From Crisis to Connection - with Geoff & Jody Steurer The Impact of Agency on Mental Health - with Brianna Holmes - Episode 284
In this episode, we explore the intersection of faith, mental health, and agency—how our ability to choose extends beyond simple decisions and impacts how we respond to betrayal, anxiety, depression, and life’s unexpected challenges.
Our guest, Brianna Holmes, is a therapist specializing in relationship issues, anxiety, OCD, PTSD, and postpartum disorders. She also writes for Public Square Magazine and has published insightful articles on mental health and spirituality.
Together, we discuss how agency is more than just free will—it’s deeply connected to truth, meaning, and the way we engage with our experiences. Whether you’re facing the emotional weight of betrayal trauma, struggling with mental health, or wrestling with faith-based questions about suffering, this conversation offers new ways to see your choices, reframe your experience, and reclaim your power.
What You’ll Learn in This Episode:
🔹 How agency goes beyond free will—it’s also about how we engage with truth
🔹 Why feeling powerless after betrayal is normal and how to regain personal agency
🔹 The role of faith and spirituality in healing mental health struggles
🔹 How the meaning we assign to our experiences shapes our healing
🔹 The power of asking better questions—to God, ourselves, and others
🔹 Practical ways to expand our perspective and find peace in difficult circumstances
Join Me in the Courageous Together Program!
If you’re looking for structured guidance, support, and a clear roadmap for recovery, check out my Courageous Together Program—an online course and support system designed to help couples rebuild trust and connection. Inside, you’ll get:
✅ A structured healing roadmap
✅ Live Q&A sessions with me
✅ Exclusive video lessons and worksheets
✅ Confidential and secure access
https://www.geoffsteurer.com/courageous-together
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About Geoff Steurer:
I am a licensed marriage and family therapist, relationship educator, and coach with over 20 years of experience. I am the co-author of, "Love You, Hate the Porn: Healing a Relationship Damaged by Virtual Infidelity", the host of the weekly podcast, "From Crisis to Connection", and have produced workbooks, audio programs, and online courses helping couples and individuals heal from the impact of sexual betrayal, unwanted pornography use, partner betrayal trauma, and rebuilding broken trust. As a leader in the field, I am a frequent contributor on these subjects at national conferences, documentaries, blogs, magazines, and podcasts. I also write a weekly relationship advice column available on my blog. I founded and ran an outpatient sexual addiction and betrayal trauma recovery group program for over 14 years, co-founded and chaired a local conference to educate community members about harmful media, and founded and administered a specialized group therapy practice for over 10 years. I currently maintain a private counseling and coaching practice in beautiful Southern Utah where I live with my wife and children.
About Jody Steurer:
Jody has been a strong voice supporting women as co-host of the podcast “Speak Up Sister”. She completed a bachelor's degree in psychology from Brigham Young University and is an ACA certified coach. She runs a small business and has years of experience in corporate training and organization. Jody’s most challenging work has been raising her four children (two of which are on the autism spectrum). She loves to do landscape design, paint in watercolor, spend time outdoors, and snow ski.
About Brianna Holmes:
Brianna Holmes has a master’s degree in marriage, couples, and family counseling from Idaho State University and is currently a practicing therapist in Farmington, Utah. She is especially passionate about working with adults and couples navigating relationship issues, anxiety, OCD, PTSD, and postpartum disorders. In addition to working as a therapist, Brianna works for a faith-based magazine, Public Square Magazine, as an associate editor and has published many articles focusing on mental health and a variety of other topics. Brianna is a wife and mother of four. She enjoys spending time with her family, reading books, and cheering for her favorite hockey teams.
The advice offered through Geoff Steurer's podcasts is educational and informational in nature and is provided only as general information. It is not meant to establish a therapist-patient relationship or offer therapeutic advice, opinion, diagnosis treatment or to establish a standard of care. Although Geoff Steurer is a trained psychotherapist, he is not functioning in the role of a licensed therapist during these podcasts, but rather using his training to inform the content. Thus, the content is not intended to replace independent professional judgment. The content is not intended to solicit clients or patients, and should not be relied upon as medical or psychological advice of any kind or nature whatsoever. The information provided through the Content should not be used for diagnosing or treating a mental health problem or disease. The information contained in these communications is not comprehensive and does not include all the potential information regarding the subject matter, but is merely intended to serve as one resource for general and educational purposes.