So, in preparation for changes to um, everything, Kelli is doing some free virtual health workshops this January.
When A Casserole Is Not Enough: Extremely Practical Tips For Building Extended Communities of Care
January 14th at 8 pm ET
WHAT WE’RE GOING TO CHAT ABOUT:
Our nontraditional communities often rely on families of choice, rather than families of origin for social support. However, when we develop serious or chronic illness, the care provided by nontraditional support systems doesn’t always easily mesh with current healthcare and social support systems. This is particularly true if no designated primary caregiver exists, and the person in need of care lives alone. Add in the dominant culture’s excellence at recreating systems of oppression within the healthcare system, and caregiving and care receiving can be challenging, to say the least. We’ll talk about building the existing structures of extended circle caregiving, how to nurture these networks in mutuality, how to deal with the emotional challenges that being a caregiving and a care receiver can bring up and how to find those support folks, especially if you are geographically or otherwise isolated. This very interactive workshop draws on Kelli’s more than twenty years as a community health nurse, her experiences during the early years of the AIDS crisis, and her lived experience as the primary caregiver of two partners who died of cancer, and as well as survivor of a life-threatening post-surgical infection which required many months of community care. Shoutout to the disability justice folks who have been maintaining mutual aid caregiving circles for always!
Emergency! Planning For Unplanned Healthcare
January 18th at 3 PM ET with special guest current ER nurse Harvey Katz and Leah Strock FNP
WHAT WE’RE GOING TO CHAT ABOUT:
In communities traditionally underserved (or worse) by our healthcare systems we are often particularly—and understandably– wary of seeking emergency care, even when care is badly needed. In this interactive workshop, we’ll walk through a visit to the emergency room, talk about general ER infrastructure, and brainstorm/role-playing ways in which we can be empowered to facilitate relatively positive endings to various ER scenarios. We’ll also discuss picking an ER buddy and developing a written ER plan.
If you already know a lot about these subjects, please join us, we need ALL the tips and ALL THE WISDOM!!!!!!!
ALTHOUGH THESE ARE VERY INTENSE SUBJECTS, DON’T FORGET KELLI’S A COMEDIAN AND STORYTELLER IN ADDITION TO BEING A NURSE.. WE WON’T PROMISE IT’LL BE FUN EXACTLY, BUT KELLI WILL DEFINITELY END WITH A KNOCK KNOCK JOKE AND WE’LL BE REMINDED OF THE STRENGTHS OF OUR COMMUNITIES AND WE’LL ALSO BE BUILDING COMMUNITY!
Kelli has some free downloadable health strategy zines that zines and handouts that illustrate her practical, irreverent approach to topics like pap exams, dealing with healthcare trauma, etc. They’re here.
You can register for both/either on this form and we’ll send you the link the day of the event. We’ll be using a paid Zoom, which is the best compromise of accessibility and security we could figure out for now. If you have already voted for a workshop on the form Kelli previously posted, you will automatically be sent a link.
These workshops (and any future ones!) will always be free but they take a lot of resources to make happen. If you’d like and you’ve got it, we’d love for you to support these workshops (or Kelli’s storytelling work with LGBT youth in Florida and Alabama) by donating here.