Our second week in Australia was a once in a lifetime opportunity filled of spirituality and meditation, and even a heavier subject such as trauma at Lighthouse Foundation. The Lighthouse Foundation is a centre for young people who are experiencing homelessness. Many of these individuals have been exposed to trauma or family disfunction. The residential program is split up into ten houses for the youth, which may include up to four young people at a time, and two carers which work at alternating schedules. A carer is a loving and helping individual who serves as a guardian for the homeless youth. These carers receive regular training and debriefing sessions for self support. In order to adequately provide support for the youth, they must take care of themselves, and in order to do this they have weekly meetings to debrief. In addition to support from carers, the youth receive guidance from the community as well. Coming from a psychology background, we both connected with Lighthouse and their approach to working with individuals of trauma, and connecting it with the community. Having a strong connection with the community is a key approach to working with young people. Lighthouse aims to work on relationships, because it is key to the healing process. The group experience being positive is critical because trauma flows through the entire system as a whole, and this can lead to the traumatized system. The quality of the therapeutic environment and the relationships that are formed in the community are tremendously important for mental health, and this should be stressed more. This approach needs to be highlighted more in the United States in residential services for youth. Without the connection of the community the process can be hindered and we can bring this back with us for future practice with children. We both aspire to counsel children one day, and we hope to bring the approach Lighthouse uses with connecting the community to our areas. After learning a lot about homelessness at Lighthouse, we even learned a lot about meditation and spirituality at The Great Ocean road tour, which we hope to one day bring forward more in the mental health field.
The Great Ocean Road was built by 3,300 WW1 veterans after the war over the course of thirteen years. This beautiful scenic route was carved out and built along the coast line, with a mesmerizing view of the ocean. We like to think that during the process of the road being built, the soldiers had the opportunity to feel somewhat of a calming and therapeutic relationship with the ocean. The ocean is so powerful and mesmerizing, and therapeutic. Our group had the opportunity to meditate in three different locations on our journey down the Great Ocean Road. The first time at the beach, second watching the sunrise in the countryside and lastly in the rainforest. This allowed us to refocus ourselves on gratitude and self-appreciation. So often people in helping professions get burnt out, and taking care of yourself is a necessity.
I (Emily) would love to one day either be a psychologist or therapist for children and victims of domestic violence and trauma, and to teach meditation classes to these individuals. I feel passionate about helping these individuals through the healing process, and to show them to be one with their mind. Changing your thoughts are the first step to changing the world that you live in.
I (Megan) would love to work in an elementary school as a school counselor or intervention specialist. Looking at issues from many different perspectives is needed and often beneficial. Just because many people feel treatment for a certain disability or disorder needs to be a certain way, everyone has their own strengths that need to be drawn upon for progression. Differences should not merely be tolerated, they should be celebrated.
Overall, the Great Ocean Road was a wonderful spiritual journey and a great time to step away from our busy stressful lives and to truly be thankful for everything that we have. Meditation is a great way to get in tune with yourself and to calm the mind. This journey in Australia has so far been a life changing experience!