What I notice most here is the raging lack of resilience, true self awareness and abundance of immaturity and privilege of these alleged ‘healers’ - and I say alleged. It is a profound calling, that of healer, and those that herald the call do so in a manner that embraces all of humanity, that is what healing is. Helping one to scrape the wound, let the light shine in, hell, to be the beacon of light in the event they feel as though they’re falling into total darkness. A hand to hold, a guide, a sounding board, someone to see you in all of your imperfection and still believe you are worthy of support.
I appreciate those that specialize in particular issues, those that others may simply not be equipped for/ focused on. That being said, all healers undertake general, expansive training for a reason....
I really hear you, loud and clear, and could not imagine a scenario where I am in an emergency situation and a ‘healer’ decides that they ‘just can’t.’ Chunks rise.
We’re here for you - wherever you are. Human healers will still be needed, for a long while, I hope, lest we surrender entirely to the AI future and just gather together in our small pods of sanity while those that you describe here flail and keep captive their AI support audience who might help them feel safe, but will they help them truly heal?
This last line is the true heart of it for me; part of the healing of a wound is the scraping. There must be an uncomfortable process of emptying out the detritus that no longer serves us, and no matter the fear this must be done to actually allow the wound bed to heal (whether we are talking skin or soul, as above so below).
If you have a culture in which any pain point is considered "violence" and you have an ideology that holds "safety" as the highest morality, then there is no growth other than an endless hypertrophy of a scab. You can say the scab is protecting the wound, but we all know it *is* the wound. It must come off, that is what healers know, and those of us on this path know this because we have done this work and we know it is hard but once you do it, you simply know that it is the only way that it will ever or could ever work.
To know this, and to know that those who walk the path will also know this, and then to be told that path can't be walked due to "hazards"...I am not sure of the way forward from there.
Yes, or “maybe this career isn’t for you.” Not even in a judgmental way, just as a means to recognize “fit.” But it’s all sort of theater now, and being a profession now is less about a skill set or disposition, and more about acquiescing to a set of values and aesthetic.
You are doing some profound work in guiding and teaching. My hope, prayer, is that in that muddy mass of healers at least a few authentic humans emerge, and, that the bloody, messy, serum-y truth of the journey of healing can be shared authentically such that any who hear you, who have even a shred of inner fortitude, will heed the call.
Healing, is not for the weak of heart or mind but it is extraordinary to witness and experience once through the hardship. Be it healer or those in need.
Sending you strength for the journeys ahead. I can’t imagine navigating what you do.
Thank you so much Heather. The path is indeed muddy but the path is also the path...it’s all part of it, even if it fails or falls apart, it’s still all part of it
I've often thought that I would be in a world of hurt if I were still lecturing at the university I used to work at...and this confirms everything in the most hilarious way. I hope you find what you need to move on but also am happy that there is still some sanity hiding in academia.
Hiding we are, in fact sometimes I think every single person save for a very small group of psychotic people are all just hiding away in our offices most of the time hoping we don't attract the gaze of the DEI panopticon...
During covid, virtues were inverted. Cowering in fear at home was bravery. Ratting out neighbors was noble. Blind faith was scientific. I think this had a particularly devastating effect on the younger cohort (11 - 16) whose moral compasses were just being formed. Every authority figure told them that it is ok to run away and hide. Being strong and independent is toxic. Now that they're turning into adults, we're seeing the fruit of all this madness.
This is the right question. It is very tempting to be upset at these students but they are as much victims at the ideology as others, in a way. The real evil here is who contributed to the product that stands before me here now
While I see what you’re saying I’m going to come in defense for the student healers. I grew up sheltered and sometimes feel uncomfortable around certain patients due to the newness of it all. It takes a while to learn how to be comfortable in situations where you’re questioning and examining another person. I’ve never complained to my teachers about it but I think it is about practice and repeated exposure. Also, I’ve been told by teachers if there's a patient that makes you uncomfortable, refer out. Clearly these students have a seedling that they want to help, they just need help nourishing it. I go to a Buddhist school and it is immensely helpful when it comes to support and regulating thoughts and emotions. I feel like more schools need a sort of spiritual backbone.
This article also makes me look closer at why I am unwilling to go to the inner city for our “go to them clinics”, I am afraid. I have a thought that may or may not be true that I will be in danger and there's an aspect of being a young woman around recovering drug addicts that makes me fearful. I will explore this more because my intentions are to help people regardless of the situation but there is some deep seeded anxiety there and for that I in part blame the media for shoving fear in my face.
Maeve I am so sorry that I didn't originally see this comment because it was a sub-comment. Thank you for writing this!
