fall into this group, be it at school, in interpersonal relationships, at daycares, after school activities, or anywhere else. As Caregivers, feeling understood, supported, and informed are valuable tools for navigating these challenges with more compassion and confidence. We do not have walk this journey alone. This support group is meant to be flexible, once registered, you are welcome to drop in for any, or all, of the four sessions being offered this Fall.

Come join a 4-week support and information group to:
• connect and share your journey with other caregivers of children with unmet needs.
• learn communication techniques to manage daily transitions, activities and screen time with more confidence
• practice mindful compassion to manage expectations of self and others, face unmet expectations and loss
• share challenges and ideas about advocating for your child and yourself

Every other week, Masters of Counseling Psychology student, Natalie McCollam, will present on one of the above topics, followed by a group discussion. You'll be encouraged to share your experiences and knowledge, as well as learn from one another. None of us knows everything and we are better when we come together. If you are looking for a supportive space to learn and connect with other caregivers, this group is for you! CLICK HERE to register today!

When: Every Other Thursdays from 7:00 PM to 8:15 PM

November 14th, November 2nd, December 5th, and December 19th

Who: Masters of Counseling Psychology student, Natalie McCollam

Where: Online hosted by the Chris Walsh Center

To register for the Fall 2024 Caregiver Support Group please CLICK HERE. If someone you know would benefit from this support group, please feel free to forward this email or share the included social media tile so they can sign up.

The next two sessions in The Power of Resilience & Social Emotional Learning for Educators are coming up! The first session was incredible. You won't want to miss these!

Thanks to a generous grant from the Sudbury Foundation to the Chris Walsh Center, The Power of Resilience & Social Emotional Learning for Educators is FREE to attend. Likewise, while these trainings are designed for educators, caregivers are welcome.

The Power of Resilience & SEL for Educators

Improving Wellness, Mental Health, and SEL in Schools

Activate your superpowers to boost your well-being and create belonging through this experiential workshop. This 3-session workshop offers practical strategies for educators to integrate into their daily routines, helping regulate the nervous system, reduce stress, and increase resilience and creativity. Interactive sessions will connect you with peers to cultivate self-awareness, heart-brain coherence, mindfulness, and embodiment practices that empower you to thrive personally and professionally. You are invited to attend one, two, or all three of the sessions.

Session 2: Thursday, November 21st, 2024 at 4:00 PM Online

Mindfulness, Resilience, and SEL for Thriving Educators

In this session, participants will develop a general understanding of mindfulness and how it can be utilized to build resilience and decrease chronic stress. Understand how chronic stress can negatively impact work outcomes and how mindfulness can build emotional resilience. Participants will identify and understand the emotional, cognitive, physical, and behavioral benefits of mindfulness in schools. Participants will practice self-awareness by identifying where they feel stress in the body. Understand what the stress response is and how chronic stress affects the body. Examine how mindfulness can increase resilience to support a healthy stress response and practice simple and effective exercises for sustained resilience.

Session 3: Thursday, December 12th, 2024 at 4:00 PM Online

Resilience and the Embodied Educator

In this session, participants will identify and lovingly understand their “Stuck” emotions and thoughts and transform them into resilience using Social Presencing Theater (SPT). SPT is a method for exploring the creative potential of social systems such as schools. By connecting to the body using contemplative methods, we become aware of the "social body" of a group in addition to our own body. Social Presencing Theater serves both personal and collective resilience, well-being, self-awareness, and the decision-making process. In this session, we will perform exercises together in a mindful way that combines body, heart, mind, attention, reflection, and silence. Social Presencing Theater is an embodiment practice developed by Arawana Hayashi and Otto Scharmer at the Presencing Institute at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

When: Thursday, October 10th, November 21st, and December 12th at 4:00 PM

Who: Dr. Simone Kotraba

Where: Hosted Online by the Chris Walsh Center

Who is Dr. Simone Kotraba?

Dr. Simone Kotraba is the founder of HeartMind Solutions. She is a transformational coach and wellness facilitator who guides individuals and teams on a journey of growth and expansion, helping them unite their hearts and minds. With her light-hearted wisdom and vibrant energy, Simone creates a welcoming and supportive environment for participants to use their strengths and tap into their highest potential. Simone has spent her entire career working with families, teaching, and leading in K-12 and higher education settings. She holds multiple licenses and certifications and is passionate about alleviating human suffering.

To register for The Power of Resilience & Social Emotional Learning for Educators with Dr. Simone Kotraba CLICK HERE. If you know someone who would benefit from attending this event, please feel free to forward this email, as well as share the included social media tile.

As parents, we want the most for our children, but getting your child's needs met is not always easy. It can be challenging to know what to do to support them, as well as what services are available. The Chris Walsh Center is here to help. When you book an appointment for a free consultation, one of our graduate assistants will meet with you to gain an in depth understanding of your needs and begin the process of connecting you to appropriate services.

You do not have to do this alone, the Chris Walsh Center can support you in your mission of creating the best possible life for your child. Call 508-215-5630 or email ChrisWalshCenter@framingham.edu to book your consultation today!

The ADDitude Magazine website is full of resources for caregivers, adults, and professionals who have ADHD or who support people who do. To check out the Parenting ADHD section of the website, Click Here. Adults with ADHD can Click Here to find resources specially designed for you. To check out the website in general, head to https://www.additudemag.com for a plethora of information to support your understanding of ADHD.

Mission: To provide information for families and educators about the continuum of educational support available to students with disabilities, students who are gifted, and students with unmet needs. The center will offer support, workshops and other programming for families, educators, student support professionals, administrators, and advocates in the MetroWest area. The center also will engage in scholarly research, educator preparation, and professional development.

Email: chriswalshcenter@framingham.edu
Website: https://linktr.ee/chriswalshcenter
Location: 100 State Street, Framingham, MA, USA
Phone: (508) 215-5630