Healing Circles: All You Need To Know About Healing Circles

What is a healing circle? What are the benefits of healing circles? Who can participate in healing circles? What is the term “circle” meaning in “healing circle”? How can I find healing from a healing circle? How does the healing circle process help the healing process? This article is for you if you are looking for answers to these or more questions related to healing circles.

Getting over trauma can feel complicated if you do not know how to go about it. Hi. My name is Sean Galla. I am a facilitator of support groups and support forums or healing circles for men, with over 10 years of experience. My work involves providing safe circles for men to talk about men’s issues, including overcoming trauma.

This article offers a fantastic opportunity for anyone looking for support, information, and help to understand healing circles better. Here is everything you need to know about healing circles.

Avatar photo

Written by

Sean Galla

An experienced facilitator, community builder and Peer Support Specialist, Sean has been running men's groups for 10+ years. Read Sean's Full Author Bio.

What Are Healing Circles?

What Are Healing Circles?

Healing circles are supportive groups of people talking about common issues like trauma or other issues troubling them. Healing circles are practiced by different cultures around the world and are deeply rooted in the traditions of indigenous native American cultures. In a healing circle, participants can step into a safe and accepting environment where they can freely explore the possibility of healing from their trauma. Members are asked to keep an open mind as they explore ways to remove obstacles stopping them from healing, alleviating suffering, or deepening their capacity to heal.

On the other hand, if you’re looking for Men’s Group Reviews, then join mensgroup.com today!  

How Do Healing Circles Work?

They are called healing circles because members often sit in a circle. The facilitator provides what is referred to as a talking piece used by participants when they want to share. This talking piece ensures each participant enjoys uninterrupted sharing time with the group where only the person holding it can talk. This talking piece is passed from person to person, with the member expected to remain respectful and sensitive to the experiences of others. Members are expected to listen openly, without questioning or judging the member sharing.

Healing circles are founded under the key principles of honoring the dignity and presence of participants while valuing the contribution of the participants. It emphasizes the connectedness of people and supports spiritual and emotional expression while giving an equal voice to all participants.

Participation in the circle is entirely voluntary. Therefore, participants are not forced to share unless they want to.

The use of healing circles to help people in need has continued to group over the years. It is used as a form of restorative support in different settings, including restorative justice, schools, neighborhoods, workplaces, prisons, marriages, and families. Healing circles can be created for different needs, including conflict resolution and community building. They provide a safe space for people who have gone through similar trauma to come together, share openly about their trauma, and find healing and support on the road to full recovery.

Healing Circles as Support Groups

Support groups and forums are also forms of healing circles. They are a form of talking support groups available for men and women in different parts of the United States. This form of therapy can take place in mental health clinics, therapeutic practices, hospitals, and community centers.

A men’s healing circle can also be a self-improvement group where men come to share about a specific issue or different men’s group topics. It is also a place for men to vent, learn, and adopt the best skills to handle life challenges.

Most men seeing a therapist are asked to find and join a support group as an essential part of their recovery process. If you prefer to avoid joining a therapy group, joining a healing circle can be the next best choice.

Men’s healing circles exist for general issues, mental health issues, chronic conditions, trauma, and any other topic relatable to men. These groups are for men going through similar issues, as they offer a safe space to share and learn without fear of ridicule or shame.

Depending on the problem you are facing as a man, or the kind of help you need, joining a men’s talking group can be one of the best choices you make when trying to address and overcome these issues to lead a better life.

The Benefits of Healing Circles

The Benefits of Healing Circles

There are numerous benefits associated with sitting in a circle with others who understand your issues. The ability to be amongst a trusted circle of people makes sharing easier for most people, especially men, who are conditioned by society to keep their issues to themselves.

