Reconnect.
When it was time to create a tagline for Let’s Get Real, I wanted something simple but memorable. Words that could encompass a process where people can move through trauma counseling with bravery and compassion and come out the other side renewed and strong - but how can just a few words capture all of that? The first word I eventually landed on that felt right was “reconnect.” Religious trauma, toxic capitalism, white supremacy, patriarchy, colonialism - all of these systems of oppression - demand a disconnect from Self and from community. From our inner knowing and our common threads. We are shamed into conforming, shamed into letting go of what we know to be true - that we need our authentic Selves and we need each other. How ironic that trying to be like everyone else just to survive actually disconnects us not only from our Selves, but also from each other.
Often when people come into my virtual or in person counseling office, they do not have a name for why they feel the way they feel. They know something is “off;” something doesn’t feel right. Maybe in the present, things seem okay but don’t feel okay. Or maybe nothing is okay. Or maybe “numb” is the only word left to describe anything. All of that is survival mode. That’s a longstanding disconnect from Self and from community that over time might feel so normal, but still hurts. Things we might boil down into a set of symptoms of depression, anxiety, PTSD, addiction - all of it stems from disconnection. Intergenerational trauma, even the epigenetics that cause us to carry our ancestors’ trauma in our own DNA - disconnection. And the systems of oppression that we know too well keep those cycles of disconnection humming along. That’s what we experience as disempowerment.
Re-empowering the Self comes from reconnecting with Self and community. The first step is recognizing that there is a disconnection. Tying together present circumstances with the disconnection that happened in the first place takes serious guts and support. This is the scary, hard, exhausting but amazing work that I love to dive into in counseling for depression, anxiety, addiction and trauma. Looking at the hard, deep-level shit that got us to where we are today. Looking at the younger Self who’s keeping us in survival mode with compassion and asking them how can I take care of you now that I know what I know? How can I help us feel safe? That is where we reconnect. That’s where we start to heal… so we can get real.
Ready? Call or text me today at 602-755-4429 to talk about how I can help. I serve clients in Phoenix, AZ in-person, and virtually throughout Arizona.