A2Z Won an IPPY!

bronze IPPY award medal

Results for the 2018 Independent Publisher Book Awards contest (“The IPPY Awards”) are in, with over 7,000 books entered. A to Z Healing Toolbox: A Practical Guide for Navigating Grief and Trauma with Intention has won a Bronze Medal in the field of Psychology and Mental Health! A HUGE thank you to all of you who contributed love-filled stories for this remarkably healing book. May restoration, renewal and hope find its way to all those who truly need it. You can check out other medal winning books here. A to Z Healing Toolbox is #66 on the list. 🙂

Healing Book Recommendation

courageous aging book cover

Dr. Ken Druck started The Jenna Druck Center in San Diego after his college-age daughter was killed in a accident while studying abroad. Since his life altered in 1996, Dr. Druck has become widely recognized as a lifeline to the thousands of grieving individuals and families he has helped. He is the recipient of the “Distinguished Contribution to Psychology” and “Visionary Leadership” awards for his community service and lifetime achievements. His new book, Courageous Aging, is a beautiful look at living and aging with intention and purpose. Check it out at www.kendruck.com

Tips, Tricks & Tools for Healing

craft supplies in all colors of the rainbow

Tool

R = Right Brain Release. When there are “no words” to express life-altering situations, the right side of the brain must be accessed and utilized. This is where images, emotions, and body sensations are stored. The right hemisphere tends to be creative, nonlinear, irrational, intuitive, relational, and holistic, and this is often where grief and trauma healing can begin. Music, art, movement, sand, symbol, and imagery can be highly effective in accessing the right side of the brain, which in turn leads to more comprehensive healing.

Trick

Unlock Your Mind. Look for classes and workshops that focus on healing through music, art, symbolic imagery, or movement. Check out Soul Collageand The American Art Therapy Association for more healing resources.

Tip

Handy to Have at Home:

  • Art supplies (blank sketchbooks, clay, colored pencils, crayons, paint)
  • Coloring books (doodle books, inspirational words, mandala designs, meditative shapes)
  • Kinetic Sand

Ann’s Healing Story

Woman painting

Art found me during the darkest period of my life. I had recently lost my father, was newly divorced, and had just gotten sober. Grief about my father and my old life coupled with shame about my drinking nearly overwhelmed me. That’s when a friend asked me to take an art class with her. I had nothing to lose. That first class changed my life. Swirling paint across a canvas felt free and limitless. Finding images to collage offered me expression of feelings I was unaware I had. Gluing broken tiles into a cohesive mosaic taught me that there is a perfect fit for every piece no matter how broken. Art became my voice. Today, I never know what to expect when I sit down to paint, but I know that it will be authentic and healing. Art is very meditative. Art delivers me to a place free of time and space where I am one with my creative energy and its source and at peace with myself and the world. That is true healing.

– Ann