I am so often asked about the workshops I run with a leading trauma expert, and I often say…’Just come and experience it!’ I do realise though, that sometimes a bit of explanation is needed, so I’ve given it a go in the blog below. ( I still believe it’s something that needs to be experienced!)
STOP PRESS NEXT WORKSHOP Sunday 21 April 2024 Herts
Join us HERE
No experience is necessary and despite being set up by The Sober Club this is open to all.
Family Constellations is a powerful healing modality that has been gaining popularity over the past few decades. It was recently portrayed in the slightly cheesy Netflix series Another Life, and a session was featured in one of the episodes of Goop. Don’t be confused into thinking its ‘hippy dippy woo woo’ though, it’s actually very profound work, a way of understanding and resolving issues that may have arisen within the family system and can be particularly helpful in freeing people from past traumas and entanglements.
Family Constellations work was brought to us by a German Psychotherapist Bert Hellinger, and interestingly in Germany constellations is often recommended by Psychiatrists and Psychotherapists as it’s so powerful. The basic premise of Family Constellations is that our families are ‘systems’, and that we are all connected to our ancestors and their experiences in some way. Sometimes, we can become entangled in patterns of behaviour and emotions that are not our own, but rather have been passed down to us through our family lineage. Most people are aware of the concept of Epigenetics and there even an understanding now of ‘inherited family trauma’
These entanglements can manifest as difficulties in our relationships, career, health, or even in our sense of purpose or identity. They may appear as symptoms of anxiety, depression, addiction, or chronic illness. Many people have limiting beliefs and valuing themselves feels impossible. Regardless of the form they take, these entanglements can hold us back from living our lives to the fullest.
The work is based on the idea that by revealing and acknowledging these patterns, we can begin to untangle ourselves from them. This process can help us to gain a greater understanding of our own lives and the lives of those who came before us. It can also help us to release any burdens or traumas that we may have been carrying that are not our own. We can be the ones that can break the cycle.
During a Family Constellations workshop, participants are guided through to explore their own family systems. They may be asked to select representatives from the group to stand in for family members, ancestors, or even emotions or aspects of themselves. It’s not ‘role play’ or acting, and no experience is needed. The facilitator will ask the representative how they are feeling, sometimes they are totally neutral, other times they may feel hot or cold, emotional, angry etc, and this information then helps to guide the group through a process of exploring these relationships and entanglements, working towards a resolution that can help to bring greater peace and healing to everyone involved. The facilitator often gives the participants certain phrases to say, we aren’t asking you to come up with ‘solutions’ or reasons, just to try a sentence that might be appropriate.
The benefits of Family Constellations can be profound. Many participants report feeling a sense of relief, release, and clarity after a session. They may experience a greater understanding of their family patterns and dynamics, as well as a newfound ability to make positive changes in their own lives. There can even be an amazing ‘ripple effect’, where people who did not attend seem to have a shift in perspective. Even if you come to a workshop, but do not do your own ‘issue’, being part of the group can be very beneficial. Representatives often report that being part of a constellation, and seeing something from an entirely new perspective, shifted something for them.
We offer a safe and supportive environment. I have been attending Family Constellations for over 15 years and have trained in the last couple of years, as it complements my work in coaching, EFT and Matrix Re imprinting, and I work with a leading trauma expert so you have the benefit of both our experiences. You also get to connect with other participants who are on a similar journey towards healing and understanding and who want greater clarity, peace and freedom.
For more on Family Constellations and inherited family trauma listen to my Alcohol Free life podcast interviews with
Mark Wolynn, author of ‘It didn’t start with you’ Buy it here
Karl Dawson author of Transform your beliefs Buy it here
Rafe Nauen author of Family Constellations, unravelling the mystery of your ancestral timeline . Buy it here
Check out our next Family Constellations workshops https://www.thesoberclub.com/family-constellations/
A Few Testimonials:
What a profound experience to witness the power of the constellations work and the energy created within the ‘fields’. I have spent my day warmed by the thoughts and feelings I now hold for my dad, and there is no resentment or anger. It is truly gone. Some part of me needs to analyse the process too much, figure out the ‘secret formula’ to all this so that it makes complete logical sense to me. Another, greater, part is settling in to the beauty of how I feel today and hopefully all the days ahead, not needing to be able to decipher the exact science behind this shift.
Maybe my subconscious was able to reprogram and put the jigsaw together differently, so to speak, as a result of seeing the visual representation of my family constellation and hearing the words from the resonators.
I’m incredibly grateful. Such a pleasure to be a part of something so meaningful and compassion-centred. If you can make it to one of these sessions I urge you to. Thank you, Janey and Rafe. W.
Yesterdays family constellations with Janey and Rafe was emotional and powerful. I felt very grateful for being able to share my story with such a kind, supportive and inclusive group of people. I also felt humbled and privileged to be part of other people’s very personal journeys and experiences. I am still unsure about what actually happened and the process, but I’m not entirely sure that that matters. Sometimes you just have to try something new and be open to change. I’m really glad I attended this session and it was lovely to meet Janey and some of the sober club members in the flesh. I was utterly exhausted when I got I home , but it felt like the perfect addition to my sober journey L
It was clearly a very emotive and thought-provoking day for all attendees, as expressed in our conversations both in breaks during and then after. For anyone who feels their family background might have some negative bearing on their day-to-day life (maybe a good percentage of us), the time spent on this course is likely to prove illuminating and hand you the keys to a more emotionally settled – but very likely understood, future… go for it D.
Thank you Janey and Rafe for the amazing workshop last week – words fail to fully describe the experience but the emotions it evoked have been profound. I felt drained for several days afterwards and have experienced a rollercoaster of emotions since; Grief,( for the brother I lost) heartache, sadness, anger and resentment. But against this wave of negative emotions, I have also experienced positive emotions – affection for my brother, (I have felt his presence since the workshop) and hope that he and I have a soul connection. The workshop was a moving experience and incredibly realistic, something that is hard to understand or explain without experiencing it. The people who represented my family members truly ‘embodied’ their respective energies, even using language and expressions they would have used.
I am immensely grateful to you both and to everyone present for giving me this space and time. I now have a better understanding of the impact the death has had on my life – but also think he is the one who has pulled me through the difficult times. He is the soul brother I never knew I had.
The card I received at the beginning of the workshop was perfect – ‘Soul connections are hard to make but worth keeping’ L
Join us for a workshop
Sunday 21 April 2024 Kings Langley Herts
An interesting article in Psychology Today