The Awakening Center Newsletter

Table of Contents:

The Awakening Center Has a New Home and New Staff!

It is an exciting time for The Awakening Center!  When I founded The Awakening Center in 1994, I started with a vision based on my passion of helping women and men find their sense of Self, to “discover the person they were meant to be”.  Thirteen years later, The Awakening Center needed more space.  I was lucky enough to find a new suite of offices only blocks away, 3523 N Lincoln—just south of Addison—with good parking and close to the Brown Line “L”. 

The Awakening Center’s staff has also made exciting changes.  Several new therapists and nutritionists have been added, while others have moved on.  Our new team is dedicated to providing sound therapeutic interventions, with a wholistic and mindful approach.  Our new space allows us to have many more groups, classes and workshops.  See page 3 for our current calendars well as upcoming groups and services.  Please check our website for updated information.

For several more weeks we’ll be putting the finishing touches to make The Awakening Center as welcoming and peaceful as possible.  We’ll be offering introductory workshops just so you can stop in, meet our new team and see our new home!

Namasté,
Amy Grabowski

Protecting The Kid Within
Amy Grabowski, MA, LCPC

Editor’s Note:  Amy is in the process of writing a book about recovering from eating disorders, which she expects to be published this year.  This is excerpt from chapter 7 “Healing the Kids”.  Previous excerpts explained recovering your sense of Self and calming the critical Bullies.  You can read previous excerpts on our website www.awakeningcenter.net/newsletter

….’Rebeccah’ was a professional woman in her late 20’s who overate when she was depressed.  As I usually do in my initial intake interview, I asked Rebeccah what she preferred to be called.  She said, “Rebeccah is fine.  My friends call me Roxy; but don’t ever call me Becky.  I hate to be called Becky.” 
A few sessions later, we were exploring the meaning of her depression.  When I asked Rebeccah to visualize the Part of her who felt depressed, she saw a young girl.  Rebeccah immediately felt disgusted by the child.  In a sharp and critical voice with a scowl on her face, she said, “That’s Becky.  I hate her.  She’s repulsive.”  A critical Bully had taken over.  I needed to protect the Kid/Outcast before the Bully did more harm than good.  In order for the Kid/Outcast to let go of her burdens, she has to feel safe.  Because we had not already worked with the Bully to calm her down, I did not expect the Bully to step aside.  Instead I decided to move the Kid/Outcast to a safe spot. 

First I needed to help Rebeccah see the child objectively (a quality of the Self).  I asked her to imagine Becky as just any child, not herself as a child.  Her face and voice softened quite a lot.  I asked her to close her eyes and visualize her apartment,  “Imagine a door in your apartment that was never there before.  When you open the door there’s a small, cozy child’s bedroom.  Everything the child needs is in the room, a bed with soft blankets and pillows, teddy bears and stuffed animals to hug, fuzzy slippers and comfortable pajamas to wear.  On a nightstand there is a telephone.”  I asked Rebeccah if child would be protected in this room until we were able to get back to her.  Rebeccah smiled, “Yes, she’ll be safe in here.”

To engage the Wisdom of her Self and the healing power of compassion, Rebeccah needed to step back from the reaction of the Bully.  When she saw the Kid/Outcast objectively, as just any child, she could compassionately comfort and protect the Kid. 

When the Kid/Outcast feels safe and protected, a relationship of trust gradually builds between her and you, your Self.  It doesn’t happen the first time you say to her, “I’m here for you, trust me.”  No, it’s not that easy.  Trust develops over time; the Kid/Outcast learns that you are not going to hurt her, you are on her side, and she can trust what you say to her.  So if you say, “I’ll be back tomorrow…” you better be back tomorrow.  Or else she’ll remember it and think, “You’re just another person who’s let me down, who doesn’t mean what she says.”

Eventually you will develop awareness of your Parts and know when a critical, judgmental Bully has taken over.  It’s very important to protect the Kid/Outcast from the Bully if she flares up again.  Over the years I know from body cues and tone of voice when a client’s Part has taken over and she is no longer in Self-energy.  If her voice gets a little sharper or her face gets a little sneer, I’ll say, “Whoa!  We’re not alone here are we?  You’re feeling angry, aren’t you?  We need to talk to that Part.  Let’s put the Kid in her safe spot and we’ll take care of this Part first.”

Even if you cannot work directly with your Kid/Outcast, if you need to keep her in a safe spot for a while, it’s important that the Kid/Outcast knows that you know she’s there.  For the longest time, the Kid/Outcast felt totally alone and desperate for help and protection.  These feelings may have initially been started in your childhood by a passive parent who did not protect you, but allowed the abusive parent to hurt you.  The first step in healing the Kid/Outcast is to tell her that you know she is there and you want to protect her. 

Here’s another analogy to illustrate the importance of this.  Imagine you are alone in an elevator that gets stuck between floors.  You can have the choice of a buzzer or a telephone.  Which would you choose?  Most people choose the telephone.  When I ask why they didn’t want the buzzer, they answer, “If I pushed the buzzer, I would be wondering if anyone heard it, if anyone knows I’m in here.  If I have the telephone, then I know someone knows I am stuck.  Someone is going to come to help me.  Even just hearing a voice would be more reassuring to me than a buzzer.”  The human contact feels reassuring to the Kid/Outcast that she is not alone. 

Until we can heal the Kid/Outcast, we need to be that voice on the telephone.  We can let her know that we are aware that she is there.  If you feel compassion for the Kid/Outcast you can imagine calling her from time to time to check in.  You may just start by saying, “Hi, it’s me.  I know you’re there.”  When she is assured of our presence, she wants what all Parts want from us – to be heard, appreciated and taken care of…. 

amyAmy Grabowski, MA, LCPC is the Director and Founder of The Awakening Center.  Since 1986, she has been helping women and men with eating disorders discover their sense of Self, “the person they were meant to be!”  She is hoping her book, tentatively entitled “Becoming Real:A journey to fill the emptiness by finding your Self ” will be published in 2007.

