The Caregiver Support Series is a three week series dedicated to caregivers - current, past, and future - inspired by personal experience caring for chronically ill family members. The series will mix radical therapy and herbal practices as tools to process anxiety, stress, and grief often compounded by the caregiving experience. We will be joined by licensed therapist, Dorian Ortega, who will support the group with practical resources and exercises that we can use along our caregiving journeys. Each session will include an herbal exploration, led by Alyssa N. Villegas Rodríguez, focused on herbs to  support the nervous, immune and digestive systems. We will end each gathering with a hands-on medicine crafting portion where each participant will create a personalized remedy. 

Week 1: 

The series will begin with a focus on caregiving induced anxiety. Anxiety activates our sympathetic nervous system, which can flood our nerves and tissues. An excess of nerve activity can lead to muscle and nerve tension, tingling, insomnia, and mood swings. Our herbal exploration will focus on nervine herbs to encourage our nervous systems to release, relax, and recalibrate. 

Week 2: 

Our second week will focus on excessive stress and its effects on our immune systems. Caregivers can develop Caregiver Stress Syndrome, which places the body in a state of emotional, mental, and physical exhaustion. Increased stress makes caregivers more likely to develop autoimmune diseases, heart disease, and high blood pressure. Our herbal exploration will focus on anti-inflammatory herbs aimed to balance and strengthen our immune functions.

Week 3: Grief 

Our last session will focus on caregiver grief. The journey of caregiving can be arduous, exhausting, and also full of grief for loved ones, past lives, and dreams not yet manifested. Grief greatly affects our gut; the digestive tract assists us in processing emotional information. The majority of our bodies serotonin, the chemical that influences our mood - is also produced in the gut. Grief can overwhelm our systems, including our digestive tract, which makes it difficult for our bodies to process and manage our emotional landscape. Our herbal exploration will focus on carminative herbs which activate our gut, soothe our digestive muscles, and encourage digestion function. 

The series begins October 21st and will end on November 4th. We will meet each Wednesday at 6:30pm. The series is crafted to flow together but drop-ins can be accommodated as necessary.  

About the Facilitators

Alyssa N. Villegas Rodriguez is a BoriNegra multi-disciplinary artist, organizer, farmer, herbalist, and cultural steward born and raised in Uptown, Chicago, IL. She has spent the past fifteen years facilitating agricultural, cultural, and artistic programming across the city. Alyssa is the founder of Taller La Raíz, a project dedicated to the cultivation, preservation, and practice of Afro-Caribbean agricultural traditions. She is a collective member of La Escuelita Bombera de Corazón and an ensemble member of the performance group Bomberxs D'Cora. Additionally, she is a program facilitator at Casa Ilumina, the holistic health expansion of 18th Casa de Cultura. 

Follow Alyssa on IG!: @comemalanga

Dorian A. Ortega is a licensed clinical professional counselor (LCPC) and founder of F.L.Y. Radical Therapy, LLC. First Love Yourself (F.L.Y.) Radical Therapy is a mental health practice featuring therapeutic approaches centering BIPOC and LGBTQI+ individuals and loving yourself through collective social liberation awareness, healing for yourself, with each other, and helping others to achieve the same. F.L.Y. Radical Therapy is inspired by liberation, womanist and multicultural psychology. Dorian is a program curator, workshop facilitator, author and has presented for speaking engagements on radical wellness and practice at elementary and high schools, universities and organizations. Part of the dynamic way wellness can be practiced is in exercises. The workshops and presentations usually include education, history, a practice skill, and is meant to be accessible for folks to continue to integrate within their environments.

For more info on Dorian and F.L.Y Radical Therapy, check out her: flyradicaltherapy.com

Follow F.L.Y Radical Therapy on IG: @flyradicaltherapy