This page started several years ago as a means of reaching the HSP community in a more direct way than through books or other premade media; not surprising given that I am an HSP as well with a deep need for connection and meaning. The mission of this page has always been to help people by raising awareness and consciousness around Sensory Processing Sensitivity and, in doing so, help people to thrive and live their most decisive and full lives. In that regard, there have been some compromises made to fit the format and expected length of posts. It’s always been a juggling act between providing too much content and risking turning people off or providing too little to be of any real use. I’ve opted to keep posts fairly brief, while introducing and elaborating on a topic enough to stimulate meaningful thinking in support of my page mission, but I have always felt that I want to go more in-depth on many topics.
The time has come now to take advantage of new platforms and new models. With a new model, I will be able to provide more in-depth content that will be of even greater utility in helping people come to know themselves better, develop strategies for living in the world as, both, a highly sensitive person and a sensitive sensation seeker, and to provide insights on topics that touch the lives of people beyond superficial description of the trait. Here, for one, I am envisioning moving to higher level discussions of spirituality and how we can direct our creativity toward greater self-actualization, over time.
This new platform is called Patreon and is based on the rather old idea of patrons providing support to enable the creator to invest his time into the things we all care about. I especially like the patron idea in that it is crowdfunded and, thus, spread out over many people. This enables the effort to be a true grassroots initiative, rather than one for the elites. People already support causes they believe in across an incredible variety of topics, from the very serious to the not so serious.
This new page at Patreon will be called, very simply, Dr. Tracy Cooper and will continue the same mission as this blog: to help people by raising awareness and consciousness around Sensory Processing Sensitivity and, in doing so, help people to thrive and live their most decisive and full lives. The difference will be that content will go into greater depth and breadth, videos will be posted about twice a week, and there will be direct access to a question and answer session each month with me at the higher tier levels. There are various incentives at each level of subscription, but all are simply meant to be gestures of thanks for ongoing support.
The new Patreon adventure will launch this coming Tuesday, Oct. 1st. This blog will continue to exist in its current format, with brief articles and some helpful analysis but, if you would like more in-depth content I invite you to consider helping me create a new HSP learning community that is open, warm, and inviting, as well as informative, practical, and educational.
I’ve never been much of a “joiner,” instead preferring to work on my own and enjoy maximum autonomy to pursue what is of most interest to me and that which I feel will be of most use to my audience. Ironically, I ask you to now “join” me in creating a beautiful new HSP community at Patreon that will be co-created with your support and advice on topics you would like to hear about the most. When I entertained the idea of a Patreon page, I felt a little resistance at the idea of “performing” for an audience and the way I’ve been able to embrace it is thinking of it as creating a new learning community; community building has always appealed to me and this new venture may lead us down some interesting possibilities.
I’m willing and ready to see where it takes us, are you? Join me…
Dr. Tracy Cooper 