Greetings from Chicago
The gorgeous Chicago skyline
Hello from home!
I’ve spent the past two weeks in Chicago. This is home for me, and I’m a bit biased, but I think it’s the most beautiful place in the world. As I prepare to head back to the UK this week, I’m thinking about what “home” means to me and all the journeys I’ve taken to and from it. I’m also thinking about why “home” is important in general."
What is home?
Home means a lot of different things to me- it means different places, people, times, foods, and it means my own body. Each of us will have a different definition of home. Take a pause now and think about what home means to you. As you do that, notice the feeling in your body and any emotions that come up.
Why is home important?
In the world of mental health, John Bowlby, a pioneering attachment theorist, coined the term "secure base" to describe the essential role that a reliable and nurturing figure plays in our lives. This figure creates a secure emotional foundation for us to explore the world from. When we have a secure base, we feel confident to venture into new territories, take risks, and face challenges head-on. This foundation of safety allows us to develop a healthy sense of independence, curiosity, and resilience.
Having a secure base has a profound impact on our overall well-being. It nourishes our emotional health, boosts our self-esteem, and helps us navigate life's ups and downs with greater ease. John Bowlby was primarily focused on caregivers as a secure base, but I think a secure base can be a place, a thing, or that feeling you got when you thought of home.
I know that Chicago itself is part of my secure base. When I moved to Taiwan, I moved knowing that my friends, family and Chicago would always be there for me if I needed to come back. Returning home each time revitalizes me and grounds me.
This is one of the things we aim to do in therapy, yoga and any trauma healing. We hope to create a secure base, a home, that clients and students can feel safe working from so we can explore some of the sticky stuff knowing we have a solid foundation to return to. As time goes on, we aim to make that base more solid to support further exploration and healing. I use my own secure base to create a space for you to build yours, so even if you’ve never been to Chicago, you’re still getting its ripples when you work with me. That’s the power of home!
What’s On This Week?
We’ll be talking on Instagram this week about journeys and home.
Check out Conversations with a Wounded Healer on the 14th when I’ll be interviewing my amazing supervisor, mentor and friend, the incredible Dr. Isha McKenzie-Mavinga who gives us a lesson on racism in therapy, Black history in the UK, and deep-self compassion (which is also a way to feel home with yourself).
Come practice with me at yoga classes in Brighton on Saturday at 9:30am where we’re doing a yang to yin with breathwork to help find a sense of home in our bodies.
As always
If you’re struggling with mental health and looking for support, Get in touch to find out more about what I offer!
If you’re in Brighton, I’ll hope to see you on the mat. If you’re far away, I’ll look forward to hearing your feedback on the podcast and hearing from you on Instagram.
Until next week, take good care!
Anne
