Overview
A free (donation-based) public gathering for Black women on chronic pain, being believed, and what we do next.
You know the look. The one you get across the desk when you say the pain is a seven and they write down a four. When you say it has been going on for years and they ask if you have tried losing weight. When you leave with a printout and no answers and start to wonder if you are the problem.
You are not the problem. There is twenty years of research on why Black women's pain gets dismissed, under-treated, and disbelieved, and we are going to look at it together, with the receipts. Then we are going to do the part nobody does. We are going to talk about what you do next. Your own tools. Your own people. What already exists out there for you, from practitioners to organizations to networks, in a free companion workbook you keep.
This session has two things we do together: a guided writing exercise you take home and bring to your next appointment, and an open conversation about what being believed actually looks like, which we turn into a list you get back the next day.
Who this is for
Black women in all our intersections and identities. If you live with chronic pain or chronic illness, or you love somebody who does, or you have ever walked out of an appointment feeling smaller than when you walked in, this is your room.
Who is hosting
Me, Philicia Ross, LCSW-C. I am a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and I live with chronic pain and chronic illness, so, I am not asking you anything I have not asked myself. Holding Space is community and education, not therapy or medical advice. It is a room where you are believed and held.
How to show up
However, your body needs you to. Camera off. Lying down. Chat only. Half in, half out. All of it counts. We just ask that you have a private, and/or quiet space as people may share intimate details. The session is not recorded, so the room stays the room.
What you get
The free companion workbook full of resources is sent after our time together.
About Holding Space
Holding Space is a monthly gathering inside The Grove, Village of Sound Mind's year-round community for Black women. Once a quarter, it opens to the public. This is that month.