As COVID drags on, many trans and nonbinary survivors may find our mindfulness and meditation practices growing stale or agitated, or even outright abandoned. It can be difficult to find ways to stay connected with our body and breath “in these uncertain times,” flowing with the New Year and sinking into Winter Solstice, mindfully changing semesters or engaging with the holidays in ways that feel good to us.
I know my practices grew stiff and chafing, medical issues on top of sexual trauma making my body feel like an unsafe place to be with compassionately all over again. My tallit is left hanging by my bed more mornings than I’d like, even when plenty of time to pray, meditate, and sink into the playful wonder of this life is available and I don’t have to rush off to one appointment or another. Maybe like you, I knew my mindfulness and meditation practice needed a loving and creative refresh. Maybe like you, I knew it needed to engage my body and my imaginative mind because both are so vulnerable to being overcome by flight, fight, and freeze as I work to heal in the midst of a pandemic.
Thankfully, the incredible healers at www.MenHealing.org have us covered. They produced a Pebble’s Meditation video for survivors of sexual violence that has me feeling energized about meditating again. It engages creative visualization and intention setting, physical sensation and touch, and survivor-focused healing. Try it today.
While we’re talking about the folks over at www.MenHealing.org, they’re currently accepting submissions to their Men’s Story Project from all survivors of sexual violence who identify in any way with masculinity. Registration is also open for their Weekends of Recovery in 2021!
Tristen Taggart
Disability and Youth Trauma Specialist
Tristen Taggart is an agender antiviolence activist pursuing their Bachelor’s Degree in Gender, Sexuality, and Women’s Studies and Political Science at Virginia Commonwealth University. Tristen joined FORGE as a Policy and Programming Intern in 2018 and now works as the Disability and Youth Trauma Specialist. Tristen is a queer survivor, community activist, scholar, and direct-support volunteer with an evolving focus on the intersections and divergences of queer survivorship, disability justice, and abolition in the lives of young people. They are thrilled to bring their passion and curiosity to FORGE from their hometown in Richmond, Virginia.