As a neurospicy person, I am frequently under- or over-stimulated. I am either bored and craving novelty and BIG fun, or, when I have found the big fun, I need earplugs, a place to quietly regulate, or, ideally, a deprivation tank after the event. There is not a lot of in-between. Except, of course, in nature. One of the reasons I enjoy being outside so much is that I've found nature to be the perfect amount of stimulating. There is enough diversity of sights and sounds to k

I thought I knew burnout: at one point, I was working three jobs while taking enough college credits to qualify as double-full-time; I’ve worked in community mental health and in an adolescent inpatient facility; I’ve been running my private practice for years without a “biller” or administrative assistant, while also being the primary parent to my children. It turns out, even all that had not produced what I thought was burnout. How do I know, you might ask? Because last yea

When was the last time you let yourself feel proud of you? It's a parenting hack I've read a lot lately: "Before you tell your kids that you're proud of them, ask if they are proud of themselves to build an internal sense of validation." However, what I'm not reading a lot of is the adult life hack: "Ask yourself if you are proud of your work to reinforce an internal sense of validation." When you put effort into something, even if it doesn't pan out exactly the way you wante

Little Mashel Falls- Bud Blanchard Trail Eatonville, WA How much do you know about Pokémon? I only remember the original 150, myself. Did you know that some Pokémon have different abilities and strengths, depending on the region they are from? This is especially true for those from the Alolan region, apparently. I learned all of this (and more!) on the hike to Little Mashel Falls with my eight-year-old son. Almost five miles in and back, Little Mashel Falls via the Bud Blanch

Cherry Creek Falls Trailhead Duvall, WA The best part of my job is getting to go out and explore. Not only do I enjoy being outside, but it is imperative to me to be knowledgeable about the trails in Western Washington so that I have an idea of which hike will be most appropriate for each individual coming into an intensive with me. Whether clients have differences in physical abilities or stamina, or hold particular concerns or phobias (heights, anyone?), I strive to find th

Imagine this: you’ve been with your therapist for approximately 47 minutes. It has been a decent session, you have discussed your week and some of your more manageable struggles, and even discussed strategies to practice addressing them this week. You finally feel comfortable. That comfort emboldens you to disclose something deeper, more personal. You can’t hold it in any longer, so you share this deeply meaningful, perhaps wounded part of yourself with your therapist. For ap

Fun fact about me: Sometimes I get lost on purpose. Our family has moved five times in twelve years, and reliably, when I find myself in a new city, I turn off my map and just drive. It started out as curiosity: “I wonder where this road goes.” Over time, I realized that this process stems from my desire to learn new routes, to uncover fun stores, sites, or restaurants that I would have otherwise missed, and to gain a sense of comfort with and understanding of my locality. N

How often do you discuss your needs with your partner? How about your values? We need more than air, food, and water. We need compassion, understanding, trust, communication, creativity, passion... the list could go on and on. Those needs also tell us about and correlate to our values: openness, privacy, loyalty, security, dignity, family, justice, peace, etc. ✨️Our needs and values are constantly interacting with our partner's✨️ We often feel compelled to meet our needs with

Chances are you’ve heard of Imposter Syndrome- you know, that feeling that people are somehow misinformed when they tell you how great you are? It might look or sound like this: *“They think I’m great, if only they knew…” *"That wasn’t really me, I just got lucky” *“Yea, but I had to work 5x’s harder to get here than anyone else would’ve…” *Fear of failing and the shame that accompanies it *Fear of succeeding and the increased responsibilities that may come with promotion (be

Happy Monday! This is your weekly reminder to take a few moments to slow down and breathe. Watch a clock, inhale for 5 seconds, hold for 3 seconds, and exhale for 5 seconds. Repeat 3-5 times, and (this part is important!) remind yourself that you've got this. Now, go take on the week! 🙌 #mentalhealthmatters #breathe #lego #humor #feelgood #therapy #mentalhealthmemes #counselingrocks

In case you weren't sure, here's your reminder: you are a unique and important being. Sometimes, we hear this as a sing-song platitude: "You're such a beautiful, special flower in life's garden!" And that enables us to brush off the message. Real talk: You ARE a beautiful, special flower, and you have something real and meaningful to contribute to this world. Hold space for that today. 🌻🌺🪻 Bonus points if you read this in a Clone Trooper's voice #therapy #mentalhealthmatte

Do you ever feel like no one gets you? We are CONSTANTLY communicating with others via text, voice, email, X (formerly known as Twitter), Facebook, IG, Threads, TikTok, etc; yet we rarely feel seen, heard, understood. That looks a lot like smiling and telling the cashier we're "good," even if we were crying in the car before we hit the grocery store. That looks like telling our partner or family member we're "fine" even when they've hurt us. That looks like sending reels and