We had great weather and a lovely mix of new and returning sensitive souls who shared experiences and offered lots of support and advice with each other at our Ann Arbor HSP Sensitive Empowerment Gathering last week on my poolside patio. I thought I’d share some thoughts and resources from our meeting.
We discussed things like how to deal with family and friends who don’t understand our trait, what kind of language to use when trying to set healthy boundaries, how to take better care of ourselves–and, of course, common complaints like loud lawn services and leaf blowers! ;)
We also discussed several books. One member shared copies of two of Katherine May’s books with others in the group. Another member brought up how validating Glennon Doyle’s book, Untamed, was (which I happen to agree with and that’s why it’s my Book Club selection for August, so if you’d like to discuss it with others please join!). Another book we talked about was Divergent Mind by Jenara Nerenberg which focuses on ADHD, autism, synesthesia, high sensitivity, and sensory processing disorder in women. This is going to be an upcoming Book Club selection!
I also want to recommend two other books that I thought of after our meeting: The Art of Extreme Self-Care by Cheryl Richardson was very validating and helpful to me personally since she’s also an HSP. We read it for our Book Club a handful of years ago. And I just picked up Sensitive by Jenn Granneman and Andre Solo from the library. I’ll let you know how it is–it might be an upcoming Book Club selection as well, so stay tuned!
Finally, I wanted to share a note I received from one of the participants about our meeting: “I thought our last meet up was the best one we have had so far. I like how everyone graciously waits their turn to talk and listens intently to what others have to say. I think that we are all so happy to meet with others that actually care about our sensitivities and who believe us. So often we can’t share with others because they don’t believe what we are saying or even care. Subsequently, we have much to get off our chests!”
Our Ann Arbor HSP Sensitive Empowerment Group meets quarterly for support and camaraderie. If you are wondering if you are an HSP, I highly recommend taking this Sensitivity Quiz. And if you’d like to join our group of sensitive souls, please contact me. More HSP resources are available in the HSP Empowerment section of my Wellness Blog. If you’re not local and are looking for community, check out the Sensitive Empowerment Online Community.
What Oprah And I Know For Sure