Healing Journey
Intended Audience
All members including people living with cancer, family members and significant caregivers.
Program Description
Healing Journey is a multilevel program designed to guide and support people who choose to actively engage in their own process of healing.
- Level 1: Coping with Cancer Stress
- Level 2: Skills for Healing
- Level 3: Steps to Spiritual Healing
- Level 4: Becoming Authentic
- Level 5: Book Study – Eckhart Tolle Based on more than 25 years of research and practice, the program provides guidance within a group setting for psychological and spiritual exploration. The Healing Journey Program offers simple, effective tools and strategies that, when mindfully practised, support healing, harmony and inner peace.
“This focus on self-discovery and understanding for healing and transitioning to a truly ‘healthy’ person (in mind, body and spirit) has been invaluable for me allowing me to mindfully and compassionately rebuild much of my life.”
“ I felt very safe in expressing myself.”
“ I am coming to terms with my new life.”
What to Expect at a Session
The healing process is unique to each individual and this program provides a safe and confidential space for members to explore, share, question, listen and just simply be. Participants are guided toward self-awareness and stress management through the practices of thought watching, imagery, journaling, meditative techniques, group discussion and goal-setting. Members experience the emergence of a supportive, healing community that offers the opportunity, and enhances the potential for individual growth rooted in choice and possibility. As the program levels progress, participants explore more in-depth conversations and readings on meaning and fulfillment in life choices.
Benefits and Impact
It is common for a diagnosis of cancer to challenge the spiritual wellbeing of cancer patients and caregivers. As such, spiritual care has been identified as an important element of supportive care in cancer (Connolly & Timmins, 2021; Puchalski et al., 2019).
Healing Journey is a practical program designed to address spirituality and existential issues in people living with cancer, and it is inclusive of all religions and belief systems. An early version of this program showed promise in improving mood, self-efficacy, quality of life, purpose in life, and spirituality in cancer patients (Cunningham et al., 2005). Since then, more recent research has shown that meaning centred psychotherapy programs for cancer survivors similar to Healing Journey can improve quality of life, psychological distress, psychological well-being, and mental adjustment to cancer in both the short and long term (Breitbart et al., 2015; da Ponte et al., 2021; Holtmaat et al., 2020; Jafari et al., 2013; Rosenfeld et al., 2018; van der Spek et al., 2017). One recent study has also shown that a meaning centred psychotherapy program for cancer survivors was cost effective (van der Spek et al., 2018).
