118. Red Bike Wellbeing Resource Guide 2024

Welcome to the 2024 Red Bike Wellbeing Resource Guide – a curated collection of tools and information to support your path to wellbeing. These are the resources that seem most helpful in my work with others and things that I have found most helpful in my own healing journey. In this guide, you can explore information about mental health topics such as complex PTSD, learn more about empowering tools like assertive communication and meditation, find out about therapy models such as Internal Family Systems, and relax into blogs and meditations about Nature Therapy, and more! Save this guide for future reference and share it with others who are looking to increase their wellbeing!

Learn about Complex PTSD

We all have a concept of PTSD and many of us assume that we are unaffected by it, but PTSD is more common than you think and complex PTSD (C-PTSD) is even more common. PTSD results from witnessing or experiencing a single life-threatening traumatic event, like a natural disaster or a horrific car accident, whereas C-PTSD results from experiencing prolonged and repeated interpersonal trauma, like an ongoing abusive relationship or emotional neglect during childhood. Symptoms from either can be severe and long-lasting. C-PTSD shares symptoms with PTSD, such as emotional regulation difficulties, feeling detached from others, and negative beliefs about oneself. To learn more about C-PTSD, check out Red Bike’s free e-course about Complex PTSD. Click here to learn more.

Get to know the Internal Family Systems model

Internal Family Systems (IFS) has gained increasing popularity due to its holistic and non-pathologizing approach to healing. IFS is effective in working with trauma, anxiety, depression, and other emotional challenges. IFS training is difficult to get into and requires a lottery application. Somehow, I’ve been fortunate enough to win the lottery to have completed Levels 1 & 2 training and recently received IFS certification. I applied for Level 3 training through the lottery system last month and I won again. I will attend Level 3 in spring 2024. So exciting!

The IFS therapeutic approach conceptualizes the human psyche as consisting of multiple “parts” or subpersonalities, each with its own unique characteristics, memories, and emotions. In IFS therapy, the goal is to help individuals understand and integrate these different parts, fostering harmony and balance within the internal system. The approach emphasizes the importance of self-leadership, mindfulness, and compassion toward one’s internal parts, ultimately supporting individuals in achieving a sense of wholeness and healing from past emotional wounds. Click here to learn more.

Learn more about Assertive Communication

Assertiveness is the ability to express our thoughts, feelings, and needs in a confident and direct manner, while respecting the rights and perspectives of others. It involves standing up for ourselves, setting boundaries, and communicating effectively. Assertiveness is beneficial because it allows us to advocate for our own well-being, maintain healthy relationships, and navigate conflicts constructively. It fosters self-confidence, reduces passive or aggressive behavior, and promotes clear, honest communication, leading to enhanced self-esteem and a greater sense of empowerment. If we are coming from a passive mindset and striving to become assertive, we likely won’t become assertive overnight. Assertiveness takes finesse. Assertiveness does not come natural for many of us, but I’m always amazed to see people I work with take it on as a challenge and see how empowering it is for them! Click here to learn more.

Highly Sensitive Persons

If you or someone near to you is very sensitive, I encourage you to read any of Elaine N. Aron’s books. This author defines Highly Sensitive Persons (HSPs) and what it’s like for those of us that are HSP. Many people with complex trauma are highly sensitive. I am no longer surprised when I see clients with C-PTSD who are also HSPs – they seem to go hand in hand. For me personally, learning what an HSP is and that I am one, was a watershed moment. It explains so much about me and how I react/respond to our world. There is a Highly Sensitive Person (HSP) podcast worth listening to – though it does not come out often. (See link below)

An HSP is someone who experiences acute physical, mental, or emotional responses to stimuli and can become easily overwhelmed by strong sensory input. HSPs make up 20-30% of the population and are often described as aware, insightful, empathetic, conscientious, and creative. Unfortunately, our culture tends to see sensitivity as a weakness. But I see it as a strength and I often wonder at how amazing this world would be with more of us HSPs out there! Click here to learn more.

Other Helpful Podcasts

Here are a few podcasts pertaining to trauma, IFS, etc. that I listen to regularly.

The Hidden Brain podcast, hosted by Shankar Vedantam, delves into the unconscious patterns that influence human behavior and relationships through a blend of science and storytelling. The podcast explores diverse topics, such as the impact of apologies and disruptions to traditional practices.

The Therapy Chat podcast, hosted by Laura Reagan, LCSW-C, is a valuable resource for those interested in a range of mental health topics. Laura interviews guests and addresses various subjects such as mindfulness, self-compassion, therapy techniques like EMDR and art therapy, trauma, parenting, relationships, and burnout prevention.

IFS Talks delves into the Internal Family Systems Model and features conversations with lead trainers, authors, and practitioners discussing various topics related to the model, including finding and connecting with exiles, dealing with protectors’ fears of overwhelm, and the healing and integration process.

Meditate

Meditation provides a great opportunity to cultivate inner peace, reduce stress, and enhance mental clarity. It also promotes emotional well-being, improves focus, and contributes to an overall sense of calm and balance in daily life. Insight Timer is an award-winning meditation app available for both iOS and Android and features “the world’s largest free library of over 190,000 guided meditations and 17,000 teachers.” The app provides a meditation timer as well as talks led by top experts in meditation and mindfulness.

I use this app all the time. You can find IFS meditations for Self, Inner Child, Inner Critic, People-pleasing, etc. Also, through this app, I learned about Yoga Nidra which is a relaxation technique that aims to induce deep relaxation without movement. It creates a state of consciousness between waking and sleeping. It’s used for various benefits, such as transitioning into sleep or for rejuvenation during downtime. The practice involves lying in a specific pose and slowing down the body and mind through guided meditation. Insight Timer is a tremendous app!

