Homecoming Online: Living Ritual Practices to Nourish Resilience

Please come home. Please come home.
Find the place where your feet know to walk
And follow your own trail home.

Jane Hooper

What does it mean to come home to ourselves? This is a question I ask myself regularly and one that I love to contemplate with others. Late summer and early autumn have always felt like a season of homecoming to me, so I will explore this topic for five weeks starting on Sept 21st 2023.

Resilience is the ability to recover quickly from challenges or spring back into shape. To be resilient does not mean we will be unaffected by difficulty or immune to stress; it simply means we have tools that we can draw on that help us to move through life's challenges in a healthy way. In this five-week program, we will explore several tools that can support us in coming back home to ourselves and fostering true inner resilience.

Some of the tools we will be working with in this program are -

• mindfulness & self-compassion practices
• polyvagal theory & nervous system education
• Self & co-regulation practices
• yoga & somatic movement
• Conscious breathwork

You do not need to be interested in all of these practices to participate in this program, nor do you need to have prior experience with any of these modalities. I have chosen to share the practices I have been using in my life for the last two decades, but I will offer them to you to explore in your own way. If you have questions or concerns about whether this program will suit you, don't hesitate to get in touch with me directly so we can chat.

HOW WILL THIS PROGRAM BE DELIVERED?

This online program will run for five weeks and be delivered through a mix of pre-recorded and live online classes. Pre-recorded classes will be published on Thursdays, providing the theory and experiential practice for the week. 

Our live class will be held on Tuesday mornings and will focus on experiential practice & group discussion. There will also be a live class to open the program on Sept 21st. All live classes will be recorded for later viewing and housed on Teachable for later viewing.

Live Class Dates (on Zoom):

• Thursday Sept 21st 5:30-6:30 pm PST Opening Circle
• Tuesdays Sept 26th- Oct 24th 10-11am PST

On top of the live sessions, you will also get access to -

• guided meditation audio recordings
• supportive handouts
• recipes for seasonal self-care
• resources for further learning

COURSE CURRICULUM

This is just a short outline of the topics we will explore each week. Classes will be trauma-informed; each session will include an educational component and experiential practice.

• Week 1 Coming Home to Ourselves: introduction to polyvagal theory and the concept of nervous system regulation, establishing somatic awareness, coming home to the body, and the practice of embodied presence.
• Week 2 Nurturing Safety & Ease: introduction to the concepts of triggers and glimmers, identifying our routes to inner safety, creating our inner sanctuary & developing our internal tracking skills
• Week 3 Tend & Befriend: building awareness, turning towards our inner experience, coming to know our parts, & moving from states of protection to states of connection.
• Week 4 The Compassionate Heart: introduction to the science of self-compassion & compassion-based practices
• Week 5 The Medicine of Connection: developing practices of co-regulation & connection, strengthening our relational skills

BONUS CLASSES:

• • Hearthtending Rhythms: defining self-care and personal practice (sadhana), exploring the value of daily, monthly or seasonal rituals of personal care.
  • Deep Nourishment: working with food and plant medicines for resilience, seasonal wisdom for autumn wellness, ancestral nourishment, and connection to place.

WHO IS THIS PROGRAM FOR?

Anyone who has an interest in cultivating personalized practices of self-care that support resiliency.

WHAT IS THE PRIMARY FOCUS OF THIS PROGRAM?

In this program, I will be working with the theme of homecoming as a primary metaphor for looking at our practices of personal ritual and self-care in various ways to come back home to ourselves. This is a metaphor that I have been working with for many years, and I think it can be an especially valuable one to work with during this time of global uncertainty. I will share practices and teachings that I have found to be helpful and supportive in my own life, and I will support you in making these practices your own. I want this program to feel like a conversation that you can engage with, taking whatever feels valuable as inspiration and leaving behind anything that does not resonate in your own life at this moment.

WHAT WILL I LEARN?

I will share several different practices and teachings with you; what you take away from them will be unique to you. I hope you will learn how you can nourish your own sense of inner resiliency & wellness specific to your life situation at this time.

WHAT IF I HAVE QUESTIONS OR NEED SUPPORT?

This program includes one live class on Zoom each week where you can ask questions and receive support. If you cannot make a session live or have a question you prefer to ask anonymously you will also be given my email so that you can send your questions to me directly. If I feel there is a need I will also schedule an Office Hours session for the group, which would be a live Zoom session where we can focus on Q&A.

WHAT TIME ARE THE LIVE CLASSES AT AND ARE THEY RECORDED?

All live classes will be held on Zoom and recorded for later viewing. The live classes for the 2023 program will be held on -

• Thursday Sept 21st 5:30-6:30 pm PST Opening Circle
• Tuesdays Sept 26th- Oct 24th 10-11am PST

PRICING OPTIONS: $196-$296 sliding scale

There are two pricing options available for this program. The full price is CAD 296, which reflects the course's true value and includes a $20 donation to the scholarship fund, which supports those needing access to these teachings. For those who are facing financial hardship, there are a limited amount of sliding scale spots at CAD 196.

*Please note that if you can afford the full price but choose a sliding scale price point you are potentially taking a spot away from someone else. I ask that you consider this when making your choice.

Scholarships are available for single parents, BIPOC or transgender folks who are facing financial hardship. To apply for one of these spots please email me directly at natalie@natalierousseau.com

REGISTER FOR HOMECOMING 

Click on the links below to register for Homecoming 2023. Please read the Pricing Options above before purchasing.

Homecoming 2023 $296 CAD 

Sliding Scale Pricing (limited amounts, please read pricing options above) $196 CAD