We ask that you be on time to our meetings. We will start promptly at 7:00 and end by 8:30 each week. Normally, we will close the door after we open the meeting and go through the guidelines. If you must be late for some reason on occasion, please text one of us so that we can allow for that. When you do arrive, please come in as quietly as possible so that you do not interrupt the person sharing.

We ask that you stay for the entire meeting. Again, if you must leave early on occasion, please let the facilitator know that beforehand so that they can dismiss you while no one is sharing.

Please keep your cell phone ringer off during the meeting. We do not want any unnecessary interruptions. We understand if you have very small children in childcare and need to keep your phone on “silent” in case they need to contact you.

This is not a group study – we are a support group. We do not have a curriculum that we use to promote discussion in our group. We want members to have plenty of time to share so we will not be involved in a book or Bible study. We can recommend some books on the subject that might be helpful for outside study.

You will not be required to attend weekly. We recognize that many of us have busy lives and sometimes cannot attend regularly. That is not a requirement of this group. We want you to come as often as you can.

No children allowed. Childcare is available for children ages infant through 5th grade but you have to make reservations. Childcare starts 6:30 p.m. until 8:30 p.m. (Please have your children picked up not later than 8:30 p.m.) Please do not bring your child if they are sick or have the sniffles. Childcare is $5 per family, per night.

We ask that you keep your sharing to 3 – 5 minutes and focus on your own thoughts and feelings. Keeping sharing to a reasonable time limit allows everybody to share, stops the speaker from digressing too far from the topic and stops one individual from hogging the group time. When the facilitator believes this to be violated they will stop the speaker by holding up their hand.

We realize that the first time you attend you may have a lot to share, but please keep in mind that others are here want share as well. You will most likely have more than one chance to share during the meeting. If you do not wish to share during the first meeting, we ask that you at least tell the group 1). why you are here and 2). how you heard about our group.

Out of respect to our members, we ask that you listen quietly as each person shares and not interrupt them. If you feel that you would like to comment on something they have said, you will first need to ask them, “Would you like feedback?” If they do not want it, then please remain quiet. If they do, please remember that we are not here to give each other advice or to fix one another. We are here to listen and be supportive. If you do give feedback (with permission only), please remember to share only from your own experiences.

We ask that you do not take notes or do any kind of writing during the meeting. This would make others feel uncomfortable if you were writing while they are sharing.

We do not allow crosstalk. Crosstalk happens when two people in the group start a conversation to the exclusion of others in the group. If you feel like you have connected with someone in the group, please ask for their phone number or email so that you can have private conversations outside of the group.

We are not here to fix others or to provide counseling. Group members are here to support one another not “fix” one another. Feedback is permitted only when a group member gives their consent.
Even though we all may have some great words of wisdom for somebody that doesn’t mean they will have value for that person. People in our group are often in a fragile emotional state and cannot receive even a sincere message well, nor understand it. In this group we permit feedback but the individual receiving it must decide if they are ready to hear it.

We ask that you keep everything that is said in the group confidential and that it not be shared with anyone outside of the group. This includes spouse, close friend or counselor. Please do not share the names of our members outside of the group either.

Please do not use profanity while sharing. This is a Christian support group and we want to respect our members. While unlikely that any of us will engage in foul language during the group time, we must remain mindful that some people experience bad language as abusive and hurtful.

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