Making Changes is a group program designed for women from various disadvantaged backgrounds to foster long-term, meaningful changes that enable them to thrive socially, personally and economically. Many women we serve have experienced abuse, trauma, or mental health illnesses and live in poverty, creating unique barriers to success. Making Changes provides the tools to increase self-esteem, develop healthy relationships, become strong decision-makers, set healthy boundaries, manage conflict and effectively communicate. Over one and a half years, this skill-building program helps women move out of poverty toward prosperity.

The five modules in the program include:

• Self-empowerment:Participants increase inner strength, develop confidence and self-acceptance, find ways to feel secure and trust in themselves and decisions, accept responsibility and take control of their lives.
• Effective Communication: Participants will have the opportunity to examine their existing communication skills and their effect on others.
• Healthy Boundaries:Setting good personal boundaries is critical to creating healthy relationships, increasing the sense of self-worth and reducing stress, anxiety and depression.
• Getting Unstuck:Identifying emotions, how they are constantly changing, and how emotions signal that there is something we need to pay attention to. Doing so allows participants to heal from past events and find new coping skills to move forward.
• Rising Above Old Patterns: When we feel triggered and in danger, our automatic survival responses are activated, and we react using old patterns and coping mechanisms. Participants identify the underlying emotions and find healthy coping mechanisms.