canDID Expressions is dedicated to exploring and sharing the lived experiences of people who have trauma-based dissociation through writing and other expressive arts.

Our online groups and classes offer a safe space to create in a community of people with shared experiences.  Join us in our offerings below.

If you are interested in facilitating a writing or art group, please contact us with your idea.

If you have been harmed by mistreatment based on your identity, you can request scholarship funds.

In partnership with CALIF, we offer funding for individuals harmed by identity-based mistreatment, including bullying, harassment, threats, assault, vandalism, or other discrimination based on race, gender, disability, sexual orientation, religion, or similar identities.

After you submit your application, we’ll schedule a meeting to discuss your goals and the offerings you might find supportive. Once you’ve completed the selected activity, we’ll meet again to reflect on your experience and talk about next steps.

This is the writing group that inspired canDID Expressions!  We have been meeting every Sunday since the Healing Together conference in 2024.  Openings are rare, and by invitation only.

These interactive groups fosters community and connection through free writing related to life with trauma-based dissociation.  Whether you are a beginner or experienced writer, new ways of self-expression will emerge.  Invitations to share and receive comments from other group members are extended, helping deepen the experience of self discovery.

Maximum number of participants: 5

Dates:    (4 weeks)

Time:      Pacific

Cost:  From $10.00*

Reading and writing poetry can open new ways of understanding ourselves.  This workshop uses poetry and guided prompts to support self-exploration and creative expressions.  Participants will read a poem, engage in an exercise, and be invited to share with the group.  No prior experience with poetry is required.

Maximum number of participants:  6

Dates:    (4 weeks)

Time:      Pacific

Cost:  From $10.00*

Connecting with a fellow survivor who is further along in the healing journey can be transformative.  Bring your questions and situations to these 45-minute meetings to explore, gain insight, and problem-solve.  

Date:  By appointment

Cost:  $50.00

Your story is important, and writing can be a healing process.  Maybe you struggle with knowing what to write about, how to write without getting triggered, or how to move beyond merely describing what happened to making meaning.  We will develop an individualized plan based on your project, from single journal enteries to book-length narratives.

Date:  By appointment

Cost:  Agreed upon during initial consultation

Gather in community to work on your individual writing project.  These drop-in sessions begin with a quick greeting followed by 60 minutes of writing with others.  Wrap up with a goal for the month ahead.  

Maximum number of participants: 25

Coming soon!

Gather in community to work on your individual art project.  These drop-in sessions begin with a quick greeting followed by 60 minutes of creating with others.  Wrap up with a goal for the week ahead.

Maximum number of participants: 15

Coming Soon!

Cancellation Policy:  If you are unable to attend an offering you registered for, contact us a minimum of one week in advance to request a full refund minus a 20% transaction fee.  Cancellations a minimum of 3 days in advance will be eligible for a credit towards a future offering.

Writing Wrongs 

When events or circumstances conflict with our values and beliefs, the impact can feel deeply personal.  This workshop examines the institutional and systemic barriers that make it difficult to act in alignment with our integrity.  Through a series of guided prompts that build on one another, you will explore new ways of enaging with these challenges.  There will be time for individual writing, followed by optional sharing.  You can choose to share your wrting, reflect on the process itself, identify discoveries, or voice questions that remain.  The feedback offered will be intentionally simple, acknowledging that you have been heard and accepted.

Healing Through Movement 

Join our creative movement class to deepen your mind-body connection in a supportive community.  Led by Paola Patel, this experience invites participants to cultivate awareness of mind, body, and breath through gentle and intentional movement.  Connection is nurtured using a variety of music, reflective journaling prompts, and group sharing.

Bilateral Art  

Join this experiential class to discover how rhythmic, alternating, and two-handed art-making can support emotional regulation, self-awareness, and an increased  sense of wholeness.  Art prompts will be offered that focus on the process, not a final product.  Time for reflection and sharing will be included.  No art experience is needed to benefit from this practice. 

Cut, Paste, Write:  An Introduction to SoulCollage®  

Join Kimberly Lee, JD for a two-hour, hands-on workshop.  She will guide us through a gentle introduction to the enchanting practice of SoulCollage®.  Using images, imagination, and intuition we’ll create collages representing our unique selves. With reflective journaling prompts, we’ll find meaning in our creations, accessing the inner wisdom that exists within us all.

Meet Your Part(s) Through Movement 

Paola Patel leads this 4-week course in meeting your part(s) through creative and gentle movement. In each class, participants may be invited to bring awareness to mind, body, breath, and part(s) connection utilizing a variety of music, journaling prompts, and group sharing. The beginning stages of the course will focus on resourcing our part(s) to enhance trust within the creative movement space. This class will also cover somatic (body) exercises to promote grounding and ease by learning how to activate a calming nervous system state.

canDID Connections

This process-based art class is designed to facilitate connections between you and your inner world.  You will need:  paper, pen, and colored pencils.  If you have fine liner pens and a larger tip marker, those will be helpful, but are not necessary.  The use of lines and shapes makes this approach accessible to all.

Art and Writing

Kristin Schultz leads this 3-week class combining art and writing.  In each session, participants will be guided to do some form of art:  drawing, coloring, painting, oil pastels, (scribbling!), whatever they choose.  Next, they will be guided to write about their creation or the process of creating.  Participants will then be encouraged to share their experience, insights, and/or their art or writing.  It is hoped that through this process of expression, reflection, and sharing that participants will connect with feelings and parts of themselves that can sometimes be difficult to access.  All levels of art and writing are welcome.  Come prepared with your choice of art supplies (which can be as basic as paper and pen).

Music in Writing
Tiffany Starkey leads this 4-week exploration of our relationship with music and how to apply it to the written word. When we write about music, we are the listeners. Participants will consider shared experiences with music-bands, albums, and songs. Topics include music genres, words, sounds, descriptions, and impact. Music backgrounds of all levels and types are welcome!

Dance Exploration
This is a 6-week exploration of embodied dance and movement.  Participants will focus on building mind-body connections for mindfulness, emotional co-regulation, resilience, empowerment, and confidence.  Topics include expression,  creativity, senses, element, form, and production.    Dance/movement backgrounds of all levels and types are welcome!