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The Mindful Path to Family Recovery

finding calm in the chaos of a loved one’s addiction

The statistics are staggering...


According to the 2022 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, over 46 million people in the U.S. age 12 and over, have a Substance Use ​Disorder. Because of our society’s history of punishing, stigmatizing, and shaming those who struggle with addiction, fewer than 10% seek ​treatment.


For every one person struggling with addiction,

there are on average four family members that are negatively impacted.


The US healthcare system is profoundly ill-equipped to serve the millions of people who need help, which means the burden of finding a ​solution to the addiction crisis has fallen on the shoulders of FAMILIES. When one person is struggling with addiction, very often the entire ​family is affected - and the physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, and financial impact can be devastating.


Sadly, the guidance we’re given is limited and confusing. We’re told there’s nothing we can do. We must cut them off, kick them out, and let ​them hit rock bottom. All of this is difficult, if not impossible for most families. So we try to help, only to be told we’re enabling.


We’re frightened, so we do everything we can to get our loved one to stop engaging with the substance/behavior of choice. We beg, plead, ​cry, and manipulate. Because we’re hurt, angry, and frustrated, we argue, yell, scream, threaten, and issue ultimatums. Rarely does any of this ​work. Desperate attempts to control the uncontrollable makes us as sick as our loved one - and in this environment, addiction THRIVES.


It only takes ONE family member to create a path toward change for the entire family.


If you’ve tried everything to change your family’s situation and nothing has worked, you came to the right place. It doesn't matter if the ​loved one is your spouse, child, parent, partner, sibling, or friend. It doesn't matter if they're in active addiction, long-term recovery or ​anywhere in between. It doesn't matter because it’s no about them. It’s about YOU.


The Mindful Path to Family Recovery is about you...

  • Learning as much as you possibly can about your loved one's condition.
  • Releasing the anxiety, shame, and isolation.
  • Finding peace, calm, and maybe even happiness, in the midst of all the chaos.
  • Getting healthy and strong in mind, body, and spirit.


It’s time to regain your hope for a brighter future.


Here’s what we know .... a positive change in you has the potential to produce a positive change in your entire family. Starting your Mindful ​Family Recovery journey means changing your experience from fear and frustration to one of positive and peaceful action.


The Mindful Family Recovery signature process is designed to meet family members where they’re at, and guide them to where they want ​to be. The five-part system includes:


Evolved Conversations: By redefining the dialogue around mental health and addiction, we dismantle the shame, blame, and judgment. ​Our approach encourages compassion, understanding, acceptance, and open-mindedness, which creates a space for healing to begin.


Addiction Education: Looking beyond surface observations of your loved one’s disturbing behavior, you’ll begin to understand the 'why' ​behind their substance use, and address the underlying beliefs that drive their choices.


Mindful Self-Care: We teach scientifically proven mindfulness-based self-care practices, allowing you to gain the strength your need to ​navigate the chaos with clarity. Unlike traditional talk therapy and support groups, we go beyond words and invite you to nurture every ​aspect of who you are - mind, spirit, and body.


Effective Communication Strategies: We provide you with the tools and skills you’ll need to rebuild damaged relationships, and maybe ​even lead your loved one to choose recovery because they see something in you that they want for themself.

Supportive Community: The Serenity Circle membership is a community dedicated to providing mutual support, understanding, ​holistic healing, addiction education, and so much more. Together, we're spearheading a MOVEMENT to eliminate the stigma surrounding ​mental health and addiction.


Reshaping communities and the world - one family at a time.


We know you want more than anything for your loved one to find recovery, but what you need is to bring your absolute best self to this ​incredibly difficult situation your family is facing. Our proven process will help you lead by example. Becoming the change you wish to see ​in your loved one will create a ripple effect of healing within your family and beyond.


Start your Mindful Family Recovery Journey today...

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Mindful Family Recovery Offerings

Young woman practicing breathing yoga.

Chaos to Calm One Breath at a Workshop | In-person & Online

Combining gentle mindful movement, meditation, and breathwork with discussions based on CRAFT (Community Reinforcement and Family Training) and The Invitation to Change Approach® we share evidence-based strategies that will help you understand your loved one’s behavior, improve communication, and encourage change.


You will learn skills to:

  • Talk to your loved one in ways that improve collaboration and lessen conflict.
  • Respond more effectively to negative behaviors as well as to positive changes.
  • Allow natural consequences to play a role in motivating change.

Take care of yourself while learning new strategies to invite change in your loved one and in your family.



Currently being offered online in our membership community The Serenity Circle

The Serenity Circle Membership Community | Online

Offering support and guidance to families so they can face their many challenges from a place of peace and calm, instead of stress and suffering.



