Dip into the Delights and the Dangers of LGATS – Large Group Awareness Trainings
Beth St Claire
Group experiences can be very powerful and have the potential to lead to growth, inspiration, and a deep sense of connection to self and others. However, if run without due care and attention to safety, they can do more damage than good.
We’ll examine intensity, catharsis, transformative processes, and the experiences of attendees in this group (including in the ‘festival’ context), what might be left needing attention, and the idea of strengthening personal boundaries.
In the past 50 years, ‘awareness’-oriented group work has evolved through areas of spiritual, emotional, psychological, and philosophical experimentation, testing boundaries and challenging pre-existing beliefs.
This workshop gives a brief overview of the history of such groups and some key aspects that differentiate between groups that prove to be healthy and those that risk contributing to the accumulation of casualties from high-demand, coercive, exploitative, cult-ish, or abusive organisations.
The last part is experiential – examining group structure and directives; safety, boundaries, consent; and holding clear intentions.
