Self-care. This short singular phrase carries significant meaning with the families of HEARTH.
While self-care can mean something different from person to person, we like Everyday Health’s definition of self-care: “Self-care means taking care of yourself so that you can be healthy, you can be well, you can do your job, you can help and care for others, and you can do all the things you need to and want to accomplish in a day.”
Self-care is an essential part of life at HEARTH. Our team helps families build routines and healthy habits around self-care because we know the positive impact it has on their journey to healing and wholeness.
Self-Care Programs and Activities at HEARTH
Vision Boards for 2024
The turning of the calendar to a new year is the perfect time to set self-care goals that will carry someone through the coming months. That’s why, in January, HEARTH works on Vision Boards with our families, encouraging participants to set personal goals for the year.
Vision Boards are an excellent tool that helps participants ask themselves:
- What does “health” mean to me?
- How can I make my vision of “health” a reality?
- What are my short-term needs, and what are my long-term needs?
By answering these questions, HEARTH families start the year with strong, positive thoughts and goals related to self-care and wellness.
Supporting Self-Care With Meetings
We also kicked off 2024 with a Holistic Wellness meeting. Holistic healthcare practices are meant to address the physical, mental, emotional, social, and spiritual components of health. Many “little things” or “healthy habits” can fall under the holistic healthcare umbrella.
During a Holistic Wellness meeting, families share their herbal recipes and make bags of tea and foot baths together. Tea and foot baths are great examples of “little additions” to life that can make a big difference in helping someone feel more relaxed and more confident.
The regular meetings are a time to inspire our families and encourage them to adopt other healthy practices. To help give participants more opportunities to explore other healthy avenues of self-care, our Monday Night meetings are currently centered around wellness and self-care. Topics vary weekly and include seasonal festivities (for Mother’s Day, for example), yoga and mindfulness programs, and holistic wellness activities.
Community Garden
Our Community Garden is an important part of the HEARTH community as it encourages self-care habits and practices. Many of HEARTH’s families have enjoyed the benefits of the community garden, especially being able to share it with their children.
One family, in particular, told us that their time together in the community garden allowed them to rebuild their connection with their family after they had been separated and surrounded by immense trauma for many years. They described the garden as a bridge that helped them rebuild more positive relationships with family members and with their children.
Past Examples of Self-Care Activities
Self-care doesn’t look the same year-to-year at HEARTH. Here are some additional ways HEARTH focused on self-care in the past months:
- In February 2023, Milestone Centers Inc. provided our families with self-care bags for Valentine’s Day. Families received a small treat bag and card from the Center, giving our moms more opportunities to care for themselves.
- In March 2023, HEARTH organized an entire month of yoga sessions. Our Monday Night Meetings were organized and centered around yoga and mindfulness to support this program further.
- For Mother’s Day 2023, we hosted a Floral Arrangement event where families could take an active approach to their healing and wellness. This has been one of our best-received self-care programs! Our families enjoyed how engaging the event was and appreciated the sense of community that came in sharing their healing journey. The moms also received a self-care package from Carson Middle School.
- Finally, in 2023, we furnished a Therapy Room that is used for individual therapy sessions with families and children at HEARTH. This is a perfect example of a “past self-care activity” that benefits our families long-term.
Support These Programs
HEARTH’s mission is to provide a range of supportive services and housing that empowers unhoused families who are survivors of domestic violence or other trauma to become independent, self-sufficient, and adequately housed. Our numerous self-care activities and programs are an important part of that empowerment.
Our goal in 2024 is to continue to provide a wide range of services and programming focused on promoting health and wellness. With your support, every mom will have the opportunity to rebuild her health, self-image, and life.
Consider supporting our programs in one of two ways:
- Make a donation – every gift (big or small) helps families at HEARTH thrive!
- Contact us about becoming a group facilitator! If you are involved in wellness activities that you’d like to bring to the HEARTH community, reach out to our Community Engagement Coordinator, Morgan. She can be reached at 412-366-9801 x 3911, or at mcable@hearthpgh.org.