From 19 to 23 July 2025, APTN hosted two transformative mental health and well-being workshops at the IWP Centre in Mae Rim, near Chiang Mai, Thailand. Over four days, 16 participants and 3 APTN staff members came together to explore trauma, burnout, resilience, and collective care through holistic, feminist, and embodied approaches.
Somatic Healing and Understanding Trauma
The first two-day workshop (20–21 July) was led by P’Ouyporn Khuankaew, a Buddhist feminist activist and facilitator with decades of experience in women’s rights, peacebuilding, and anti-oppression work. Through guided somatic practices, participants learned to understand how trauma and stress manifest in the body. Body scans, mindful breathing, and gentle movement became pathways to release tension and reconnect with the body’s innate wisdom.
The workshop also delved into the intersections of power, privilege, and systemic oppression, inviting participants to reflect on how inequality—rooted in gender, sexuality, class, and race—shapes access to care and dignity. Through open dialogue and reflection, participants shared strategies to build resilience and solidarity amid structural challenges faced by LGBTQ+ communities across the Asia Pacific.
Creative Expression and Reflection
Participants were encouraged to integrate personal reflection with creative expression through journaling, storytelling, and one-on-one sharing. Writing became a means to explore emotions and affirm personal and collective healing. Nature walks and outdoor mindfulness sessions further supported grounding and restoration, using the tranquil surroundings of Mae Rim to deepen sensory connection and emotional release.
Expressive Arts Therapy and Embodied Transformation
The second two-day session (22–23 July) was facilitated by Ponni Arasu, a Sri Lanka-based feminist activist, theatre practitioner, and Expressive Arts Therapy facilitator. Her workshop centered on Expressive Arts Therapy techniques, political theatre tools from the Theatre of the Oppressed, and movement work inspired by contemporary dance, meditation, and breathwork.
Ponni designed a dynamic agenda that adapted to the participants’ needs as they emerged in the space. Activities emphasized embodiment, emotional honesty, and collective presence. Participants began with grounding rituals—bringing natural objects to a shared altar, setting intentions, and creating “clay friends”—to establish safety and connection. These practices helped participants enter the space with openness and trust.
Collaborative art-making, journaling, and movement exercises encouraged participants to engage with sensations, emotions, and memories through their bodies. Activities such as collective drawing, mandala creation, and “dance like no one is watching” allowed for expression beyond words, fostering creativity and connection. A reflective film screening on peaceful resistance in Sri Lanka inspired a discussion on the intersections of healing, activism, and sustained struggle, culminating in a symbolic “peace walk” exercise with self-made placards of affirmation and resistance.
Ethics and Intention
Throughout the sessions, Ponni emphasized trauma-informed practice, consent, and the facilitator’s embodied presence. Each activity was held within a “container of time,” ensuring safety and clarity. Participants were continually reminded that they could engage or step back as needed—affirming autonomy and trust in the body’s wisdom.
Her facilitation highlighted key intentions:
- Rest and Reconnection: Creating space for activists to experience rest and renewal in their bodies.
- Authentic Self-Reflection: Providing safe, creative avenues for participants to explore and affirm their inner experiences.
- Collective Care: Reinforcing that care and healing are collective practices, not individual luxuries—especially vital for marginalized communities denied access to systemic support.
Reflections and Moving Forward
Towards the end of the workshop, participants shared feeling more grounded, emotionally reconnected, and in community with one another. The immersive process affirmed the importance of trauma-informed, embodied, and community-centered approaches to mental health—particularly within trans and gender-diverse movements in the Asia Pacific.
Ponni reflected that participants are navigating immense pressures—balancing activism, livelihood, and personal well-being within increasingly fast-paced and demanding contexts. To sustain collective care, she emphasized the need to:
- Equip activists with foundational healing and care practices.
- Create ongoing access to trained mental health practitioners with social justice grounding.
- Continue investing in mental health as integral to long-term movement building.
The Chiang Mai workshops offered not only tools for healing but also a reaffirmation of shared humanity and interdependence. In cultivating spaces of rest, creativity, and connection, APTN continues to center collective care as resistance, nurturing both individual and movement resilience across the Asia Pacific region.
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