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Creative Ways to Deal with
Anxiety and Depression
Body-centered exercises and songs to make you
more aware, create space between you and your feelings, and help you move through a difficult period.
Women have a tendency
to put their health on the back burner while taking care of their families, and working outside their home. MWC's workshop
series is intended for women of all faith traditions, races, and cultures to learn how to care for their wellbeing.
On February 3, 2008
our workshop was lead by Connie Ridgway, a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, a Licensed Massage Therapist and a Singer. Our
members remember Connie from previous MWC Day of Prayer events in which she had led us in interfaith song and prayer.
For this workshop, she shared some techniques on alleviating anxiety and depression. She used a synergy of three
fields--therapy, bodywork, and singing--to help us creatively explore healing in our lives and hearts.
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Connie led the diverse
group of women participating in the workshop into body-centered exercises and songs to make us aware, create space between
us and our feelings, to help us move through a difficult period.
After a brief and
genuinely entertaining ice-breaker Connie led us into several beautiful and inspirational songs that recalled the power of
God to help us through difficult times. Afterwards, she led the group in meditation, asking each woman to focus on a difficulty
in their lives. Instead of pushing the negative feeling aside, Connie suggested to identify it, and to notice how that concern
affected the body. After the meditation, the women broke into smaller groups and discussed their experience through artwork.
Many women found it interesting that they drew similar conceptions of the effect of negative thoughts on paper.
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Overall, many of
the participants noted the diversity of the group present. There were women of different faith, denominations and ethnicities
present. One woman suggested that perhaps the most healing experience of the workshop was being able to meet with women of
different faith and identifying on what makes each of us human.
After the event,
the women shared conversation and refreshments with each other. We’d like to extend our appreciation to Connie Ridgeway
for her sincerity and time with us at this workshop. For more information about
our guest, Connie Ridgeway, visit her site: www.fullcirclehealing.com. Information on our next workshop date and program will be posted in the near future.
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