AHWA Services and Programs
Perth, Western Australia
Attitudinal Healing Western Australia welcomes you to a regular and diverse range of facilitated programs to support your journey. You are encouraged to explore the interactive calendar on our website for details of the dates and times for each programme. Our person to person groups, training and events take place at the Miller Bakehouse meeting room at 7 Baal St, Palmyra (unless otherwise indicated) with many of our programs being conducted on-line via Zoom.
PEER SUPPORT GROUPS
Brief History of the AH Peer Support Group Model
The Attitudinal Healing Peer Support Model developed by Dr Jampolsky is based on practical spirituality and his personal experience as a child and adult psychiatrist. One day while making general rounds at the University of California Medical Centre in San Francisco, Jerry overheard a young boy with leukemia ask the doctor “What is it like to die?”. The doctor changed the subject.
Jerry realised at this moment that children with cancer needed a safe place to honestly discuss their own deepest questions, fears and thoughts about life, death and illness. So, in 1975, the idea of a “peer support group” was conceived. Jerry and his friends gathered a small group of children who were facing life threatening illnesses. He thought they might be of help to each other and in the process, help heal the fear of dying. There was no master plan or growth strategy, but the program began almost immediately to grow in an organic way. It has continued to grow in this way for 45+ years, spreading at various times to sixty countries across six continents.
Purpose of AH Peer Support Groups
The purpose of an AH Peer Support Group is to use the Principles of Attitudinal Healing as tools for learning, personal transformation and peace of mind. In the groups, participants and facilitators work together to create a safe and trusting environment that supports honest self-awareness, authentic communication and heartfelt connection. Everyone explores together the question “What does it take to experience inner peace now, given the circumstances that life is presenting?". The Group Guidelines provide the framework for the groups. The Guidelines serve as an agreement that assists participants and facilitators to create a safe and trusting environment that supports honest self-awareness, authentic communication and heartfelt connection.
Attitudinal Healing Peer Support Group
Support and sharing for men and women of all ages, this is an on-line group held on the first and third Monday evenngs of each month. The group uses Attitudinal Healing as an approach to health and well being based on the idea that attitude plays and essential role in our we exeperience our lives.
Support and sharing for women of all ages, this person on person peer support group is held on the second and fourth Tuesday afternoons of each month. The group uses Attitudinal Healing as an approach to health and well being based on the idea that attitude plays an essential role in how we experience our lives.
Support and sharing for men of all ages, this person on person peer support group is held on the second and fourth Monday evenings of each month. The group uses Attitudinal Healing as an approach to health and well being based on the idea that attitude plays an essential role in how we experience our lives. This group is currently in abeyance until sufficient demand resumes for a face to face group.
OTHER PROGRAMS AND INITIATIVES
Following on from a successful pilot project in 2018, this program is held at RAAFA Bullcreek Retirement Village and involves RAAFA residents and AHWA educators/facilitators. The program is designed to train volunteers to become a "bridge" to people living with dementia and others facing loneliness or isolation. As well as building practical and meaningful relationships with their companions, the program generates a a sense of well being and community relationship with the volunteers themselves. The pilot project and ongoing program resulted from a joint initiative of AHWA, Attitudinal Healing International and Memory Bridge, with support from City of Melville, Alzheimer's WA and RAAFA. Program currently is abeyance.
AHWA conducts and takes part in various courses and training for its faciliators over the year. Recent training programs have included -
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AHI Online Attitudinal Healing International Facilitator Training held in January and February 2022. This comprised six sessions of two hours each over six weeks and was lead by a 10 member international training team which included Trish Halvorsen from AHWA;
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Mentoring program conducted jointly by Geralyn Russell in USA and Trish Halvorsen from AHWA for facilitators who completed the Onlibe Facilitator training program - eight sessions held weekly in April and May 2022:
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Facilitator training over three weekly Zoom sessions in November 2021 lead by Trish Ellis, AHI's International Training and Communications Coordinator.
Memory Cafe is an initiative of the City of Melville and Alzheimer's WA, supported by AHWA. Hosted by Birue Cafe in Westfield Booragoon, this program gives people living with dementia and their carers an opportunity to meet with others in a similar situation, to a share a coffee and a friendly conversation about their experiences in a very relaxed atmosphere. AHWA facilitators attend the gatherings which occur monthly. They occur on the last Tuesday of the month from 10:00 am.
Also known as the Oasis Group, the Young On-set Dementia Carers Group is held monthly on the last Saturday morning of the month. This group provides support and a forum for carerss to share their particular experiences and challenges in caring for a loved one living with early on-set dementia.
Special Events
Various events and special programs are conducted throughout the year. Over the past 18 months these have included -
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Dementia and the Meaning of Life - a four weninar series presented by Michael Verde of Memory Bridge Foundation under a grant provided by City of Belmont and co facilitated by AHWA (Trish Halvorsen) nnd Trih Ellis (AHI), 30 May 2023 through to 20 June 2023;
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Sacred Awareness; Embracing Life - an on-line Attitudinal Healing group co-facilitated by Trish Halvorsen (AHWA) and Geralyn Russell (AHI) held over six weekly sessions 26 April 2023 through to 31 May 2023;
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Living Life Fully: Discovering the True Self - an on-line Attitudinal Healing Group co-facilitated by Trish Halvorsen (AHWA) and Geralyn Russell (AHI) held over five weekly sessions, 22 September 2023 through to 20 October 2022.
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Dementia and the Meaning of Life - a four seminar series presented by Michael Verde of Memory Bridger Foundation under a grant provided by the City of Melveille and co-facilitated by Trish Halvorsen (AHWA) and Trish Ellis (AHI) 26 August 2022 through to 16 September 2022.
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Inner Peace - A Worthy Goal, a six session interactive progarm lead by Trish Ellis,AHI's International Training and Communications Coordinator held in September and October 2021;
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Four Crossings; Dementia without loneliness, a four session program for the City of Belmont jointly lead by Michael Verde of Memory Bridge, Trish Ellis of AHI and Trish Halvorsen of AHWA held in August 2021. The program was created for carers of loved ones living with dementia, professional home carers and carers working in aged care facilities;
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Mini-Course for Life, a 10 session program based on the publication, A Mini-course for Life by Jerry Jampolsky and Dianne Cerincione. Held in May through July 2021, the course was lead via Zoom by Trish Ellis, AHI's International Training and Communications Coordinator, and
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Principles of Attitudinal Healing, held fortnightly over six sessions in January, February and March 2021. The course was lead via Zoom by Trish Ellis, AHI's International Training and Communications Coordinator.