greetings Drs. Chanequa & Tiffany, and all who will be practicing. i am Dana Moulds currently residing in Charlotte, NC but will always be a CALI-girl. as a recovering #strongblackwoman who, like Dr. Tiffany am a high achiever who will enroll in an education program in a heartbeat😩…i’ve been intentional these past few years of releasing myself from the multiplicity of roles i’ve played, in search of myself. and so, having recently graduated from seminary as a dual-degree student (M.Div/MACE), the “work my soul must have” (Dr. Katie Cannon) has landed in being a chaplain & death doula. i’m hoping to make connections with others who are wanting to prioritize their self-care practice, like me, and not just for a season but rather, as an embodied practice that sustains me daily. the book has blessed me tremendously so i’m looking forward to the intentional practice with you all💜.
Welcome Dana! I love that you quoted Dr. Cannon. I have that quote as the wallpaper on my laptop. I pray that this shared space for practice fortifies you for your work as a chaplain and death doula.
I am Vincine Brown and Iive here in Decatur but DC aka the chocolate city will always be home. In my mind I am a recovering # StrongBlackWoman but in practice I am not there!!!However I so need to be there!! Like everyone here I am a high achiever and all the baggage that comes with that… I just finished a 21 day prayer and fast about 2 weeks ago. I was raised Catholic so “lent” was a big deal. However as child and young adult the only thing I really remembered about lent was I got to “eat fish on Fridays “” Lol. As an adult and minister I have always practiced this ritual of Lent. However this year I wanted to do it a different kind of Study. I just completed Dr.C class semester on the Spiritual Care of the Woman and I see Sacred self-care as a more intentional study I wanted to practice. Looking forward to this time.
I am excited about this journey. I am Rhonda Murdock Johnson. I have lived in Cobb County, GA for the past 30 years but home is still NC. I don't think I have ever recovered from being the strong black woman nor have I fully understood until now the impact of taking care of everyone else but me, until maybe a year and a half ago when I hit a wall hard and had to pull back. I am pursuing my DMIn while working full-time, part-time chaplaincy, ministry and home responsibilities. I am also a 2-time breast cancer survivor. I finally ushed back from so-called responsibilities after feeling the same weight that I experienced when I was diagnosed. Both times, I had reached milestones in ministry and questioned why milestones came with such bodily trauma. So, I have made some changes but found that Sacred Self Care has uncovered so many other possibilities for healing and wholeness. So glad to do the work in community with you. Dr. Chanequa is my advisor and for this I am truly blessed. I look forward to these conversations and this work.
Hello everyone. Thank you Drs. Chanequa & Tiffany for offering this special Lenten series. I am Sandra Dorsainvil, currently making my home in Frederick, MD. I am ordained clergy with many years in pastorate, college settings, ministry coaching, and faith-based mission organizations. I left a mid-level managerial position November 2023, for self-care and soul-care. I was exhausted. I have been in a season of holy rest with God since then. God is carefully opening ministry possibilities for me to re-enter with a full cup. I am grateful for this Lenten series, and being in community with all of you, who put holy self-care and soul-care as a priority.
I’m in Davis, California, working full time as a web developer and mother of three boys. My youngest son (now 11) was diagnosed with leukemia in May and is in the initial phase of treatment (9-11 intense months of chemo, followed by almost 2 years of monthly chemo). I have cut wayyyy back on all my church and community commitments in this season as I try to prioritize family-care and self-care. I am also in a recent journey of discovering that my body *is* me, so reading Day 1 was a great reminder! I recently went through Sacred Self Care and I’m excited to go even deeper this second time. Thank you, Drs. Chanequa and Tiffany, for making space for all of us here!
Welcome Corrie! It saddens me to hear of your son's diagnosis and the treatment journey that he has ahead of him. I hope that this can be a supportive space for you as you care for your family.
