Rise to the occasion

If you’re fresh out of the oven and new to Sydney or maybe feeling like your usual stomping ground is a bit stale, perhaps one of ACON’s peer education workshops for lesbians and same-sex attracted women could freshen your loaf.

The Ins and Out group for young women and the Hen House group for women 26 – 40 are both starting up in the next month.

Ins and Out runs one night a week for seven weeks, exploring relationships, sexuality, coming out, homophobia, issues with alcohol and other drugs, diversity and sexual health, just to name a few.

The Hen House covers all of the above and also  delves into self-esteem, goal-setting, values and beliefs. Both groups are fun, social, educational and also provide a space to deal with any self-loaving…

While these workshops aren’t about therapy, some women walk away with a baker’s dozen of positive messages. “I’m feeling like I can express my sexual self and feel accepted and fit in and feel free to be me.”

Joining nine other strangers to talk about the important things in your community might not be your idea of cakes and pies but you just might learn something, like one participant who said of the Hen House, “I learnt about the many amazing lives being lived in the same-sex attracted women’s community — I am proud to be a part of this”.

“I’m feeling supported and uplifted around positive accepting people. It’s nice to be around other same-sex attracted women,” another participant said.

If ACON’s groups for women sound good to you or if you just enjoy baking references, it’s up to you to rise to the occasion and get the whole recipe from [email protected] The Hen House and Ins and Out might just be the best thing since sliced bread!

INFO: Annaliese Constable is ACON’s Lesbian Health Project Officer.