She can be reached by calling (773) 929-6262 ext 11.

Imagine Being At Peace…
Amy Grabowski, MA, LCPC

Amy has recently recorded a relaxation CD: “Imagine Being at Peace….”  A Guided Imagery Meditation CD.  Here is a description:

When you silence the clamoring in your head and ease the tension in your body, you’ll find a quiet, calm, place of peace, a deep-seated sense of strength, and a wisdom that knows you already have all the resources you need within. 

Discover your Self, the person you were meant to be!
We all know we need to take care of ourselves.  But we live in a busy world and often do not have the time.  That is why I designed this CD on three Tracks.  When you have time, listen to the complete CD and nurture yourself in the entire experience; you can even use the CD to fall asleep at night.  When time is limited, you can skip to just the Meditation on Track 2.  After experiencing the CD a number of times, listening to the calming music on Track 3 will relax your mind and body by association.
Namasté,

Amy Grabowski, MA, LCPC

The Awakening Center
(773) 929-6262
www.awakeningcenter.net
Original music composed and performed by
Jonathan Yandel
© 2005 Amy Grabowski

The CD is available for $10 (printing and shipping fee).  Send your name, address, phone & a check payable to: The Awakening Center, 3523 N Lincoln Ave, Chicago, IL 60657. 

What is Nutrition Counseling?
Jennifer Reiner, MS, RD, LD

A big part of recovering from an eating disorder is learning how to adopt healthy behaviors that will last a lifetime.  One step toward achieving good nutrition is through education – knowing how to make the right food choices based on your specific needs or medical condition.   This can be difficult when you aren’t sure if what you “know” about nutrition is correct, a myth or a fear.  Adding a nutritionist who understands how hard it is to recover from an eating disorder to your treatment support team can be both enlightening and reassuring.

“What can I expect from a nutrition consultation?”  An initial appointment with a nutritionist generally takes an hour. During that time, I will ask about your eating habits and behaviors, health history, medication and/or dietary supplements that you are taking and what your expectations, fears, concerns and goals of treatment are.  A treatment plan would be designed to meet your goals.  Follow-up visits would be scheduled to help support you as you put your individual plan into action, review your progress and resolve any issues that are hindering your recovery efforts.

“Will I be put on a food plan?”   If you feel the structure of a “food plan” would be helpful, together we would develop a unique nutrition plan designed to help you meet your nutrition goals at a pace that feels comfortable to you!   If this feels like too big of a step, I will work with you to discover what smaller changes you are ready to make.

“Can I use my health insurance?”   Unfortunately, most insurance companies do not cover the services for a nutritionist unless you have diabetes or kidney disease.  I will give you a receipt that you may try to submit to your insurance company for reimbursement.  While the cost of an initial session is higher than the cost of follow-up sessions, most clients feel the support is worth the expense.  For those who financially cannot afford the cost, sliding fees are available.

“How do I make an appointment?”  Feel free to call me, or Susan Witz, to discuss your questions and concerns about nutrition counseling.  We are more than happy to talk with you.  For more information about nutrition counseling or to make an appointment, contact me at 773-929-6262 x16 or JenniferReiner@comcast.net.

jennifer reinerJennifer Reiner, MS, RD, LD is a Registered Dietitian who has recently joined the Awakening Center.  She has more than 10 years experience helping her clients optimize their health through good nutrition.  Jennifer’s passion is to help people who struggle with eating disorders and  ‘disordered’ eating find peace with food.  Learn more about Jennifer at www.awakeningcenter.net and click on Nutrition Counseling Services. 

Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)
Gulin Guneri – Minton, PsyD

Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) is an innovative new treatment developed by Marsha M. Linehan, Ph.D.  DBT targets the issues, including depression, anxiety, behavioral problems such as overeating, not eating or using substances, and/or interpersonal difficulties.  DBT teaches coping skills to manage these issues without having to resort to self-defeating behaviors. Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) skills can be a valuable addition to individual therapy because it offers practical strategies for managing strong emotions. 

The DBT group at The Awakening Center will meet once weekly every Monday from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., in which clients will learn to use specific skills that are broken down to 4 modules:  Core Mindfulness, Distress Tolerance, Emotion Regulation, Interpersonal Effectiveness.  Each module will be covered in 4 weeks and new members are welcome to join the group at the beginning of each module.

May 14—June 4: Mindfulness: (the “core” DBT skill) cultivates awareness of thoughts, emotions, and present-moment experiences. 
June 11—July 2: Distress Tolerance: learn to tolerate distressing emotions when you can’t eliminate or change them. 
July 9—July 30: Emotion Regulation: understand emotions and ways to eliminate, de-escalate or change them. 
August 6—August 27 Interpersonal Effectiveness: how to get your needs met without damaging relationships or feeling overwhelmed. 

The four modules will then repeat beginning in September.  While group members are encouraged to experience the whole 16-week cycle of training, they may commit to one 4-week unit at a time.  Some members choose to take the whole sequence twice, once to learn the skills and once to reinforce them. 

The fee for this group is often covered by insurance.  A limited number of reduced-fee slots are available for those without insurance coverage or with limited finances.
For more info please read the FAQ’s about DBT at www.awakeningcenter.net/eatingdisorder/dialectical.htm.

amyDr. Gulin Guneri, PsyD has recently joined The Awakening Center staff.  In addition to leading the DBT group, she teaches at the Illinois School of Professional Psychology and the Chicago School of Professional Psychology  and sees clients for individual psychotherapy at The Awakening Center.