Thank you for asking! He is low grade nauseous most days, and we are trying to transition him back to eating real food (he’s been getting most of his nutrition with a feeding tube and formula for months now). We are in the last 8 week phase (which may stretch to longer if there are delays) of intense treatment, just before the two year phase of less intense treatment. It’s still a marathon crossed with a roller coaster, but supposedly we are past the “really really hard part.”
Hi, I am in Houston, TX and I work full-time selling generic medicines to hospitals. I am married with 2 boys and wear many hats that pull me away from time taking care of myself… my oldest son (19) has 2 severe autoimmune diseases that have necessitated 29 surgeries over the past 6 years and I have become his primary caregiver. My youngest (15) has major depressive disorder and even our dog has cancer, 🤦🏻♀️ so my life is very full of medical appointments. My youngest also attends an online public school that requires me to be his learning coach, which typically takes a couple of hours each day. We are currently between church homes, so I am especially looking forward to spending time in this study and learning from Drs. Chanequa and Tiffany!
Hi, I’m Katie Brooks and I live in Anchorage, Alaska. I currently work in an ER but am in a long, slow transition to becoming a librarian instead. I developed a pinched nerve in my neck about a month ago and realized how much of my identity and sense of worth is caught up in how well I take care of everyone around me. As I am working to remind myself that my value and worth are in being created and loved by God, I am realizing how much I need to learn about self-care. I am excited to learn about self-care within the context of faith.
It's good to have found this Lent Study and have support and guidance in the journey of self-care. I purchased the book last year and was waiting for Lent to dive in so I'm thrilled for this opportunity (thank you Drs C and Tiffany). I am originally from the US but have lived in Asia over 30 years of which 28 I've been in Laos. For the last couple years I've been changing my daily flow to give myself space I never had before. A health even made me realise I couldn't continue living as I had been. I want to understand more about sacred self-care as I left the church community I was part of for 25 years and am trying to figure out what Christian discipleship means and looks life in my life now.
Good Morning. I am Rev. Linda Moore, Board Certified Chaplain in Greenville, NC. I have my MDiv and MS in patient counseling. Even with all the education and studying i've done, i can't seem to get a grasp on continued self-care.
Community has abused and scarred me in the past and it's difficult to open up and be in a group with others. Dr Chanequa, i heard you speak once about your sabbatical from the church. I cried hearing that it's ok to leave the church for a little while. I was abused as a church minister, with absolutely no help from others, and cannot find my way back into the life of a church.
Being a chaplain can be the loneliest, yet most demanding role with little recognition. I do receive unfair treatment from leadership but i'm holding my own this time. The work that i do now...as a trauma and emergency chaplain makes it so hard to take care of myself. So hard. I am hoping and praying this time with you all and your book will be a spiritual gift for me, allowing myself to give in and feel welcomed to community as well as free to take care of me, without guilt.
Thank you for opening this possibility up. Blessings, linda
PS..i did attend the trauma and spiritual care workshop you had at Mercer several years ago.
Welcome Rev. Linda! It’s good to have you in this space and I pray you find sustenance for your journey. Being a trauma and ER chaplain has to be both arduous and isolating. You end up being essential and an outsider at the same time. I hope this helps you to find a path toward sustainable care.
Hi everyone, I'm Laura Batten-Carbaugh and am really looking forward to this study. I live in Monrovia, MD and serve a small church in Silver Spring, MD as solo Pastor. I'm married to an amazing woman and we have four children -- all teens/pre-teens! I have always struggled with self-care and understanding how taking care of myself can be a holy practice. I tend to go go go without listening to my body or my soul as to what my needs are. The past two plus years have been a wake up call to the need to take better care -- my body fought off two life threatening illnesses and in the midst of that, a tumor was found growing out of my right adrenal gland (pheochromocytoma). I am a medical zebra, as they say, and am deeply grateful to be here. As I have begun the work of learning to listen to my body and soul, for the first time in 25 years of ministry, I made it thru the Advent/Christmas season this past year without getting sick. That feels like a miracle after so many years of working at a pace that sent me to my bed in spite of my best attempts otherwise. Anyway, this is coming at exactly the right time for me and I am grateful.
