Tag: community building

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153 – Bianca Hughes – Embrace Your Imperfections and Authentically Be You

All Network Episodes, Conversations With A Wounded Healer

“Let’s get this very clear: therapists are humans; humans are human. And, therefore, we experience the same things as our clients.” ~Bianca Hughes

Perfectionism, professional pivots, and the privilege of creating space for healing. So many bases covered in this conversation with Bianca K. Hughes, LPC! Oh, and I haven’t even mentioned the cultural exchange insights – Bianca’s a British ex-pat residing in Atlanta (shout out OTP and ITP!) – or the book recommendation…or the NARM chitchat.

If there’s a single overarching theme to this discussion, it’s sacred vulnerability. Bianca makes a case for living and practicing in the glory of our imperfections. As a first-gen Brit born to Caribbean parents, Bianca brings a multi-directional perspective to her Atlanta practice. Her style is less linear, outcome-driven. For her, healing is a circuitous journey she shares with her clients. She’s quick to let them know she’s not the ultimate oracle or guide.

There’s a truism about therapists specializing in the areas where they need the work or have experienced the most growth. Bianca’s focus on perfectionism – and women, in particular, who struggle with its weight – is no accident. “Going back to that privilege,” she says, “…I think that specializing in perfectionism because of my own stuff, and I’m continuing to do my own work, helps me a lot easier with the clients that I work with.”

Doing our work and sharing that knowledge is how therapists hold space for healing.

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Bianca is a lover of authenticity. She specializes in perfectionism, helping people embrace their imperfections and authentically be themselves. Bianca is a licensed professional counselor in Georgia, podcast host, speaker and authenticity coach.

For full show notes, resources, and links to connect with our guest, visit: http://www.headhearttherapy.com/podcast

HEY THERAPISTS…

Details & Registration: http://tinyurl.com/hhconvos

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152 – Jim Martin – Meditation, philosophy, spirituality, and humor with The Unusual Buddha

All Network Episodes, Conversations With A Wounded Healer

“Humor is how I handle the world.” ~Jim Martin

This one’s for the pun lovers, the meme-generators, and…the meditation-curious. Jim Martin is all of these things and a potato. As founder of The Unusual Buddha, a multi-platform community that explores meditation, spirituality, and metaphysics through an irreverent, contemporary lens – and that lens often has a potato filter over it. Jim says the goal of his mini meditation “empire” (seriously, he’s everywhere) is to provide practical, accessible meditation resources.

That’s not to say that Jim’s funny memes and quick meditations aren’t rooted in an expansive knowledge of and devotion to his practice. Instead, he’s a modern-day student of Buddhism with a fresh way of alternating belly laughs with poignant truths.

Jim believes that the tools for creating inner peace shouldn’t be so difficult to gather or understand. Nor should the practice itself feel so weighty. His rationale is, if you’ve got eight seconds to take a full breath, congratulations! You’ve just meditated. “I mean, something as simple as one in breath, one out breath, you can absolutely do it!”

No bells, no whistles, no fancy cushion. A fun potato filter might help tho…

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I’m Jim Martin founder of Theunusualbuddha.com. In our community, we cover meditation, spirituality, and metaphysics in a fun and contemporary way. Meditation resources that are practical and in plain language are our goal.

For full show notes, resources, and links to connect with our guest, visit: http://www.headhearttherapy.com/podcast

HEY THERAPISTS…

Details & Registration: http://tinyurl.com/hhconvos

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#1: Conversations with a Wounded Healer by Sarah Buino, LCSW, RDDP, CADC, CDWF Friday, March 5, 2021 – 9:30am – 12:30pm CST

In this field, we are encouraged to practice self-care, but not often encouraged to take a deeper look at what comprises “wellness” and what gets in the way. This is not a fluffy self-care seminar, but rather a call to action designed to challenge participants to step into their own healing with courage. In order to thrive in this field, it’s crucial we shine a light on what really matters when it comes to caring for ourselves and the barriers that get in the way of being our best selves.

