Let it Out! – Discussion & Support Groups

The Support Group by Ron Rodecker, 1990. Copyright and permission by Ron Rodecker’s estate.

Description

Let it Out! is Family Spirals^® series of Discussion & Support Groups. We address family problems often overlooked by providers, and neglected within communities. Each group is designed for people who have certain family experiences in common. To join, simply review our Current Groups and submit a group registration application. We’ll review it to ensure that you are matched with the appropriate group.
(One-to-One Sessions are also available – contact us to make arrangements.)

Groups are only offered online.
Each meeting is 90 minutes and limited to 10 people.
Groups are only for adults 18 years and older.
Advanced registration and payment are required before one can join a group.
We conduct confidential surveys to better support participants, improve services, and increase our understanding of family problems and dynamics.

Discussion Groups (DG) are held for 10 consecutive weeks. They are closed groups (i.e., no new people will join after the series begins). These groups are curriculum-based, but tailored to the needs of group participants. They focus on personal experiences, expectations, family histories, cultural perceptions, and more.

Support Groups (SG) are held weekly during a given period. Support Groups are open groups (participates are welcome every week on a first-come, first-served basis). Once registered for a particular support group, you may join any session by paying in advance, space permitting. You may pay for one or more sessions at a time.

Fee: Currently, we must charge a nominal fee for groups (no one will be turned away due to lack of funds). Fees don’t cover all our expenses – your donation sustains us, supports scholarships, and enables us to introduce additional programs. Recommended fees:

Discussion Group are $200 for each 10-week series, $20/session
Support Groups are $15 for each 90 min. session

Please read our Privacy Policy, Terms and Conditions, and Disclaimers.

What’s the Difference?

Support Groups (SG) – Our Support Groups are where you can share personal experiences, challenges, feelings, perceptions, and strategies that are related to the group’s theme. Support groups include our Bereavement groups, and Road Watch groups.

Discussion Groups (DG) – Our Discussion Groups are a cross between a support group and a workshop. They’re structured to gain a deeper understanding about particular family problems in order to find effective strategies and possibilities for dealing with them. We use auto-ethnography (drawing upon one’s own personal experiences to understand a social phenomenon) as one method to examine our families within social expectations and cultural norms. Our current groups address tensions between siblings, or in-laws, and family interactions with animals.

Workshops (WS) – Our Workshops will address different family problems, provide cultural and historical contexts to better understand them, and review different strategies that may help resolve them. Our workshops are currently in the planning stage.

Therapy Groups – Therapy or counseling groups are designed to treat mental illness. We do not offer therapy groups.

Group Benefits

Meet others with similar experiences who can understand and relate to your feelings, reactions, and thinking.
Overcome social stigma.
Gain greater understanding of the various influences on your family relationships.
Enhance your awareness of cultural forces that shape your family’s beliefs and interactions.
Learn from one another in a supportive and affirming atmosphere.
Share strategies in addressing challenges.
Recognize that every problem may not be resolved as initially hoped.
Support others who are hurting.
Explore how freeing your creativity can help you work through challenges.
Regard family problems as opportunities for personal growth.
Consider realistic steps toward a better future.
Imagine how connecting with Nature can help you and your relationships.

Online Groups – Good Things

You don’t have to travel – easier for those without transportation or who are busy.
Great for people who experience social anxiety or agoraphobia.
When you are sick, quarantining, or following physical distance guidelines, you can still participate.
You live in an area without supportive services nearby.
Accessibility to physical locations is difficult or not possible.

Surveys

Family Spirals^® addresses problems that other providers and researchers tend to overlook. In order to best help you with these problems and improve our services, we need to ask some questions to learn what people are experiencing, and to evaluate our services. Participants agree to have Family Spirals^® collect information through confidential surveys at the beginning of a group, and after a group ends.

Facilitator

Eric Greene, Founder and Executive Director of Family Spirals®, is a cultural anthropologist with a background in psychological anthropology. While a faculty member at Miami-Dade College, his first foray into wellness was working in patient care at a community health center, then as an executive with various behavioral health organizations. He counseled patients, developed supportive programs, and supervised staff who led a variety of support groups. As a researcher, he investigates how historical and cultural perceptions and attitudes shape relationships between individuals, between different groups of people, and between humans and other species. He examines how different social systems reinforce those perceptions, sometimes through social stigma, and how people try to manage them in order to achieve kinder, more equitable lives. Eric has also studied different art forms and applies that learning within groups, and our Nature-based modalities have also been reinforced by his shared experiences in Nature.

Confidentiality

See our Group Rules & Guidelines.

How do I join?

Visit our Current Groups page, then click on the “Apply to Register” button to fill out the groups you’d like to join.
Space is limited, so apply early. We’ll review your application to ensure that you’re a good fit for the chosen group(s).
We’ll email our consent, or provide further information about other groups that may better meet your needs. Those selected will receive a link to make a payment.
Upon receipt of your payment, we’ll send you log-in details for your meeting. We’ll also send you a link to the First Group Survey. Please don’t share these links with anyone else. Information gathered will give us greater understanding of the needs of group members so that we can adjust discussions accordingly. Additionally, surveys may help participants to monitor their own progress.
The day before your group meeting, we’ll send an email reminder with a link to log into Zoho Meeting.
Log-in five minutes before the meeting starts to get comfortable with Zoho Meeting’s technology.

Still have questions? Visit our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) to learn more.