My doctoral committee has asked me to say something about resources on wellbeing for ILR practitioners who might not dive deeper into my scholarship. To begin, I don’t recommend doing the kind of information gathering I did for my doctoral project. I don’t think it’s necessary to expansively review academic research (even for other scholars). You don’t need to know about the neuroscience of motivation, theories of social cognition, or the metaphysical roots of reductionism to expand wellbeing.

When it comes to wellbeing, your effort (and mine) is better spent on embodied practice not conceptual knowledge. I didn’t know that when I started my doctoral project. If I had, it would look very different.

My primary recommendation these days is trying an existing system of somatic and reflective practice. This could be attending a BIPOC meditation retreat, taking a course in Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction, studying Somatic Experiencing, joining a Buddhist community of practice, or a wide range of other possibilities. There isn’t any lack of options but it remains difficult to find things specifically for BIPOC people and almost impossible to find things specifically for Indigenous people. That’s starting to change but it’s still a problem. That’s why I created my own system of reflective practice customized to my life as an ILR practitioner.

In my opinion, the most accessible resource on creating systems is Atomic Habits by James Clear. In a nutshell I think the most difficult challenge to wellbeing for ILR practitioners is creating space for somatic and reflective practice. This book helps you examine how to create the space (and reinforce the habits) you need to integrate practices for wellbeing into your life. It’s why on this website creating systems is one of the four essential skills to expand your wellbeing.

I keep a small collection of books about trauma, wellbeing, embodied experience, etc. on my shelf. Any of these books is another starting place to consider change within your ILR practice.

  1. An accessible general resource on wellbeing for Indigenous people is The Seven Circles: Indigenous Teachings for Living Well by Chelsea Luger and Thosh Collins.
  2. A good starting point for understanding how trauma manifests as an embodied experience racially, culturally, and socially is My Grandmother’s Hands by Resmaa Menakem.
  3. Two of the most accessible resources for better understanding the impact of trauma on human body-mind are The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel van der Kolk and What Happened To You? by Bruce Perry and Oprah Winfrey.
  4. My favorite resource on burnout and stress is Burnout by Emily and Amelia Nagoski. They also have a great website with a workbook and other tools.
  5. A good resource for understanding the importance of rest to wellbeing is Rest is Resistance by Tricia Hersey (aka the Nap Minister). They also have a great website and other social media presence.
  6. Finally, my favorite resource on the impact of colonization is Decolonizing Therapy by Jennifer Mullan.

It’s important to note that none of these recommendations or resources (or this entire website) work if you aren’t ready for change.

If you’re still at the point where all you can see are the reasons you can’t find time, space, or energy to expand your wellbeing, then you are not ready for change.

If you’re still at the point where you feel like your wellbeing depends upon somebody else, then you are also not ready for change.

There aren’t any resources that do the work of expanding wellbeing for you. There also aren’t any resources that allow you to create change without sacrificing something that matters to you, or without facing discomfort, or without looking at deeply ingrained habits, attitudes, or other modes of being.

You don’t, as they say, get to cut your cake and eat it too!

I’m not trying to be a downer. I just think it’s important to be honest that you can’t life hack your way to wellbeing. It’s hard work. Plain and simple.