The US surgeon general recently released an advisory on the health benefits of social connection which, according to the report, is “as essential to our long-term survival as food and water.”
Healing circles bring together people who seek meaning and connection as well as those who share a challenging life experience such as loneliness, grief, racism, aging, and illness. Through online circles, we begin to realize how much we have in common with people all over the world.
Bring healing circles to your organization or community
We offer comprehensive training that equips you to create a safe, supportive space where people can share, listen, and heal together. Whether you’re a leader, volunteer, or simply someone who is passionate about supporting others, you’ll learn to foster connection and compassion through healing circles.
New healing circles
Room for Grief: a monthly space for bereavement
Grieving Together 31: A Six-Session Series
Join a healing circle
Healing circles help us step out of ordinary time into a safe and accepting environment in which we can explore our healing.
Together, we explore ways of deepening our capacity to heal, alleviating our suffering, and finding meaning in both challenge and joy.
So for whatever is on your heart today, we invite you to join an online circle. Our circles are small, confidential, and free of charge.
Host a healing circle
Healing Circles is a growing learning community of people who enjoy the sense of belonging and meaning that comes from being of service to others.
We offer training for those who would like to learn how to host a circle and ongoing support to those who hold circles. We invite you to join us in whatever way you can.
What people say
The deepest work of a healing circle is to allow each one of us to be fully and completely ourselves. Being fully seen and listened to in a circle has the potential to heal deep hurts, be it a physical pain or a deep sorrow of the heart. When we are received by others who have the capacity to hold our pain with a loving, non-judgmental acceptance, we can start to believe that we are whole, that we have something to give, that our contribution to life doesn’t depend on us being healthy or even being of sound mind. A circle member can offer a genuine presence that can be deeply healing and helpful to another person.
Janie Brown
Executive director and co-founder of Callanish
I come to this work from the loss of two wives to cancer and the profound transformational experience of the Cancer Help Program at Commonweal. But it’s accessible to only a few. The whole idea of Healing Circles is to make that opportunity accessible to everyone without charge or very limited. We decided to offer this through deep partnerships with churches and organizations in Houston. I’ve seen amazing things happen in a healing circle. To me, this work is about making magic, changing lives, making a difference.
David Spaw
Co-founder, Healing Circles Houston