the movement community
we’re building a world where no one grieves alone.
E-Motion’s Movement Communities are movement-based, peer-led grief groups that bring people together to move their bodies, connect with others, and honor their people who have died. We imagine a global movement - where every neighborhood, everywhere, has access to this simple, yet profound way of integrating the power of movement, community and ritual to take care of ourselves and each other through loss.
this is not your typical grief group.
“Joining a movement community was like catching a wave. Like instead of treading water, I was catching a wave with all these other people and it completely changed my grieving experience.” Movement Community Member
The Movement Community enables people to move with loss together—building connection, belonging, and a sustainable movement practice along the way.
This eight-week, in-person experience brings together 15–20 individuals who have experienced the life-disrupting loss of a person. Each group is led by a trained E-Motion Facilitator and blends movement—such as walking, hiking, or running—with reflection and community, creating space for participants to connect with others who get it.
Each week, the group gathers for a brief E-Motion Sacred Circle—a space to honor our people and bring intention to the movement ahead. From there, they move together—walking, hiking, or running toward a shared distance goal—while deepening connection with their bodies, their people, and one another.
Between gatherings, participants receive gentle reflections and invitations to carry the practice into daily life—helping them build rhythms of care, connection, and meaning that last long after the experience ends.
At the end of the experience, participants complete their shared distance goal together—closing the journey with movement, intention, and community.
core components
shared distance goal & movement program
At the start, your group will set a shared distance goal—like walking a 5K or running a 10K—and receive a weekly movement plan to help you build toward it. This plan supports consistent movement between gatherings and helps you gradually go a little further each week. You’ll complete your shared goal together in a culminating final gathering.
weekly in-person gatherings
Each week, you’ll gather in person, beginning with a short (10 to 15 minute) Sacred Circle where the facilitator will guide the group through intentional grief practices to help ground and center everyone. From there, you’ll get moving together toward your shared distance goal.
weekly reflections & invitations
Between gatherings, you’ll receive a gentle note with grief concepts, reflections and simple invitations to deepen your experience and movement practice. These reflections offer quiet companionship as you move through your 8-week experience.
why join the Movement Community?
Watch the videos to hear directly from our Movement Community members about the transformative power of the experience.
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"Since my child died, I rarely moved my body. I hadn't run in 20 years. Yesterday I ran 6.2 miles. It was the community and the connection that got me to put on my running shoes each Sunday. To be vulnerable. To show up to be part of something bigger. To move my body with others who understood my pain in a way that no one else ever could. And to move with the pain. Together."
Movement Community Participant
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"“I feel like I was working so hard to do all the right things to grieve: read the right things, and attend the right groups, just be the best griever. But it’s such a lonely experience at the core and joining a movement community was like catching a wave. Like instead of treading water, I was catching a wave with all these other people and it completely changed my grieving experience.”
Movement Community Participant
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“E-Motion is very unique to me because of the people I have met. It helped a lot that it was centered around an activity that we did together every Sunday. It wasn’t just sitting around and talking about our grief, but we were actually experiencing it in a physical form and sharing it with other people as we were running together.”
Movement Community Participant
FAQ
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Movement Communities are designed for anyone who has experienced a life-disrupting loss.
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We are working towards bringing Movement Communities to communities across the country.
All active and upcoming Movement Communities are listed above. If you're interested in joining one of these Movement Communities, please reach out to the relevant E-Motion Facilitator.
If you're interested in joining a Movement Community and there isn't one in your city yet, please reach out to us here.
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The Movement Community Experience typically ranges between 8-10 weeks. The duration depends on the interest level of the group and the distance of the culminating movement experience.
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A typical Movement Community is comprised of 8-20 Movement Community Members and one trained E-Motion Movement Community Facilitator.
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Every Movement Community has one or two trained E-Motion Movement Community Facilitators who are responsible for starting the Movement Community and moving the group through the experience. All Facilitators have completed E-Motion’s required Movement Community Facilitator Training.
If you are interested in getting trained to become an E-Motion Facilitator, please reach out to us here.
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Has experienced a significant life-disrupting loss or is a clinician aligned with the E-Motion approach.
Sees importance in movement, specifically running/walking, as supportive of your grief.
Aligns with E-Motion’s Core Principles and has exposure to similar philosophies.
Has the time and capacity to devote 1-2 additional hours per week to the Movement Community, outside of the group rmeet-ups.
Recognizes the value of connecting with others who have gone through loss.
Is at a place in their own grief journey, where they would be able and available to consistently and predictably create space for others:
Consider yourself beyond the acute phase of loss
Capacity to sustain energy level and focus on things such as email correspondence and preparation of weekly gatherings
While in the role of facilitator, prioritize others' emotional needs over your own.
Has completed E-Motion’s Movement Community Facilitator Training.
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Please read the criteria above. If this feels like a good fit, please reach out to the E-Motion Team here.
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In order to start a Movement Community, there must be a person who is interested and willing to become the E-Motion Movement Community Facilitator. The Facilitator is responsible for managing three core steps to ensure a successful launch: preparation, implementation, and closing with care. The Facilitators are introduced to all these steps during the Facilitator Training and also receive ongoing support from the E-Motion HQ Team during the leadup and implementation of the Movement Community.