You may find more meditations on the Red Bike YouTube channel, including meditation for each of the 8 capacities of Self from the IFS model: You can check them out right here.

Learn more about Shame and Guilt

We all feel guilt from time-to-time and that is a good thing. Our sense of guilt helps us identify when we have done something wrong or hurtful to others and may prompt us to make amends for the wrong. Guilt helps us to do better next time and guilt helps us stay in good graces within our families, relationships, and culture. Guilt for many of us with C-PTSD can be distorted and we may feel a sense of guilt when we have nothing to feel guilty about. This is worthy of another blog at some point, and we’ll hold off on that for now.

There is a world of difference between feeling guilty and feeling shame. Rather than feeling guilt because we have done something wrong, shame says that weare bad, wrong, not good enough, not smart enough, that we are defective. Shame is isolating and debilitating. It sets us apart. If we tend to try to push shame away, it gets louder and louder. It’s quite helpful to separate out our shame part and try to befriend it, using the IFS model. Shame wants to be heard (that is why it yells so loud). Using the IFS model, we can befriend our Shame part, update it, and possibly Shame will step back. We can work with Shame to change its job description. To find out more about shame, I encourage you to check out Brene Brown’s work in the link below or work with your IFS therapist. One thing is for sure, the more open we are to acknowledging shame, the less isolated we will feel. It’s ironic that shame makes us feel so isolated and alone, because shame is nearly universal – we all have or have had a sense of it at one time or another. Acknowledging our shame allows us to come out of hiding. I say – that is beautiful.

The one thing that separates us all has the potential to actually connect us universally!

Click here for Brene Brown

Dashboard of Emotions

I don’t remember where I heard about the “dashboard of emotions”. Think about your car dashboard for a moment. The gauges and meters that light up tell us that our car needs attention. If we don’t pay attention to those gauges and meters, our car will run less efficiently, be unsafe, or may quit working altogether. Our personal dashboard of emotions works the same way. Think of your Angry meter lighting up your dashboard. It has information to deliver. Perhaps someone violated a boundary or there has been some sort of injustice. If we ignore this information, our anger will likely grow and possibly distort. Distorted anger could make us do something irrational. Likewise, when our Sad gauge lights up, our body is telling us that we have something to grieve. Or, when our Fear meter lights up, it’s our body’s way of telling us there is something unsafe that needs investigating. Our emotional dashboard is there to help us understand and manage our emotional states. Left unattended, our emotions may become distorted and cause greater difficulties in the long run. This is a new concept for those of us who are used to burying or denying our emotions. We may not be able to automatically recognize, allow, and nurture our emotions, but once we begin to do this, our body, mind, and spirit will appreciate it. RAIN (see below) can help us get on track.

RAIN

The RAIN technique, popularized by Tara Brach, is used to cultivate mindfulness and self-compassion when dealing with intense emotions. The acronym “RAIN” stands for Recognize, Allow, Investigate, and Nurture. Using RAIN as a guide, we recognize and acknowledge our emotions, accept our emotions without judgment, investigate our feelings to understand their underlying causes, and practice nurturing our emotions and ourselves. By applying RAIN, we can navigate difficult emotions with greater ease and compassion, promoting healing and emotional resilience.

Nature Therapy

Nature therapy, involves being with the natural environment as a means of promoting our mental and emotional well-being. The healing effects of nature include relaxation, reduction of stress, and improved mood. Nature therapy includes forest bathing, gardening, hiking, outdoor meditation, or generally any connection with the natural world. Check out the many Red Bike blogs or videos on YouTube. I am a huge advocate of nature therapy!
Click here for Red Bike Nature Therapy Blogs
Click here for Red Bike Nature Therapy Video Logs

Butterfly Hug

The EMDR butterfly hug is a self-soothing technique used in EMDR therapy. It involves crossing your arms over your chest with your hands on your collarbones and tapping your hands alternately in a rhythmic manner, resembling a butterfly’s wings. The rhythmic tapping helps reduce anxiety, stress, and emotional distress. I use the butterfly hug with others as part of the EMDR therapy process to help process distressing memories or experiences. The butterfly hug can be used by yourself at home when you are distressed or when you desire more calm. Yes – that is Prince Harry pictured below. Prince Harry is an advocate of mental health therapy and EMDR!

Man’s Search for Meaning

Maybe you’ve heard about or even read Viktor Frankl’s Man’s Search for Meaning. When I was introduced to this work, I was profoundly influenced. Frankl offers an account of his survival during the Holocaust and delves into the idea of finding meaning in the midst of suffering. Drawing from his own experiences, Frankl introduces the concept of the will to meaning, suggesting that having a sense of purpose can be essential for individuals to endure hardship. This timeless work not only recounts his personal journey but also explores the psychological impact of traumatic events, making it a thought-provoking and widely celebrated piece of literature. For me, the take-away from this work is that, we may have no control over what happens to us, but the one thing that we do have control over whether we react or respond.

Last, but not least… Ride a Bike!

Riding a bike is a wonderful mode of transportation, but it also offers numerous health benefits, including: improved cardiovascular fitness and muscle strength, an effective way to manage weight, reduce stress, and improve overall mental well-being. Personally, I think bikes are one of human’s greatest inventions! I have known since the very first time I got on a bike that bikes deliver an ultimate sense of freedom. Balancing on two wheels, propelled by your own energy, is completely liberating. When the wind hits your face, you sense a unique connection to the surrounding environment. It’s empowering and exhilarating. Go for it! But ride responsibly and carefully!

I hope this wellbeing resource guide serves as a toolkit for nurturing your body, mind, and spirit in 2024 and beyond. I hope these resources help contribute to self-discovery and personal growth on your journey to finding joy, peace, and resilience in your daily life. Share it with others with the link below.