Healing circles are just as effective as other trauma therapy sessions. In a healing circle, members can:

  •       Uncover strengths and gifts
  •       Heal the effects of painful childhood experiences
  •       Develop a greater sense of overall well-being
  •       Transform wounds into wisdom
  •       Clear energy blocks from the mind and body
  •       Restore emotional balance and mental harmony
  •       Access higher levels of consciousness
  •       Disconnect from negative emotional states
  •       The transition from grief and loss to peace and joy

They are support networks

A healing circle is a support network and sounding board for anyone who needs a listening ear. The group members help each other through different life issues using group-based sharing, support ideas, and group exercises and activities. The group equips you with the tools you need for personal growth and holds you accountable along the way.  

Healing circles are more than just support groups

While it is possible to benefit from a professional therapy group, most people have also found great success in being part of social talking groups for men, including healing circles, where group members are free to share whenever they want. The facilitator avails helpful topics and resources to members, including scientific solutions to different issues addressed in different groups.

On the other hand, if you’re looking for a Men’s Cuddling Group, then join mensgroup.com today!  

Types of Healing Circles

Participation, responsibility, emotional honesty, and research are important components of your success while attending the different types of circles, including racial healing circles. Taking your time to find the best group is an important first step toward rediscovering yourself and finding healing.

In-person circles

These are sharing groups that meet physically in a predetermined location. This can range from social meetings in social spaces to more structured meets held in a health facility, Catholic Church for faith formation meetings, or a social community hall. The circles meet can be scheduled weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, or on a predetermined schedule. The main downside to physical meetings is that circle members can only access the circle when there is a scheduled meeting. This makes it hard to get help or support outside meeting times.

Online circles

Online healing circles, especially for men, have gained popularity in the recent past, more so in the covid-19 period. Online group meetups make it possible for people to get the help they need from where they are, be it in  New York or London. This makes it easier for people to connect with others like them while miles apart, especially during a pandemic. Being in a virtual healing circle with people from different parts of the world gives you a global understanding and perspective of different issues shared in the group.  

If you are looking for an online men’s sharing group, Men’s Group is an online support forum for men that offers group healing circle sessions virtually.

Joining a Men’s Healing Circle

A search on google will give you access to numerous men’s sharing groups in different locations. You can check your local hospitals and medical centers where different sharing groups are usually sponsored. If you prefer not to join in-person groups, you can find internet-based healing circles like MensGroup.

Some of the best men’s sharing groups or healing circles you can join include:

Pacific healing circles

Pacific healing circles organization offers healing circles for people experiencing grief and who want to heal from it. The grief tending sessions are guided by experienced and trained circle facilitators who have gone through healing from grief and different traumas.

Healing Circle Counseling and Services LLC

Healing Circle Counseling and Services LLC is a healing organization that uses a variety of therapeutic approaches to help clients discover their true selves. The healing sessions are moderated by clinicians with years of experience practicing with diverse populations with expertise in various therapeutic modalities. The organization uses traditional and nontraditional methods for healing while providing an empathic therapy practice for different groups of people, including adults, children, adolescents, couples, and families.

On the other hand, if you’re looking for Group Therapy for Men, then join mensgroup.com today!  

Men’s Group

MensGroup

Men’s Group is an online men’s support forum that strives to offer peer support group sessions, guidance and help to men’s personal growth and life issues, similar to healing circles.

The mensgroup.com group meetings offer the information you need to overcome different men’s issues and lead a better life, even as you make new life-long meaningful friendships. As the best men’s sharing group, mensgroup.com subscribers meet virtually over zoom video or men’s group chat, making it a safer experience for busy men who prefer not to attend physical meetings or are attending talking groups for the first time.

On the other hand, if you’re looking for Boundaries Quotes, then join mensgroup.com today!  

Conclusion

Joining a healing circle can seem scary at first, but it should not be. Group activities are the best way to understand the group process while connecting with the members. If you are a man interested in joining a healing circle, Men’s Group is perfect for meeting like-minded men who will listen and offer advice with no judgment.

*Sources:
1. Introducing Healing Circles and Talking Circles into Primary Care
2. Everyone Is Not OK, but Back at Work Anyway
3. Healing Circles for At-Risk Youth Aims to Stop Gun Violence
4. The Origin of Our Healing Circles
5. Healing Circles