NEWSLETTER
Dear Heartwood Community,
We've got lots going on at Heartwood this season. Everyone is invited to join our celebration of the new Heartwood Foundation's Tibet Girls School on June 13 (see details below). Openings are also still available for participants in our Women and Cancer Program (more below). If you are a holistic healthcare practitioner, consider a membership in Heartwood. Office space is available beginning September 1; call me at 847.491.1122 x11 for details. And many thanks to Marsha Smith, a wonderful psychotherapist here who is doing a great job as our newsletter coordinator sharing news about our services and activities.
Peace be with you,
Nancy Floy, Executive Director
Heartwood Center for body mind spirit
Welcome to the Heartwood Newsletter
During this time when glorious Spring is calling attention to the processes of rejuvenation and renewal, we are pleased to bring you news from Heartwood Center. We invite you to read pieces from several Heartwood practitioners who describe ways in which you can rejuvenate yourself this Spring — your body, mind and spirit. Plus, learn about the new Heartwood Foundation's project to create a school and health care program for Tibetan girls, as well as continuing to expand the Woman and Cancer Program.
Take a look at our web site where you can learn more about current classes and programs. Come in for a session or check out a class and put some spring into your step!
Happy Spring,
Marsha Smith, LCSW
Practitioner and Newsletter Coordinator
Time to Revitalize Your "Prana" Body
Surely the verb of springtime is growth. The sight of green returning to bare branches calls forth our own natural desire for renewal. What better time than spring to begin or resume your yoga practice!
Yoga promotes growth on many levels: physical, energetic and mental. Yoga is perhaps best known for its postures (asana), which directly effect the physical body. Asana create strength and flexibility, eliminate pain, lower blood pressure, promote healthy organ function, and more. Regular practice of asana creates a sense of deep health and vitality that goes beyond being not sick. The body can become a source of pleasure and strength, rather than pain and uncertainty.
In yoga we use the word prana (or energy) to describe the life force that animates the body. Breath, blood flow, and the activity of the nervous system are all aspects of our energy body. Imbalanced prana can manifest as stress, anxiety, and insomnia. The breathing practices of yoga, alone and within postures, gradually balance and revitalize the prana body. They offer a way to regulate our own energy without depending on external substances like caffeine or sleep aids. Finally, yoga develops the capacities of the mind. Yoga postures and breathing techniques cultivate concentration, heightened awareness of the body and positive mental qualities such as patience, equanimity and will-power. Through meditation, we gain insight into thinking patterns that create suffering and eventually let them go. From the yogic perspective, we all have the potential to grow far beyond "healthy" to live each moment with ease, joy and freedom from fear. If you'd like to take part in your own inner springtime, contact your local yoga teacher!
Nick Beem
Yoga Instructor
Expanding the Heartwood Mission to
Promote Health for Tibetan Girls
 As the world's attention turns once again to the situation in Tibet, Heartwood Center practitioners are providing personal accounts of the struggle and tangible ways to help. Asang a meditation instructor at Heartwood Center, escaped from Tibet to India shortly after his sister and her baby died during childbirth. The Heartwood community along with Asang and his wife, Heartwood's Nancy Floy, will honor his sister and all the women at risk by creating a vocational boading school and health center for Tibetan Girls.
The Heartwood Tibet Girls School will help Nomad yak herding families provide more opportunities for the next generation. Asang describes their efforts: "The girls especially have a difficult time. The school is our way to create a local response to the situation. People ask me what they can do to help. Providing an education and a safe place to live for young Tibetan women is a tangible way to contribute."
Tax deductible contributions are welcome. Heartwood's goal is to raise $6,000 per year; 100% of contributions will benefit the school. For every dollar, one girl gets one day of shelter, food and instruction. To make any size donation, contact Heartwood Director Nancy Floy, 847.491.1122 x11.
For more information, see Heartwood Tibet Girls School.