There is no expectation on my end that students feel 100% comfortable doing *anything* right off the bat; I would expect there to be a level of hesitancy, fear, anxiety, and discomfort when doing something so new and so personal.
The difference with the students I am referencing is that they are unwilling to entertain even the possibility that there can be something powerful in store for them on the other side of the discomfort. They simply make a declaration of being unable to engage with "that sort of thing," and because of certain legal and administrative frameworks, they are allowed to avoid that path completely, and thus shut themselves off to the possibilities of healing that would be afforded to them should they have stayed the course.
The fact that you feel the way you do and have not yet "complained" to teachers or avoided the situation in whole or sought administrative relief shows me that you are the exact *opposite* type of student that these students are. You are moving through the fear and discomfort, not always finding a sure step, needing to take breaks, and sometimes even tapping out, but willing to go out as far as you can onto the frozen lake.
What we discover when we get far enough out on this lake is that there is no risk at all of us falling in. That there are so many others out here along with us. That the lake is frozen solid all the way down because of the many feet that have stamped it into place over the years.
When you emerge from this part of your studies, you will find in you a new strength, you will find in you the antidote to the fear and discomfort you feel. Your body will begin to make that antidote, having gone through it, and you will then be able to give it to others and heal them.
What sets you apart from those I feel he was describing is (a) your self awareness (b) your clear compassion and (c) your willingness to be vulnerable in the face of that which scares you.
It’s true, once you are practicing if there is a lack of alignment/ continued discomfort, referring out is wise. There is also this: discomfort is common at the start and it takes patience, sometimes perseverance and profound self awareness to discern - they key word here - what is highest and best for both the client and yourself.
HPDV’s students, by the sounds of it, were giving up well before they arrived where you are, not making space for those seedlings to be nourished at all - just ripping them out of their seed bed and looking for a space they could perceive as more comfortable to plant them in.
Wishing you strength and resilience on your path of learning - thank you for heeding the call and being willing to acknowledge your challenges whilst holding yourself and others with compassionate hands.
What I notice most here is the raging lack of resilience, true self awareness and abundance of immaturity and privilege of these alleged ‘healers’ - and I say alleged. It is a profound calling, that of healer, and those that herald the call do so in a manner that embraces all of humanity, that is what healing is. Helping one to scrape the wound, let the light shine in, hell, to be the beacon of light in the event they feel as though they’re falling into total darkness. A hand to hold, a guide, a sounding board, someone to see you in all of your imperfection and still believe you are worthy of support.
I appreciate those that specialize in particular issues, those that others may simply not be equipped for/ focused on. That being said, all healers undertake general, expansive training for a reason....
I really hear you, loud and clear, and could not imagine a scenario where I am in an emergency situation and a ‘healer’ decides that they ‘just can’t.’ Chunks rise.
We’re here for you - wherever you are. Human healers will still be needed, for a long while, I hope, lest we surrender entirely to the AI future and just gather together in our small pods of sanity while those that you describe here flail and keep captive their AI support audience who might help them feel safe, but will they help them truly heal?
Ah, the future.
This last line is the true heart of it for me; part of the healing of a wound is the scraping. There must be an uncomfortable process of emptying out the detritus that no longer serves us, and no matter the fear this must be done to actually allow the wound bed to heal (whether we are talking skin or soul, as above so below).
If you have a culture in which any pain point is considered "violence" and you have an ideology that holds "safety" as the highest morality, then there is no growth other than an endless hypertrophy of a scab. You can say the scab is protecting the wound, but we all know it *is* the wound. It must come off, that is what healers know, and those of us on this path know this because we have done this work and we know it is hard but once you do it, you simply know that it is the only way that it will ever or could ever work.
To know this, and to know that those who walk the path will also know this, and then to be told that path can't be walked due to "hazards"...I am not sure of the way forward from there.
It's a shame you just can't say, "Maybe this course isn't for you".
Yes, or “maybe this career isn’t for you.” Not even in a judgmental way, just as a means to recognize “fit.” But it’s all sort of theater now, and being a profession now is less about a skill set or disposition, and more about acquiescing to a set of values and aesthetic.
"Aesthetic"! I love it!
Yes, yes, yes to this. All of this!
You are doing some profound work in guiding and teaching. My hope, prayer, is that in that muddy mass of healers at least a few authentic humans emerge, and, that the bloody, messy, serum-y truth of the journey of healing can be shared authentically such that any who hear you, who have even a shred of inner fortitude, will heed the call.
Healing, is not for the weak of heart or mind but it is extraordinary to witness and experience once through the hardship. Be it healer or those in need.
