7 Cups Sharing Circles are now LIVE!

All - quick update on the sharing circles and some additional context. We've reviewed some of the concerns here and we will soon be rolling out two sharing circle times that do not have any of the serenity language and will instead have different positive affirmations. Look for more details on this soon!

Second, in terms of context, there are a few things to unpack here. 7 Cups supports people from all walks of life. We are a platform. We want people to feel comfortable here no matter their background or beliefs. We do this now to some extent with sub-communities. The structure or format is the same, but different groups use sub-communities for different reasons. Similarly, with groups, we provide over 125 moderated discussions a week. Some of these are fun, some of these focus on a topic like anxiety and others on skill development like mindfulness.

We have just started the sharing circles which are offered in the tradition of AA/NA/OA. They are helpful for a variety of issues. There is a long history of these groups and the format that has been around since the late 1930s. Moreover, these groups have helped millions of people. The NYT just covered a new review that suggests they are even more helpful than long thought. You can read that article here. Even the little bit of data we have so far on the sharing circles on 7 Cups is compelling. People seem to enjoy them, find them meaningful, and helpful. Finally, groups like sharing circles are routinely offered in health systems around the world and clinics where there is no particular belief system endorsed by the health system. They provide the groups to people that find them helpful. We are following that same process here on 7 Cups. We provide lots and lots AND lots of different resources and supports - we trust people to engage in the ones that they find helpful and avoid the others.

I hope this extra context is helpful and I hope you all have a good rest of the weekend!

MY JOB IS NOT BRINGING ME MUCH MONEY RIGHT NOW.

@Heather225

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@Heather225 *

Hi! I've gone to 12 steps for many years.... I believe people are misunderstanding the term "higher power" which is a self-defined term. I think because all languages are rooted with history and connotations, it is hard to find a word in the English language (which is a language itself tied historically to Christianity), that is free of a religious connotation.

I can just say, I have been to different 12 step recovery meetings and met all different people of religion, ethnicity, culture, and met people who were agnostics, as well as atheists... who were happily in our group. We were all able to exist peacefully and to respect each other. It actually was super healing to share about some of the religious trauma that happens in the world and to hear others share. No one was turned away. We all respectfully listened or took care of ourselves and left the room if we got triggered.

I've heard (altered for anonymity) "Higher Power" can be anything one defines - from one's support group, one's home group, circle of trusted friends, to a super hero, to a religious God, to a personally caring God, to a detached universe of Darwanism, mother nature, the universe, all the way to a door knob, dust bunny. The important thing is HP was accepted as self-defined and no one questions that. People were also welcome to substitute their definition in place of the word "HP" and some people did that.

Yes, AA was rooted in Christian beliefs... I find, however, that the spiritual principles of surrender is something shared across many cultures, religions, and philosophies. So my vote would be to alter the serenity prayer but keep it, "HP (or inserting any word of one's choice) grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.

Just my 2 cents :) Of course 7cups is wonderfully innovatively and uniquely made and of course is meant to be perfect for its members, so I stand behind what the community wants. Just wanted to chime in that my experience of 12 steps was not religous but spiritual! And that it took me some time to be able to feel the difference!

hi

I'm very depressed

Why do the sharing circles need to have any spiritual framework at all? It still contains a prayer, still refers to AA, encourages users to answer in a way similar to religious meetings and ends with a spiritual sentence.

This very much contradicts the strict "no religion" policy that's been clearly enforced for as long as I've been an active user in group chat. Suddenly 7 Cups itself sneaks it in to group chat? I'm confused.

As Glen said in his post, "groups like sharing circles" are offered in health systems throughout the world. I've been to professional group therapy in the public healthcare system in Norway. Every spiritual element is removed, and none of the elements I mentioned above are included. All it is is this - the participants share their story one at a time and nobody interrupts or comments.

I don't see why it can't be done completely neutral here too. Skip the mantra, skip the prayer, don't mention AA at all and let users choose their own three word answers instead of abbreviated templates. Then we'd have an actual neutral sharing circle.

I think that would be more comfortable for more people than the current form.

Also, I definitely think the sharing circle should be in a pop-up room. The flow of a sharing circle is so strictly enforced and different to the normal chat flow, so it's confusing to both regular and new users. When the title of the room is "Sharing Circle", it's much more clear that this is a specific thing. But the most important reason is this: Banners don't appear in the mobile app! So it's very easy to interrupt the circle without meaning to.