Exploring Grief Through Mindfulness and Expressive Arts Practices for System Involved Youth

Basha* Star & Ursula Elsa

Training Description

There is a lot of pain and suffering in our world, and youth, in particular, are often sensitive and in tune with the grief and challenges around them and in their lives. In this training, we will offer skills and practices for those who serve and support system involved youth to recognize the signs of grief, and expand their capacity to support grief tending for any big transitions and change, including but not exclusively around death and dying. We will learn mindfulness practices for grief as it arises in the moment, ongoing grief tending, and creative arts practices to support youth in navigating the grief they may be holding.

Learning Objectives

● Identify 5 signs of grief for system involved youth

● Acquire 3 mindfulness practices which can be used for grounding into multi-layered emotions

● Acquire 2 creative and expressive arts activities which can be used to process grief with young people

Agenda

11:00-11:15am  Welcome, Orientation & Overview of Day

11:15-11:30am  Facilitator and Participant Intros

11:30-11:45am  Embodied mindfulness practice

11:45am-12pm  Compassion practice for honoring the spectrum of emotions

12:00-12:15pm  What is grief - an expanded exploration of the many arms of grief

12:15-12:30pm  Reflection practice around grief

12:30-12:45pm  Pair Share in break out rooms

12:45-1:00pm  Group share & Discussion

1:00-1:45pm  Lunch break (CE hours will not be offered for this time)

1:45-2:00pm  Mindfulness practice

2:00-2:15pm  Grief for Transitions in Life

2:15-2:30pm  Rituals for marking transitions

2:30-2:45pm  The impact of untended grief on the body and emotions

2:45-3:00pm  Expressive Arts Modalities for Grief Tending

3:00-3:15pm  Expressive Arts practice for exploring grief

3:15-3:30pm  Small group share

3:30-3:45pm  Group share + Reflections

3:45-4:00pm  Closing

Meet Our Trainer

Basha* star was raised and rooted in the Bay Area. She practices as a Priestess supporting ancestral connection and offering spiritual counsel. She has been working in mental health support services for over 20 years currently focusing on DEI work in the mental health non-profit sector in Alameda County.

Ursula Elsa (they/she) was born and raised in the beautiful land of the Bay Area, Ohlone Territory. She has been teaching mindfulness and nature connection to youth in the Bay Area for 8 years and is currently leading rites of passage and nature connection programming for Gaia Passages. Ursula is passionate about creating programming for LGBTQI+ and neurodiverse communities. She is also a trained doula and an advocate of parent’s rights in the birth community. 

This course meets the qualifications for (4.25) BBS CE hours for LCSWs, LMFTs, LPCCs, and LEPs as required by the California Board of Behavioral Sciences & is provided by Fred Finch Youth Center, CAMFT Provider #045295.