#2: Friday, May 7, 2021 – Trauma from the Individual to the Collective by Rayell Grayson, LCPC, CADC and Sarah Buino, LCSW, RDDP, CADC, CDWF #3: Friday, September 17, 2021 – Body Language by Joanna Taubeneck, LCPC, R-DMT, GL-CMA, E-RYT #4: Friday, November 19, 2021 – Queering our Conversations by Benji Marton, LCSW

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151 – Shawna Murray-Browne – Anti-oppressive and Liberation-focused

All Network Episodes, Conversations With A Wounded Healer

“So, here’s the thing: liberation work is about imagination.” ~Shawna Murray-Browne

What a treat this episode is (IMHO), and what a gift Shawna Murray-Browne is! That exclamation point is not hyperbole, as you’ll soon hear. As founder and executive director of Kindred Community Healing, Shawna is a liberation-focused practitioner whose forward-thinking mental health care has the power to restore generations past, present, and future. I first came to know Shawna through her brilliant class Decolonizing Therapy for Black Folks, a program so influential that I took it a second time alongside my entire staff.

Liberation is the work of reconnection, a reweaving of generational threads so that the holes left by trauma are finally, wholly addressed.

“I do think that connecting to our pre-colonial history helps us to understand some of our karmic sort of energy,” Shawna says, holding space for my inquiry about white expressions of pre-colonial wholeness as well. She ends our mind-bending, heart-opening discussion with this gem: “Our only way forward is together.”

Remember how I said that I’d taken Shawna’s course twice now? Yeah, well, this is one of those episodes that I’m going to return to again and again. The gift is so good. Listen in, you’ll see.

Shawna Murray-Browne, LCSW-C, is an award-winning community healer, national speaker, and Liberation-Focused, Mind-Body Medicine Practitioner. She is the Founder and Executive Director of Kindred Community Healing and the Principal Consultant at Kindred Wellness LLC. Trained as an integrative psychotherapist, Shawna has created life-changing, community-based sacred spaces, honoring culture, to equip Black women, youth, and change-makers with the tools to heal themselves.

For full show notes, resources, and links to connect with our guest, visit: http://www.headhearttherapy.com/podcast

HEY THERAPISTS…

Details & Registration: http://tinyurl.com/hhconvos

Promo Code for $20 off: podcast

#1: Conversations with a Wounded Healer by Sarah Buino, LCSW, RDDP, CADC, CDWF Friday, March 5, 2021 – 9:30am – 12:30pm CST

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150 – Mishara Winston – A Model for Communal Mental Wellness

All Network Episodes, Conversations With A Wounded Healer

“What’s the point of getting better if everyone you know and love is still sick?” ~Mishara Winston

Mishara Winston, LCSW, believes that healing is the byproduct of communal joy. A hundred episodes ago, this Black queer woman redefined for us what it meant to be an adventure therapist. Three years later, she’s back to share her leveled-up vision. Mishara’s one of my most favorite people and most favorite interviews. It’s exciting to catch up with this genius spirit as she continues her professional and personal transformation.

To reverse-engineer her evolution, Mishara dug into the bone-deep knowledge of her ancestors. She pulled back layers of formal education, returning to ancestral muscle memory. What did the village elders know, the medicine women, the spiritual guides? Mishara wants everyone to return to their campfires, to reclaim their latent talent as a healer.

But how to extend that ancient healing outward in modern times, to folks who have neither the money to seek out trauma care for themselves nor the trust to extend to well-credentialed strangers?

Mishara aims to expand the experience of and access to wellness through her model for quality communal care. To that end, she’s calling foolishness on the harmful practice of forcing people who are not white to conform to institutional whiteness even though BIPOC folks have their own rich traditions of mental health healing. This Euro-centric psychology model has also fueled the mental health industrial complex’s relentless prioritization of profit over people on both sides of the therapeutic equation. It’s yet another throughline that connects colonialism to capitalism and one that begs the question if health is about restoring, to what standard are we returning non-white, non-CIS, non-straight individuals?

