Chronic Pain Support Group: Finding the Beauty in the Struggle

People with chronic pain and chronic illness can easily become isolated and this group seeks to be a remedy for that. It will allow people who are suffering to come together and support each other in our body grief and the grief of lost futures/expectations while also focusing on the way forward. The goal is for people to feel less alone in their struggle as well as learn about how to manage their daily lives with the limitations that being in pain brings.

My plan is to include a few prepared topics for discussion but to also allow the conversation to flow naturally and to be flexible in how we approach things. I'd like to include opportunities for journaling as well as a guided meditation (assuming the group would be into that/it feels appropriate.)

I'd like it to be a place where everyone feels heard and they can communicate their true feelings about how things are going for them without the sugar coating that often happens with healthy friends and relatives.

Ultimately, I envision that this space will be a sanctuary where healing and encouragement happen.

📍Event Details

We will meet every other Wednesday from 12 - 1 pm, for a total of six times, starting July 16th. Join us for one or all.

• July 16 & 30
• August 13 & 27
• September 10 & 24

Free. Registration required. Donations accepted at the door.

IMPORTANT: If you are not able to attend an event for which you have registered please so that we may offer that space to someone on the wait list. Thank you.

Limited space. Registration closes 24 hours prior to the event.

Parking Information

Shakti in the Mountains Website

✨ Led by Kit Blackwell and Kim Bushore-Maki

is a nonbinary, AuDHD person who enjoys making art and poetry, and loves making new friends. Through nearly twenty years of lived experience with chronic illness, Kit has learned to look for the beauty and joy that is all around us and to let the glimmers carry them forward. Kit recently returned to their Appalachian roots after many long years away and is loving every minute. Ask them about haints, witches, and cryptids and you'll have them talking for hours!

Kim Bushore-Maki is a soul-driven entrepreneur who understands the undeniable urge to create a business and a life filled with meaning and purpose. Her vision of opening a center where people could heal and grow led her to open Shakti in the Mountains in Johnson City, Tennessee: a place where the creative, feminine energy is nurtured and valued.

Kim is a licensed professional counselor and a yoga teacher. She completed the Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapy program as well as the Shake Your Soul Yoga Dance program. Kim is very interested in somatic expressive therapy, archetypal psychology, gardening, herbalism, astrology, wisdom traditions, and regenerative economics.

Kim continues to build and to support inclusive, vibrant communities. She spends most of her time mentoring leaders, guiding healing programs, and providing mental health counseling.

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Shakti in the Mountains, 409 East Unaka Avenue, Johnson City, United States