Welcome Laura! It’s good to have you here. I’m sorry to hear about your medical challenges and I definitely relate to them. I’m still learning to function within my limits and to release guilt, resentment, etc., about what I’m not able to do.
Im a few days behind but glad to join the group. Im Jennifer King and I live in Grayson, GA. Im married with a 14 month old, an 11 year old bonus daughter and my mom lives with me. I work full time in healthcare and am trying to grow a small side business to do more of what i love. Ive been on a self care journey for about 10 years and trying to figure out what this looks like now with a very young child. Im excited to learn from all of you. I get to read the book and post when the house is quiet later at night
Welcome Jennifer! Self-care is definitely more challenging when you’re caring for young children, but I hope you can rely on support from your partner and mother. A challenge in the US is we’re expected to do it all alone.
Thank you Dr. Chanequa for the email you sent to direct us to the correct space for us to receive the daily guided reflections as we read the book. I am grateful to whomever in the community spoke up.
greetings Drs. Chanequa & Tiffany, and all who will be practicing. i am Dana Moulds currently residing in Charlotte, NC but will always be a CALI-girl. as a recovering #strongblackwoman who, like Dr. Tiffany am a high achiever who will enroll in an education program in a heartbeat😩…i’ve been intentional these past few years of releasing myself from the multiplicity of roles i’ve played, in search of myself. and so, having recently graduated from seminary as a dual-degree student (M.Div/MACE), the “work my soul must have” (Dr. Katie Cannon) has landed in being a chaplain & death doula. i’m hoping to make connections with others who are wanting to prioritize their self-care practice, like me, and not just for a season but rather, as an embodied practice that sustains me daily. the book has blessed me tremendously so i’m looking forward to the intentional practice with you all💜.
Welcome Dana! I love that you quoted Dr. Cannon. I have that quote as the wallpaper on my laptop. I pray that this shared space for practice fortifies you for your work as a chaplain and death doula.
Greetings, Dana!! Thank you so much! Eagerly awaiting to partnering with you on this journey. Let's go! 💖💜
Good morning DrC and Dr Tiffany!
I am Vincine Brown and Iive here in Decatur but DC aka the chocolate city will always be home. In my mind I am a recovering # StrongBlackWoman but in practice I am not there!!!However I so need to be there!! Like everyone here I am a high achiever and all the baggage that comes with that… I just finished a 21 day prayer and fast about 2 weeks ago. I was raised Catholic so “lent” was a big deal. However as child and young adult the only thing I really remembered about lent was I got to “eat fish on Fridays “” Lol. As an adult and minister I have always practiced this ritual of Lent. However this year I wanted to do it a different kind of Study. I just completed Dr.C class semester on the Spiritual Care of the Woman and I see Sacred self-care as a more intentional study I wanted to practice. Looking forward to this time.
Welcome Vincine! It’s good to have you in this space.
Hello Dr. Chanequa and Dr. Tiffany,
I am excited about this journey. I am Rhonda Murdock Johnson. I have lived in Cobb County, GA for the past 30 years but home is still NC. I don't think I have ever recovered from being the strong black woman nor have I fully understood until now the impact of taking care of everyone else but me, until maybe a year and a half ago when I hit a wall hard and had to pull back. I am pursuing my DMIn while working full-time, part-time chaplaincy, ministry and home responsibilities. I am also a 2-time breast cancer survivor. I finally ushed back from so-called responsibilities after feeling the same weight that I experienced when I was diagnosed. Both times, I had reached milestones in ministry and questioned why milestones came with such bodily trauma. So, I have made some changes but found that Sacred Self Care has uncovered so many other possibilities for healing and wholeness. So glad to do the work in community with you. Dr. Chanequa is my advisor and for this I am truly blessed. I look forward to these conversations and this work.