Health and wellness workshops to heal mind, body, spirit, and relationships, brought to you by a wide variety of teachers, coaches, healers, and wellness professionals.


Enjoy conversations with others who understand your struggles as well as:


  • Gentle yoga and guided meditations
  • Addiction, mental health, and relationship education
  • Energy Healing & Sound healing
  • Guest expert interviews
  • Nutrition education
  • Support groups
  • Grief groups & workshops
  • Book discussions and more!


Go here to learn more




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Family Recovery Support & Coaching | Online

Our specialized one-on-one Family Recovery Coaching can get you from where you are to where you want to be.


Let us help you:


  • Conquer fear and frustration
  • Overcome overwhelm
  • Gain practical coping and communication strategies
  • Deepen your understanding of your loved one's condition
  • Make your own health and wellness a priority


With support you can create a life that is not just manageable but truly enjoyable. All coaching packages include Serenity Circle membership.

Go here to book a free 30 minute strategy call to discuss your goals, pricing, and availability.

Yoga Offerings

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Private and Semi-Private Yoga & Meditation | In-person & Online

Create your own completely customized, transformative yoga experience.


Enjoy 45 to 90 minute sessions designed to meet your unique needs - from the comfort of your own home, or anywhere in the world.


Offering mindfulness coaching, gentle yoga, guided meditation, and breathwork for relaxation, stress relief, strength, balance, clarity, calm, inner peace and more.


Choose between private one-on-one sessions or invite a few friends or family members to join you. Also offering in-person private/semi-private lessons in the central Connecticut area.


Go here to book a free 30 minute strategy call to discuss your goals, pricing, and availability.

Yoga class

Yoga Parties

In-person (Central Connecticut)

Get ready for a party experience like none other!


This is your chance to share you love of yoga with your friends, family, and maybe even your partner.


You supply the guests for a Ladies Night or Couples Shindig, and we supply the yoga and meditation. Everyone leaves feeling relaxed, calm, and rejuvenated.


Come as you are, do what you can. No prior yoga experience necessary. Serving Hartford, New Haven, and Middlesex counties.


Make it your own by adding sound healing, essential oils, card reading, etc.


Go here to book a free 30 minute consultation to discuss pricing and availability.

Yoga of 12 Step Recovery

In-person and Online

Y12SR is a 12- step based discussion and yoga practice open to anyone and everyone dealing with their own addictive behavior or affected by the addictive behavior of others. This is an open and inclusive group. All A’s are welcome.


In this group, we weave together the ancient wisdom of yoga and the practical tools of 12-step programs. We recognize that the ‘issues live in our tissues’ and through our intentional, themed yoga practice, guided by our breath, we invoke the God of our understanding to help us release whatever is held.


Currently being offered online in The Serenity Circle and in-person at Toivo in Hartford Connecticut 2nd Saturday of every month.

Invitation to Collaborate...


Attention Addiction Recovery Center Representatives: Let’s talk about how you can revolutionize the recovery journey for your clients with on site transformative yoga and meditation instruction, in addition to Yoga of 12 Step Recovery classes, all specifically designed to support individuals in addiction recovery. And explore how our Family Recovery workshops, grounded in mindfulness, CRAFT, and the Invitation to Change model, can provide crucial guidance for the families of your clients. Please go here to schedule a consultation to discuss tailoring these offerings to suit the unique needs of your facility.


Attention Central Connecticut Employers and Human Resources Professionals: Let’s talk about how to elevate the well-being of your workplace with the rejuvenating benefits of our corporate yoga program. Our expert-led sessions can be tailored to meet the unique needs of your organization. Yoga, meditation and mindfulness are scientifically proven to promote physical well-being as well as mental clarity and stress reduction. Bring a holistic approach to employee wellness, enhancing productivity and creating a more harmonious work environment. Please go here to schedule a consultation to discuss tailoring our corporate yoga offerings to suit the unique needs of your organization.


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doTERRA Essential Oils

An essential companion for healing journey

Essential oils have been celebrated for centuries for their holistic healing potential. They offer a natural and aromatic pathway to promote physical and mental well-being. Harnessing the power of botanical extracts, essential oils can provide a wide range of benefits, from soothing muscle tension and supporting immune function to fostering emotional balance and relaxation.

Bottles of essential oils

doTERRA essential oils can help with:


They also have countless uses for everyday life such as purifying the air, cooking, personal hygiene, household cleaning, and more. Be sure to choose only the highest quality essential oils that have been carefully produced and thoroughly tested and cleared for safe use before using them with your family. Go here to learn more about doTERRA essential oils and to take advantage of wholesale pricing.

