Uncovering Our Values Through Reflection and Journaling: The Values-Based Integration Process

If you don’t already know, I am a huge fan of Brené Brown and her work. I’ve read all, but one of her books. Brown was the first to introduce me to the concept of finding my values and living by them. She has created several worksheets, but the two most prominent ones are the List of Values and the Living Into Our Values.

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I’ve tried to work through the list a few times. Once in college as a class exercise and my values came up as Safety and Belonging. I didn’t fail to notice these are two of the basic needs of Maslow’s Hierarchy. A fact my professor was more than willing to remind me of. However, these values never fully encapsulated me, who I was, and who I wanted to be. They are basic needs, not values to live by.

Since college, I’ve grown and changed and know that while safety and belonging are important, they are not my guiding values.

Since my Autism diagnosis, I have read Devon Price’s Unmasking Autism. It’s probably the top recommended book to read when delving down the Autism rabbit hole. In his book, Price outlines a handful of exercises called the Values-Based Integration Process. This process is developed by Heather R. Morgan of Powered By Love, and since being featured in the book, Morgan has begun training and coaching medical professionals and therapists to use the technique with their patients.