Sending you strength for the journeys ahead. I can’t imagine navigating what you do.
Thank you so much Heather. The path is indeed muddy but the path is also the path...it’s all part of it, even if it fails or falls apart, it’s still all part of it
I've often thought that I would be in a world of hurt if I were still lecturing at the university I used to work at...and this confirms everything in the most hilarious way. I hope you find what you need to move on but also am happy that there is still some sanity hiding in academia.
Hiding we are, in fact sometimes I think every single person save for a very small group of psychotic people are all just hiding away in our offices most of the time hoping we don't attract the gaze of the DEI panopticon...
Very eye opening! Thank you so much for sharing
The best I can do for now is share, but hopefully the way forward will become clearer to me (and all of us) soon
I’ve been absolutely thinking the same thing.
During covid, virtues were inverted. Cowering in fear at home was bravery. Ratting out neighbors was noble. Blind faith was scientific. I think this had a particularly devastating effect on the younger cohort (11 - 16) whose moral compasses were just being formed. Every authority figure told them that it is ok to run away and hide. Being strong and independent is toxic. Now that they're turning into adults, we're seeing the fruit of all this madness.
That is sad and grim. How has society gone so hideously awry in raising young people?
This is the right question. It is very tempting to be upset at these students but they are as much victims at the ideology as others, in a way. The real evil here is who contributed to the product that stands before me here now
While I see what you’re saying I’m going to come in defense for the student healers. I grew up sheltered and sometimes feel uncomfortable around certain patients due to the newness of it all. It takes a while to learn how to be comfortable in situations where you’re questioning and examining another person. I’ve never complained to my teachers about it but I think it is about practice and repeated exposure. Also, I’ve been told by teachers if there's a patient that makes you uncomfortable, refer out. Clearly these students have a seedling that they want to help, they just need help nourishing it. I go to a Buddhist school and it is immensely helpful when it comes to support and regulating thoughts and emotions. I feel like more schools need a sort of spiritual backbone.
This article also makes me look closer at why I am unwilling to go to the inner city for our “go to them clinics”, I am afraid. I have a thought that may or may not be true that I will be in danger and there's an aspect of being a young woman around recovering drug addicts that makes me fearful. I will explore this more because my intentions are to help people regardless of the situation but there is some deep seeded anxiety there and for that I in part blame the media for shoving fear in my face.
Maeve I am so sorry that I didn't originally see this comment because it was a sub-comment. Thank you for writing this!
There is no expectation on my end that students feel 100% comfortable doing *anything* right off the bat; I would expect there to be a level of hesitancy, fear, anxiety, and discomfort when doing something so new and so personal.
The difference with the students I am referencing is that they are unwilling to entertain even the possibility that there can be something powerful in store for them on the other side of the discomfort. They simply make a declaration of being unable to engage with "that sort of thing," and because of certain legal and administrative frameworks, they are allowed to avoid that path completely, and thus shut themselves off to the possibilities of healing that would be afforded to them should they have stayed the course.
The fact that you feel the way you do and have not yet "complained" to teachers or avoided the situation in whole or sought administrative relief shows me that you are the exact *opposite* type of student that these students are. You are moving through the fear and discomfort, not always finding a sure step, needing to take breaks, and sometimes even tapping out, but willing to go out as far as you can onto the frozen lake.
What we discover when we get far enough out on this lake is that there is no risk at all of us falling in. That there are so many others out here along with us. That the lake is frozen solid all the way down because of the many feet that have stamped it into place over the years.
When you emerge from this part of your studies, you will find in you a new strength, you will find in you the antidote to the fear and discomfort you feel. Your body will begin to make that antidote, having gone through it, and you will then be able to give it to others and heal them.
Thank you, Maeve, I’m grateful for your sharing.
What sets you apart from those I feel he was describing is (a) your self awareness (b) your clear compassion and (c) your willingness to be vulnerable in the face of that which scares you.
It’s true, once you are practicing if there is a lack of alignment/ continued discomfort, referring out is wise. There is also this: discomfort is common at the start and it takes patience, sometimes perseverance and profound self awareness to discern - they key word here - what is highest and best for both the client and yourself.
HPDV’s students, by the sounds of it, were giving up well before they arrived where you are, not making space for those seedlings to be nourished at all - just ripping them out of their seed bed and looking for a space they could perceive as more comfortable to plant them in.
Wishing you strength and resilience on your path of learning - thank you for heeding the call and being willing to acknowledge your challenges whilst holding yourself and others with compassionate hands.
Should have read this before I wrote mine - all I can say now is "YEP!"
Nail on head
Your response is lovely - and so important - I’m grateful you didn’t see mine first!