Welcome Rhonda! I'm so glad to have you on this journey as we both continue the healing journey from cancer.
Hello everyone. Thank you Drs. Chanequa & Tiffany for offering this special Lenten series. I am Sandra Dorsainvil, currently making my home in Frederick, MD. I am ordained clergy with many years in pastorate, college settings, ministry coaching, and faith-based mission organizations. I left a mid-level managerial position November 2023, for self-care and soul-care. I was exhausted. I have been in a season of holy rest with God since then. God is carefully opening ministry possibilities for me to re-enter with a full cup. I am grateful for this Lenten series, and being in community with all of you, who put holy self-care and soul-care as a priority.
Welcome Sandra! I pray that this series helps aid your season of holy rest.
Thank you Sister Chanequa. I started my season of rest last November with your book, Sacred Self-Care.
Hi Sandra! I'm in Monrovia, MD just outside of Frederick so we are neighbors! So glad to be walking thru this study together!
I’m in Davis, California, working full time as a web developer and mother of three boys. My youngest son (now 11) was diagnosed with leukemia in May and is in the initial phase of treatment (9-11 intense months of chemo, followed by almost 2 years of monthly chemo). I have cut wayyyy back on all my church and community commitments in this season as I try to prioritize family-care and self-care. I am also in a recent journey of discovering that my body *is* me, so reading Day 1 was a great reminder! I recently went through Sacred Self Care and I’m excited to go even deeper this second time. Thank you, Drs. Chanequa and Tiffany, for making space for all of us here!
Welcome Corrie! It saddens me to hear of your son's diagnosis and the treatment journey that he has ahead of him. I hope that this can be a supportive space for you as you care for your family.
Thank you <3
Corrie, how is your 11 year old son doing these days? How is he coping with treatment?
Thank you for asking! He is low grade nauseous most days, and we are trying to transition him back to eating real food (he’s been getting most of his nutrition with a feeding tube and formula for months now). We are in the last 8 week phase (which may stretch to longer if there are delays) of intense treatment, just before the two year phase of less intense treatment. It’s still a marathon crossed with a roller coaster, but supposedly we are past the “really really hard part.”
We cover your son and you in prayers.
❤️🙏
Hi, I am in Houston, TX and I work full-time selling generic medicines to hospitals. I am married with 2 boys and wear many hats that pull me away from time taking care of myself… my oldest son (19) has 2 severe autoimmune diseases that have necessitated 29 surgeries over the past 6 years and I have become his primary caregiver. My youngest (15) has major depressive disorder and even our dog has cancer, 🤦🏻♀️ so my life is very full of medical appointments. My youngest also attends an online public school that requires me to be his learning coach, which typically takes a couple of hours each day. We are currently between church homes, so I am especially looking forward to spending time in this study and learning from Drs. Chanequa and Tiffany!
Welcome Elizabeth! My heart goes out to you. That's a lot of caregiver stress. I hope this offers a soft landing space for you.
Thank you, Dr. C! : )
Hi, I’m Katie Brooks and I live in Anchorage, Alaska. I currently work in an ER but am in a long, slow transition to becoming a librarian instead. I developed a pinched nerve in my neck about a month ago and realized how much of my identity and sense of worth is caught up in how well I take care of everyone around me. As I am working to remind myself that my value and worth are in being created and loved by God, I am realizing how much I need to learn about self-care. I am excited to learn about self-care within the context of faith.
Welcome Katie! That's a major transition from ER staff to librarian. And both are critical to our society.
Greetings to everyone-
It's good to have found this Lent Study and have support and guidance in the journey of self-care. I purchased the book last year and was waiting for Lent to dive in so I'm thrilled for this opportunity (thank you Drs C and Tiffany). I am originally from the US but have lived in Asia over 30 years of which 28 I've been in Laos. For the last couple years I've been changing my daily flow to give myself space I never had before. A health even made me realise I couldn't continue living as I had been. I want to understand more about sacred self-care as I left the church community I was part of for 25 years and am trying to figure out what Christian discipleship means and looks life in my life now.