Good question, right? Mishara agrees; that’s why she’s asking – and returning all people to the healing wisdom and communal joy of modern campfires.

GUEST BIO

Mishara Winston, LCSW. As Black Queer Woman, Mishara reminds BIPOC, LGBTQIA+ people and folks of faith our ancestors were already mental health experts- before colonial trauma. Collaboratively she creates whole hood, whole city, whole society healing models as sustainable and affordable alternatives to individual only therapy. Playfully & creatively Mishara stewards communal mental wellness, education and support groups with gifted healing expert folk like you.

For full show notes, resources, and links to connect with our guest, visit: http://www.headhearttherapy.com/podcast

HEY THERAPISTS…

Details & Registration: http://tinyurl.com/hhconvos

Promo Code for $20 off: podcast

#1: Conversations with a Wounded Healer by Sarah Buino, LCSW, RDDP, CADC, CDWF Friday, March 5, 2021 – 9:30am – 12:30pm CST

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Conversations with a Wounded Healer is a proud member of @mhnrnetwork.

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149 – Kim Young – Dope Black Social Worker

All Network Episodes, Conversations With A Wounded Healer

“My relationship with power and control has evolved. One thing I am not afraid to say anymore is that I’m on a mission to get more power so I can redistribute it.” ~Kim Young

Let’s get into some trouble, shall we? Good trouble. The kind that shifts paradigms, creates opportunities, and leaves plenty of room for rest.

For that we’re going to need a dope accomplice. Kim Young, aka Dope Black Social Worker, is a revolutionary who has liberated herself from the idea that she had to be a therapist. Instead, she opted to forge her own career path as a self-described good troublemaker.

The good trouble that Kim hopes to stir up is fueled by two core beliefs. First, that humans are interconnected and we need each other. Second, that racism and white supremacy are permanent fixtures in the United States.

Here’s the thing though, by accepting this with certainty, Kim says she’s more realistic about the changes that can be accomplished. Combating anti-Blackness in all its forms is her focus. As such, she doesn’t take answers steeped in systemic racism at face value, not when she’s got deeper follow-up questions that demand attention.

Still. Even the most comprehensive, compassionate responses leave room for improvement – and Kim may have landed on the perfect solution: the next, better iteration of service-oriented organizations. “Y’all we don’t need no more non-profits right now. 501c3s and nonprofits are not going to save us. They will not fund the revolution.”

What will fund her healing revolution? A car wash. Yup. That’s right. She said it; I agree with it. Want to know how Kim’s vision is going to save the world? Yeah, you do! So give this conversation a listen. You won’t be disappointed.

https://www.eventbrite.com/o/dope-black-social-worker-llc-30154155808

Guest Bio

Kim Young is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) in the Commonwealth of Virginia with over a decade of experience working alongside at promise youth, families, and communities. Kim is deeply committed to cross-sector collaboration that utilizes an asset-based approach to develop strategies which promote community-driven solutions

to system-created problems.

For full show notes, resources, and links to connect with our guest, visit: http://www.headhearttherapy.com/podcast

HEY THERAPISTS…

Details & Registration: http://tinyurl.com/hhconvos

Promo Code for $20 off: podcast

#1: Conversations with a Wounded Healer by Sarah Buino, LCSW, RDDP, CADC, CDWF Friday, March 5, 2021 – 9:30am – 12:30pm CST

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Conversations with a Wounded Healer is a proud member of @mhnrnetwork.

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148 – Dr. Nzinga Harrison – In Recovery with Eleanor Health

All Network Episodes, Conversations With A Wounded Healer

“Compassion and relationships create all opportunities.” ~Dr. Nzinga Harrison

Revolutions need revolutionaries. What’s true for the social justice movement is true in the drive to create more equitable mental health opportunities; after all, these threads have been entwined throughout this country’s history. Meet my new favorite person in the whole wide world, psychiatrist, podcast host, and amazing human Dr. Nzinga Harrison!

