MORE ABOUT SOS
S.O.S
Sustainability of Self; as part of a whole living organism...
S.O.S. Eco-resilience was created to fill a void
SOS originated from the personal need to process uncomfortable feelings related to environmental degredation and climate change. I believe that the symptoms being labeled under eco-anxiety are very sane, reasonable, and healthy responses to an existential threat. We all need to feel safe and secure and it is understandable to feel pain, loss, grief, or suffering when things we love, and our projected future feels threatened.
I want you to know you are not alone.
I have woken in the night in terror, and had dreadful nightmares. I have had profound moments of fear and despair, signs of distress and trauma. I feel these are perfectly normal responses to threat and the pain we feel. Processing uncomfortable topics and sensations can pose challenges for us, hindering our self-care practices. Consequently, we might experience heightened substance abuse, post/pre-traumatic stress disorders, changes in interpersonal relationships, and diminished capacity to work. Daily living tasks such as eating and sleeping may become difficult, alongside fluctuating emotions and mood swings, reduced motivation and energy levels, indecisiveness, and potential burnout.
Cultural avoidance of uncomfortable sensations and the 'negative/positive judgemental-thinking' prevents truly feeling discomfort and can be detrimental to our health, resilience, processing and mitigation/adaptation actions.
The SOS Eco-resilience project is a response to my journey from despair to empowerment.
Acknowledging the sensations as a reality, instead of dismissing, distracting, or dissociating ourselves from them is a step to transitioning these uncomfortable feelings.
I developed SOS Eco-resilience as my Masters project in Applied Ecopsychology to support and nourish people so they can ripple into local communities and our environment.
My aim is to proactively build individual resilience through a variety of offerings whereby we are caring for ourselves, then capable to take life-sustaining actions and improve our community relationships and preparedness to current and future challenges.
The SOS project gatherings transitioned from in-person beginning in 2017 to online Active Hope study groups throughout the COVID 2020 and 2021 years.
With the assistance and support of the City of Port Phillip Environmental Leadership course, regular in-person gatherings since 2022 focus on community and personal care with Group Ecotherapy, The Work That Reconnects, regular social gatherings (Kinfolk Meet-ups) and other offerings as noted.
Some of the offerings are to simply maintain our well-being, de-stress and connect iwth nature, some are social peer-to-peer networking oportunites, others have a climate/ecological focus or group action, provide resources, or guest speakers.
What do you feel the need for in terms of support to feel nourished, renewed, and restore your inner reserves?
Because self-care is an important part of activism actions, we need to feel healthy and supported to avoid overwhelm, exhaustion, and burnout. SOS eco-resilience events sets aside time within our busy daily lives and schedules. People have commented how they feel happier, feel supported or gained greater perspective from the group interactions, regenerative practices and setting aside the time now and again to process how they feel, what they are thinking and knowing they are not alone with these thoughts and feelings.
Participants noted:
"I have a set time to unpack what I am thinking and feeling."
"I and I can put my climate fears and concerns aside for this time, and I have more time for enjoying the rest of things that life offers."
Ecopsychology methods along with other practices offer tools for us to navigate an uncharted future together. Join an SOS Eco-resilience event!
"Just as grief over the loss of a loved person puts into perspective what matters in our lives, collective experiences of ecological grief may coalesce into a strengthened sense of love and commitment to the places, ecosystems and species that inspire, nurture and sustain us." - Hope and mourning in the Anthropocene: Understanding ecological grief by Neville Ellis and Ashlee Cunsolo
"The deteriorating state of Earth and people signals that we and the environment are at risk.
Our thinking is excessively separated from nature within and around us.
We must consciously reunite our mind with natural systems and begin to co-create with nature.
Participating in nature reconnecting activities helps make this happen.
They offer an urgently needed service and vast economic benefits.
Interestingly, the word for breathing and sharing spirit together is 'conspire.'
Shouldn't we learn how to conspire to support life and our lives on Earth, rather than dance on the deck of our sinking ship?"
- Dr. Michael Cohen, Ecopsychologist and founder of Project NatureConnect (The Secrets-of-Nature Attractions Trail)
Ecopsychology examines how our disconnectedness as a species, and thinking we are separate from Nature has created Earth-separated behaviours reflected in anthropocentric climate change. Vulnerable states of planetary imbalance threaten many species including our own and this is reflected within us with uncomfortable feelings and sensations. Many of us are experiencing a complex range of thoughts and emotions. Disharmony in physical, social, psychological and emotional health is evident and predicted to rise as we witness, or are subject to greater consequences of ecological and societal collapse. We need places and spaces to process what is happening in our world and within us, to build relationships, wellbeing and resilience together.
Let's co-create ‘the more beautiful world our hearts know is possible.’ - Charles Eisenstein
One last reason why I feel it is important to keep having conversations and processing our uncomfortable sensations ...
A few years ago, my closest friend was diagnosed with Motor Neuron Disease. I was blessed to be with her at her passing and we had 16-months of the most intense and beautiful experiences amongst the pain and suffering while she was living with MND. We didn't live in denial, distractration, wishful-thinking or bargaining. It was a blessing to live fully present in this beautiful opportunity of being fully present to our love, relationship and the reality of the situation. Our relationship reached new depths, a more beautiful authentic relationship with acceptance, richness, gratitude, deep love and connection. Had she passed away suddenly, I would have been in shock, so much would have been unsaid, I would not have had the opportunity to go to such beautiful depths within a human relationship. We had time to prepare together, discuss what was the most important things in life are... and plan her transitioning.
I relate this experience to the ecological and climate crisis. We have a finite amount of time to really live our lives, prepare for more challenges, and attempt to mitigate the consequences by our actions buying time to find possible solutions. We are gifted with the scientific projections; an opportunity to live like never before, heart-felt, with purpose, gratitude, acceptance, beauty, joy, deeper more meaningful relationships with self, others and our planet.
Rather than living with hope as a passive, projected future scenario, we accept the challenges and science, acknowledge our emotional and psychological blocks, and can transition to the space of beautiful, joyful acceptance. From here, actions answer the calling to act for and from our Earth, coming from love and appreciation. This is a regenerative place to view and act from, strengthened by nature and relationships with like-minded people.