Welcome Kris! I’m glad to have you here. Learning to give yourself space is a huge step in your favor!
Good Morning. I am Rev. Linda Moore, Board Certified Chaplain in Greenville, NC. I have my MDiv and MS in patient counseling. Even with all the education and studying i've done, i can't seem to get a grasp on continued self-care.
Community has abused and scarred me in the past and it's difficult to open up and be in a group with others. Dr Chanequa, i heard you speak once about your sabbatical from the church. I cried hearing that it's ok to leave the church for a little while. I was abused as a church minister, with absolutely no help from others, and cannot find my way back into the life of a church.
Being a chaplain can be the loneliest, yet most demanding role with little recognition. I do receive unfair treatment from leadership but i'm holding my own this time. The work that i do now...as a trauma and emergency chaplain makes it so hard to take care of myself. So hard. I am hoping and praying this time with you all and your book will be a spiritual gift for me, allowing myself to give in and feel welcomed to community as well as free to take care of me, without guilt.
Thank you for opening this possibility up. Blessings, linda
PS..i did attend the trauma and spiritual care workshop you had at Mercer several years ago.
Welcome Rev. Linda! It’s good to have you in this space and I pray you find sustenance for your journey. Being a trauma and ER chaplain has to be both arduous and isolating. You end up being essential and an outsider at the same time. I hope this helps you to find a path toward sustainable care.
Hi everyone, I'm Laura Batten-Carbaugh and am really looking forward to this study. I live in Monrovia, MD and serve a small church in Silver Spring, MD as solo Pastor. I'm married to an amazing woman and we have four children -- all teens/pre-teens! I have always struggled with self-care and understanding how taking care of myself can be a holy practice. I tend to go go go without listening to my body or my soul as to what my needs are. The past two plus years have been a wake up call to the need to take better care -- my body fought off two life threatening illnesses and in the midst of that, a tumor was found growing out of my right adrenal gland (pheochromocytoma). I am a medical zebra, as they say, and am deeply grateful to be here. As I have begun the work of learning to listen to my body and soul, for the first time in 25 years of ministry, I made it thru the Advent/Christmas season this past year without getting sick. That feels like a miracle after so many years of working at a pace that sent me to my bed in spite of my best attempts otherwise. Anyway, this is coming at exactly the right time for me and I am grateful.
Hello Laura, We are neighbors in MD. Small world. What is the name of your congregation?
Colesville Presbyterian Church in Silver Spring. It's a great small but mighty church! Glad to be able to connect with you here!
I may stop by and visit one Sunday. I am ordained American Baptist
I would love that! Especially to put a face with a name in real life!
Welcome Laura! It’s good to have you here. I’m sorry to hear about your medical challenges and I definitely relate to them. I’m still learning to function within my limits and to release guilt, resentment, etc., about what I’m not able to do.
Laura, I checked the church's website. What a beautiful singing voice you have!!
Thank you! Singing is one of my great joys. The website is still a work in progress but I’m so glad you found us!
Sending everyone lots of love and light💜💜💜
Welcome Donna!
Im a few days behind but glad to join the group. Im Jennifer King and I live in Grayson, GA. Im married with a 14 month old, an 11 year old bonus daughter and my mom lives with me. I work full time in healthcare and am trying to grow a small side business to do more of what i love. Ive been on a self care journey for about 10 years and trying to figure out what this looks like now with a very young child. Im excited to learn from all of you. I get to read the book and post when the house is quiet later at night
Welcome Jennifer! Self-care is definitely more challenging when you’re caring for young children, but I hope you can rely on support from your partner and mother. A challenge in the US is we’re expected to do it all alone.
Thank you Dr. Chanequa for the email you sent to direct us to the correct space for us to receive the daily guided reflections as we read the book. I am grateful to whomever in the community spoke up.