As co-founder and chief medical officer of Eleanor Health, Dr. Harrison has flipped the addiction care script by centering the client in a holistic, whole-person, whole-life embrace.

Eleanor Health’s model is a radical departure from prevailing intervention methods, so much so that I got choked up about it during this convo. That’s partly in response to Dr. Harrison’s common-sense compassion, and partly due to my seething frustration at our current (broken) system of care. Her experiences have shaped her answers to the healer and wounded healer questions – answers I have never heard before in all the times I’ve asked.

The dynamics of addiction care are changing. Dr. Harrison and Eleanor Health are proof that holistic support is sustainable, profitable, and humane.

GUEST BIO

A well-respected physician and educator, Dr. Nzinga Harrison is the Chief Medical Officer and Co-Founder of Eleanor Health, a value-based provider of compassionate, comprehensive, outpatient addiction treatment. Approachable and energetic, she has been known to explain medical concepts with an ease and humor that results in her audiences developing understanding of difficult material while having a good time doing it! She has written and presented several articles and workshops on the medical aspects of addiction and other psychiatric disorders, and has consulted on the same topics both nationally and internationally.

For full show notes, resources, and links to connect with our guest, visit: http://www.headhearttherapy.com/podcast

HEY THERAPISTS…

Details & Registration: http://tinyurl.com/hhconvos

Promo Code for $20 off: podcast

#1: Conversations with a Wounded Healer by Sarah Buino, LCSW, RDDP, CADC, CDWF Friday, March 5, 2021 – 9:30am – 12:30pm CST

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Conversations with a Wounded Healer is a proud member of @mhnrnetwork.

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147 – Annie Schuessler, Rebel Therapist – Make an Impact Beyond Traditional Private Practice

All Network Episodes, Conversations With A Wounded Healer

“I do want to help people build something big and awesome and impossible and that’s of a very high value and that is client-centered.” ~Annie Schuessler

How much do I adore Annie Schuessler? Let me count the ways so you, too, can fall hard for this business coach who helps therapists make an impact beyond a traditional private practice.

She’s also the host of two podcasts: Rebel Therapist™ and Listening To Adoptees. However, the real juice of this episode is about leveling up your professional therapy or healing aspirations and still being intentional about how you make, share, and spend your money. It’s not a contradiction to be client-centred, well-compensated, fulfilled, and successful! Annie explains it all.

Annie understands the mental gymnastics that therapists and healers get into aligning their desire to serve with capitalism’s myriad abuses. As a therapist herself, she’s tackled personal questions of shame and worthiness that often percolate below the surface and get in the way of success.

Throughout our conversation, Annie’s zone of genius shines through. She aims that powerful light on yours truly. I’m grateful to her for sharing some of that smart, focused insight for creating a well-balanced professional existence with us. Annie’s vibe will have you ready to fully embrace your brilliance, and step into your professional worthiness in a healthy, sustainable way.

Annie Schuessler is a business coach and the host of the Rebel Therapist® Podcast. With her Rebel Therapist® Programs, she helps therapists, healers and coaches make an impact beyond a traditional private practice. You can find her resources at rebeltherapist.me.

For full show notes, resources, and links to connect with our guest, visit: http://www.headhearttherapy.com/podcast

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146 – Jessica Fern – Polysecure: Attachment, Trauma and Consensual Nonmonogamy

All Network Episodes, Conversations With A Wounded Healer

“I think as therapists, there is no such thing as true neutrality, right?…The importance is knowing and owning your bias so that we can prevent it from doing harm.” ~Jessica Fern

Polyamory. Well, now that I have your attention…let’s get into it, shall we? Ohhh, y’all, this episode is meaty with material courtesy of the brilliant Jessica Fern, psychotherapist, coach, public speaker, relationship expert, and author. Her new book Polysecure: Attachment, Trauma and Consensual Nonmonogamy* explores healthy attachments through a refreshingly non-traditional lens.

