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The soothing sound of a gong echoed through the breeze as birds sang on a sunny Wednesday afternoon in a small park on Pilsen’s east side. Dozens lay on the ground, eyes closed and hearts open to a form of healing that many had not heard of or did not know how much it would change their lives.
“We had space for our emotions, heart, soul and those we have lost. We name what has been heavy on our bodies and take our time to be vulnerable and supportive,” wrote Cristina Puzio, an energy healing practitioner and meditation instructor for the sound healing sessions, which take place at El Paseo. Community Garden every week.
“Can you name what moves within your heart and soul? Or name what has been heavy within your body? she asked her after dedicating that session to the victims of the 4th of July shooting in Highland Park and their families. “Please take the time to process your emotions, thoughts, and feelings. Find a healthy way to deal with your individual emotions (and) pain and collective emotions (and) pain.”
Puzio began creating spaces to offer meditation and other types of energy healing to people in her community, Latino families, and youth of color more than five years ago when she realized few were aware of the practices and their benefits. Meditation practitioners were not accessible due to distance, cost, and language barriers.
So he began organizing workshops and meditation sessions in the park, inviting others to learn about the benefits it had to offer and teaching them to use it as a form of therapy, asking only for a donation. Meditating is a way of coping with physical and emotional pain that helps you reflect on and process life’s situations, healing your soul, mind and body, she said.
During 2020, the circle grew significantly. The meditation sessions would bring together more than 50 people not only from Pilsen but from all over the city. The pandemic has made it clear that humanity is united by suffering, Puzio said, so meditation, for many, has become a way of survival.
After losing loved ones to the COVID-19 virus, Lizeth Garza, 32, said she turned to meditation to help her deal with grief. For the past two years, she has participated in the meditation circle.
“Women, femmes, non-binary or people of color who are being most affected by things that are happening in our world need a healing space in our community,” Garza said. “It’s critical for us to be grounded and connected to this land and in a space where we can connect with each other and heal with each other.”
After realizing the need, Puzio began connecting with other spiritual leaders, practitioners, and psychotherapists who have helped establish a network of Spanish-speaking wellness leaders to offer holistic care, energy healing, and alternative medicine to people in the area. affordable prices. sometimes free.
The initiative has solidified as part of the park’s programming, which includes weekly meditation and sound healing, yoga and a healing clinic offering reiki, cupping, massage, smoke cleansing, and craniosacral healing on the first Tuesday of every month.
Puzio, now a wellness leader at the park, said the work has been accomplished by a group of practitioners and spiritual healers who have a genuine intention to preserve and care for the community by donating their time and services. Its purpose is to make these services accessible and available to the community, to raise awareness of the importance of its mental health benefits.
“Meditation is an untapped form of healing that is often overlooked in overall health and wellness,” said Teresa Moreno, a McKinley Park resident who religiously attends Wednesday circles.
These alternative forms of therapy and medicine have often been considered inaccessible to communities of color because mental health is typically not prioritized, time-consuming and mostly expensive to practice, said Paula Acevedo, co-director of the El Paseo Community Garden since 2015. .
Others, he said, did not believe that these practices made a difference in their mental and physical health. Reiki, a Japanese form of energy healing, is now offered at Northwestern Medicine, Puzio added.
The practice is an energy treatment with a technique called palm healing, through which energy is said to be transferred through the palms or from the practitioner to the patient. It helps treat mood disorders — anxiety or depression — and insomnia and chronic pain, among other health problems.
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Since Puzio began offering his services at the park, Acevedo has been committed to supporting the efforts because they align with the park’s mission of strengthening environmental stewardship and civic engagement while protecting equitable green space on behalf of the community.
“A lot of people may have thought they didn’t belong in a room where people meditate, or they may have felt intimidated,” Paula said. “We want to create a safe space for everyone.”
When Eddie Galván, 24, heard about the program, he decided to give it a try after experiencing a lot of stress, he said.
“I tried to do it at home, but it wasn’t working, I needed something different,” Galván said.
To preserve and expand services, Puzio and Acevedo want to seek funding to recruit more licensed professionals and continue to offer all services at low cost. The group is also looking to create a committee that can help lead the project in the coming months and years.