Resilience When You Need It
Blog Articles
The World Around You is Your Teacher
When I moved to Utah 11 years ago as a 23-year-old, I didn’t imagine I would still be here and more surprising to me, that I would end up as the single mom of a four-year-old. I often tell our staff that I wish I could give them the experience of raising a child because it would make them better at their jobs. This reminds me of the comment my boss made when I first told him I was pregnant, “This is going to be so good for you.” I have also experienced parents tell me how lucky I am to work for Evoke because I have all of the tools I need; tools they wish they had before raising their kids. And what I’ve come to realize is that we are all right. My experience in wilderness has informed how I parent and my experience as a Mom has informed how I lead our team at Evoke. Each makes me better at the other.
Letting the Wilderness Do the Work
“In the day-to day trenches of adult life, there is actually no such thing as atheism. There is no such thing as not worshipping. Everybody worships. The only choice we get is what to worship.”--David Foster Wallace, This is Water
Therapist and Parental Countertransference: How to be Aware of it and its Effects
I was meeting with a boy who I’ll call Robert for our seventh session. Robert had been in wilderness for seven weeks and in his first few weeks was often tearful, talked openly of his depression, his past suicidal actions and thoughts, and his fear of how he would manage these struggles when he returned home. In those first weeks Robert had made great progress in his understanding of his depression and how to better manage it, yet he held very firmly to his past friends and desire to continue to smoke weed.
Anxiety and Fear: Our Ability to Heal
During this time, it’s not abnormal or surprising to see articles, blogs, or social media posts about managing anxiety and fear of the unknown during the global pandemic we know as COVID-19. Tips and tools on how to deal with the issues surrounding the virus and social distancing are being discussed and shared with the public by a number of mental health professionals, spiritual leaders, mentors, and more. These resources have been providing great support to families across the world who are battling anxiety and fear for the health and safety of their loved ones.
Book Review: The Audacity to Be You: Learning to Love Your Horrible, Rotten Self
In his latest book, The Audacity to Be You: Learning to Love Your Horrible, Rotten Self, Dr. Brad Reedy tackles the essential question of how we can learn to process our past wounds, forgive ourselves for our shortcomings, and ultimately love our Self, exactly as it is…even when it seems “horrible and rotten.”
The Story of Kake: A Tale of Healing Our Inner Child
Fair warning, I am about to teach a concept that cannot be scientifically proven. It’s an idea so counterintuitive to me, it took me years to grasp: the healing work of re-parenting the Inner Child. The concept of the Inner Child isn’t new, but in our current cultural climate, it gets forgotten as we push ourselves to do more, be more, and climb some imaginary ladder of success. Inner Child work requests presence and pause, and turning into our darkness and perhaps staying there for a bit. We can think of the Inner Child as a part of Self that we have likely long ago forgotten. The piece of us that holds the roots of the difficulties we experience in adulthood.
Autism Spectrum Disorder: How Differences in Brain Function contribute to Symptomatic Behavior
As a wilderness therapist at Evoke Cascades, I often work with adolescent males who have been diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). A couple of years ago, I wrote a blog on this disorder and how wilderness therapy can help.
Brainspotting: Where you look effects how you feel
I’ve formed a few different approaches when succinctly capturing “Brainspotting.” To fit many audiences here, let’s take a glimpse at a few of those different angles on the trauma counseling Modality.
Reflections on Wilderness and Addiction
During the fall and winter I often spend time reflecting on my own recovery journey. It somehow surprises me how much more continues to reveal itself with adequate space and thought. My sobriety date falls on Halloween, a sort of gateway to the holiday season. This is a slower, more reflective part of the year for me. This year, after having made the transition from a Clinical Assistant to a Primary Therapist for Evoke, I’ve had another opportunity to zoom out and examine the work we do in the woods and why I believe it has such a profound impact on young people struggling with addiction.