But hold up, monogamy-minded folks! You’ll want to pay close attention as insecure attachment styles can sabotage any relationship; we either feel safe and secure within them, within ourselves, or we don’t.

We can, however, foster securely functioning relationships – no matter the number of participants.

Still, too many therapists disregard the validity of monogamy, incorrectly citing it as a byproduct of childhood misattunement rather than a healthy way of being. Jessica points out that “people who are nonmonogamous are not doing nonmonogamy because they’re insecurely attached.” Instead, they’re committed to working at their relationships often with a therapist, a practice that many monogamous couples could learn from.

There’s plenty more to my conversation with Jessica including definitions! acronyms! NARM talk! Awesome links! and everyone’s favorite healer questions! Give this one a listen no matter your preferred relationship style.

Jessica Fern is a psychotherapist, public speaker and trauma and relationship expert. In her international private practice, Jessica works with individuals, couples and people in multiple-partner relationships who no longer want to be limited by their reactive patterns, cultural conditioning, insecure attachment styles and past traumas, helping them to embody new possibilities in life and love. Jessica is the author of the book Polysecure: Attachment Trauma and NonMonogmamy and you can learn more about Jessica and her work at JessicaFern.com.

*Affiliate link:

Thank you for supporting Bookshop.org! 10% of your purchase supports Conversations With a Wounded Healer and 10% supports independent bookstores across the US.

For full show notes, resources, and links to connect with our guest, visit: http://www.headhearttherapy.com/podcast

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145 – Ryan Herrick – Spirit in All Things, Music and Healing

All Network Episodes, Conversations With A Wounded Healer

“It takes serious dedication to kind of chip away at rules and the contracts that we’ve picked up over our life that we didn’t get to choose.” ~Ryan Herrick

Healer, humanitarian, and homebuilder Ryan Herrick wears many hats. But the topper that compliments every aspect of his life best is the one labeled musician.

The ongoing pandemic has forced Ryan to explore alternate methods of delivering his sonic magic and his interdisciplinary approach to healing. He recently produced Of Sea, a collection of new music dropping February 12, out of a desire to connect through difficult times. In this episode, Ryan shares his music with us, as well as the pandemic-prompted lessons reminding him of what it means to be fully human.

“As therapists-slash-healers, we are often the perceiver and the perceived. We’re kind of going through this process of, like, self-work which is never-ending.” Ryan’s words echo the spirit fostered in every Wounded Healer episode: leaning into the dynamic joys (and, often, pain) of healing self while healing others.

When lockdown prevented him from live gigging, Ryan recorded Of Sea in response. He also began a weekly morning practice via Facebook. There, he invites listeners to log on as they are and experience sound as they choose – for meditation, for yoga, for background, for healing. “As performers, as artists, we’re often wounded, people… Music has such a unique way of permeating a mental, emotional, spiritual experience. That’s the potential of music.”

His simple acknowledgement of that power wrecked me a bit, y’all. Listen in for a sample of Ryan’s beautiful, vibrational medicine.

Ryan Herrick is a musician, humanitarian, spiritual activist, teacher, healer and homebuilder. Based in North Chicagoland by way of New England, Ryan sojourned to the Midwest to deepen his work as a healer and clairvoyant with Judi Hendricks in 2015. No matter the task, Ryan seeks Spirit in all things, and his expanded perspective helps him create, teach, and heal from a cleaner, more neutral space of compassion. He loves dogs, the outdoors, psychology, and carries a deep passion for Native American rights and advocacy.

Ryan’s new EP, Of Sea, will be available everywhere on Friday, Feb 12th.

For full show notes, resources, and links to connect with our guest, visit: http://www.headhearttherapy.com/podcast

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Conversations with a Wounded Healer is a proud member of @mhnrnetwork.

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