413: Reflections On 2023 - Darkness + Light

Welcome back to Therapy Chat! As 2023 comes to an end I wanted to reflect upon the year and what I learned through my experiences. Life always includes highs and lows, light and darkness. This year in my personal and professional life (so basically my whole life), there was more darkness than light. Yet upon reflection, there were so many glimmers of light within the dark times. In this episode I share my personal journey dealing with grief and loss in my personal life and how it made it difficult to keep going in my businesses. 

I carried a heavy burden of shame and self-blame - things just kept getting worse and worse, and I wondered how I’d be able to bear it. And things slowly, gradually, turned around, and are getting better day by day. I shared some plans for the coming year, including training in psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy and EMDR. Thank you to all of you who listen and support Therapy Chat. My hope in sharing more of my personal experience over the last year is to provide encouragement to any listeners who may need a reminder to keep going, even when you feel like there is no hope. Sometimes when everything seems really dark you can't see a way out, and eventually, a way appears if you just keep moving forward the best you can. 

Link to article by Dr. Pat Ogden and Dr. Janina Fisher: Appreciating Your Strengths

Join my e-mail list to learn what's coming up in 2024 with Therapy Chat and Trauma Therapist Network and get my free PDF 5 Common Mistakes People Make When Searching For A Trauma Therapist here!

We are accepting new clients in my therapy practice (for those located in Maryland). Learn more via our website: https://bahealing.com 

Find a trauma therapist near you via https://traumatherapistnetwork.com ! We believe that trauma is real, healing is possible and help is available at Trauma Therapist Network. 

Check out these great learning opportunities through our friends at the Academy of Therapy Wisdom:

Working With Complex Trauma: Innovative Approaches for Restoring Mind-Body Integration with Dr. Bessel van der Kolk and Linda Thai, LMSW. 

The Neurobiology of Feeling Safe - Working With Boundaries Inside and Out with Jules Taylor Shore, LPC, LMFT, SEP

Neurobiology with Heart - Partnering With Your Client's Brain to Make Sessions Easier and Deeper - with Jules Taylor Shore, LPC, LMFT, SEP  

Living With the Legacy Of Loss - A Somatic Approach for Working With Grief with Dr. Janina Fisher 

Thank you to TherapyNotes for sponsoring this week’s episode! TherapyNotes makes billing, scheduling,notetaking, and telehealth incredibly easy. And now, for all you prescribers out there, TherapyNotes is proudly introducing E-prescribe! Try it today with no strings attached, and see why everyone is switching toTherapyNotes, now featuring E-prescribe! Use promo code “chat” at www.therapynotes.com to receive 2 FREE months of TherapyNotes!!

Find my most frequently recommended resources for learning about trauma here – includes recommended books and trainings.

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