You're Invited: Celebrate the Tibet Girls School
Friday, June 13
6:00 -9:00 pm
Heartwood Center
1599 Maple Avenue, Evanston
Join us for a lovely party to enjoy the photography exhibit in our lobby and celebrate our first milestone. We now have a not-for-profit foundation for our charitable programs and the Heartwood Foundation has already reached $2,000 of its $6,000 goal for 2008 making it possible to open the doors of our school in Tibet.
Wine, beer and traditional Tibetan food (including the tasty "momos," a dumpling-like staple) will be served and there will be Tibetan music and dancing. Come by any time that evening; we would love to see you.
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IN THIS ISSUE: Spring 2008
Reconnecting with Touch
Touch used as a medical intervention to prevent, treat and ease physical and emotional discomfort dates back to the beginning of time. Forms of massage were commonly used to treat war heroes, royalty, children, adults and the ill. Today, touch remains to be one of the most natural, non-invasive, cost effective and attainable healing modalities available.
Multiple research studies have revealed what our ancestors knew for thousands of years, touch heals. Gentle and loving touch through massage has been strongly proven to prevent and heal physical, emotional, behavioral and developmental differences. It is a treatment that creates emotionally and socially secure, stable and confident individuals that are more likely to develop healthy and meaningful relationships with themselves, others and with society as a whole.
When we receive and give gentle touch we learn to connect with humanity and the world in a nurturing way. We learn that the body has an amazing ability to heal itself with natural non-invasive support that feels good and that carries no side-effects. It is a treatment that can be learned by all families to use in the home to prevent illness, promote family cohesion, encourage positive change and reduce the long-term cost of health care. It is simple, it is safe, and it requires nothing more than our hands, our love and our mindfulness.
Jennifer E. Netzky
Supporting Hands
Licensed Massage Therapist
Professional Doula Childbirth Assistant
Licensed Clinical Social Worker
Spring Cleaning and Mental Health
Spring is finally here! We have waited much too long for warmer temperatures, longer days, and waking from winter hibernation. In addition to the usual spring cleaning tasks in our homes — dusting, airing out rooms, and cleaning closets — spring can also be a great time to assess emotional and mental health. Does life feel out of balance? Do you have difficulty controlling worry? Do you find yourself disconnected from your partner or spouse? Are you overly critical of yourself? Do you find yourself repeating destructive patterns or behaviors? Have you undergone a major life transition that feels hard to adjust to or accept?
If you recognize yourself in any of these questions, consider calling to make an appointment for psychotherapy. Working with a therapist can provide a safe and supportive environment in which to take time to focus on goals, make changes to be happier and more satisfied, and find ways to effectively cope with daily stress and challenges.
I am a psychotherapist at the Heartwood Center, and I counsel individuals — as well as traditional and alternative couples — with an engaging and collaborative style. My areas of expertise include sexuality, relationships, adolescence and mental health issues such as trauma, depression, anxiety, and adjusting to life changes. I enjoy helping clients as they identify goals and actively work toward achieving them.
Amy Zann, LCSW
847.491.1122 x19
Participants Needed for Women and Cancer Program
We still have a few spaces open for women to participate in our Women and Cancer Program. This grant program, funded in part by the Illinois Department of Public Health, provides free holistic healthcare such as acupuncture, massage and psychotherapy to women with cancer in need of financial assistance. The program has been successfully running each year since 2004. If you or someone you know is interested in participating, please contact Terri Clemens, Program Director, at 847.491.1122 x23. Donations are also gratefully accepted through our newly established Heartwood Foundation.
Heartwood Receives Grant from Woman’s Club of Evanston
Heartwood is proud to announce that our Women and Cancer Program was chosen this year by the Woman’s Club of Evanston to be the recipient of a $5,000 grant. The award is part of their 2007/2008 Giving Focus Grant which supports “innovative programs that positively effect community wellness” for Evanston and the surrounding area. The grant money will be presented during the club’s sixth annual Contributions to the Community Breakfast on May 28, 2008. This money will allow Heartwood to expand our current Women and Cancer Program to serve more women over a longer period of time. We are very appreciative of this award.
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