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Testimonials & feedback

Yoga with Karen has been amazing! Just a couple of times a week in the morning has added such energy and mindfulness to my routine! It was just what I needed, a little me-time to re-focus. Thank you so much!

Jennifer H, Southington, CT

I've enjoyed online yoga class with Karen. She is meditative and gets us in tune with our bodies and spirit. Her class is wonderful for centering us for the day. The stretches help us expand our versatility, and the energy she creates stays with us and gives us a positive mental attitude. What a way to begin the day. I highly recommend Karen's yoga class as a gift to yourself.e recommendations so feedback from others who've tried it is invaluable.

ik, Westchester, NY

I did yoga for the first time in a few years and I had the BEST experience! This class was specifically focused on the heart chakra and on my spiritual well-being. My favorite part was the meditations at the beginning and end of class because Karen has a voice made for guiding meditation. Her voice is soothing, relaxing and comforting - perfect for not only the meditation but for the entire class. I learned a lot of challenging postures that focused on opening my heart and bringing me closer to myself. We also focused a lot on balance too. If you need a space tor relax and put your own health and happiness first, Karent's class is the best place to go.

HaileY M,, Southington, cT

phoenix recovery yoga at toivo feedback:

Karen did a wonderful job holding space and guiding our practice. Many thanks!


Karen’s energy was beautiful. This was my first yoga class and she brought me to a heightened inner awareness. The stretching completely relaxed me. Grateful.


A beautiful space and a wonderful instructor. This was my first experience with yoga and it was wonderful.


Great class! Very beginner friendly. Will definitely go again.

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About Me

My name is Karen Bernetti. My passion is making the profound healing power of mindfulness accessible to more people, and my mission is supporting families impacted by a loved one’s addiction. As a leader in the Family Recovery Movement, I’m dedicated to eliminating the shame, blame and stigma, around mental health and addition.


I'm a YTT200 yoga and meditation instructor, a Mental Health First Aid certified, Recovery Support Specialist, and a mom of 3 amazing adult children. I’m also the founder of Mindful Family Recovery and The Serenity Circle.


My own healing journey began in 2011 when I was going through a really ugly divorce. I discovered Al-Anon and that’s where where I learned about the harmful effects of codependency. I’ve been in recovery ever since. A few years later, during the darkest days of my life, I found yoga. The combination of my yoga practice and Al-Anon program helped me more than words could ever begin to describe. Discovering the work of Nikki Myers inspired me to pursue my yoga teacher training and very soon after, my Yoga of 12 Step Recovery leadership certification.

I was leading small groups and loving every minute of it, when I started experiencing unexplained debilitating chronic pain throughout my entire body. Teaching yoga was impossible so I pursued my certification as a meditation practitioner, while I immersed myself in the study of nutrition, energy work, EFT, and the mind-body healing work of Dr. Kim D'Eramo.


I continued with my own self-guided yoga practice at home, while pursuing additional trainings in Subtle Yoga with Kristine Kaoverii Weber, and Yoga Psychology, with Ashley Turner. By applying what I learned, I healed.


In 2022, while still experiencing the ravages of addiction in my own family, I set out to learn as much as I possibly could about this cunning and baffling family disease. That’s when I enrolled in the Recovery Leadership Academy and achieved my Recovery Support Specialist certification. I later became Level 1 certified in the Invitation to Change Approach® through the CMC Foundation for Change.


I currently teach a trauma-informed gentle and slow style of yoga online in The Serenity Circle, and in-person as a Phoenix National Sober Active Community volunteer. My classes are relaxed and casual come-as-you-are and do what you can. They’re appropriate for all levels and just perfect for beginners of all ages.


I especially love supporting those who are affected by a loved one's addiction, because I have suffered the adverse effects of this pervasive problem - and I still do. I know the pitfalls. I've felt the anxiety, shame, and rage. I've been the self-sacrificing, people-pleasing martyr. I've lived the chaos and isolation.

I feel the frustration and still live in fear every day for my loved one's health and safety, but my mindfulness practice somehow brings me peace and restores my sanity. The same is possible for you. I'm no one's guru. I don't claim to be enlightened. I'm simply a mom who has learned A LOT on this journey that I'd love to share with you.


I believe we all have a responsibility to be stewards of the gifts that we're given - especially those gained through pain and suffering. I'm grateful for all that I've experienced because it has made me stronger, smarter and more resilient. It's given me great insight into and empathy for my students, many of whom are experiencing similar challenges.

"Don't get lost in your pain, know that one day your pain will become your cure."

~Rumi

Connect with me

Karen Bernetti, Founder of Mindful Family Recovery & The Serenity Circle

PHONE: 860-302-0333

EMAIL: karen@mindfulfamilyrecovery.com

www.serenitycircle.co

Go here to book a free 30 minute consultation


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