Karin Kempf Counseling and Therapy

20/11/2025

Yes, I love how Anderson explains this. ⬇️❤️

Most people think storytelling is powerful because it lets you “express yourself.” But the impact goes far deeper than expression: your brain changes when your story is witnessed.

When someone is present with you—really present—your nervous system receives signals it never had during the original experience: You’re safe. You’re not alone. Someone sees what happened.

That shift matters, because the memory that once lived in isolation finally has a new context. That’s what rewires the brain.

And here’s the other half we rarely talk about: witnessing changes the listener too.

When someone hears your story with openness, their own system softens. They recognize parts of their pain in yours. Your honesty gives them language, permission, and a sense of safety they didn’t even know they were missing.

This is the science of why healing is relational.
We don’t just tell stories—we co-regulate, we make meaning, and we reorganize our internal worlds through connection.

08/11/2025

Though I don’t love all of the material on Elephant Journal, sometimes there is something on there that really hits the mark. This was one of those things.

For those of you who want the synopsis and the spoilers, I’ll tell you this: therapy is not just a place for venting and receiving a solution for your problems; it’s (mostly) a place for figuring out what those problems mean for you, whether there’s a role you play that keeps you stuck, and taking the responsibility for learning to do things differently and moving forward.

https://www.elephantjournal.com/2025/11/stop-thinking-therapy-is-a-dumping-ground-for-all-your-problems-kait-melendy/?fbclid=IwdGRleAN7-wxleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZAo2NjI4NTY4Mzc5AAEe7t5rNaTW3CPdH9eHNcAuowVRhs00zNhU3Hu2cBlpiSZT3Kj3uy8czD583Wo_aem_4Bg4Ek-R4PaDbXs5IcRg8Q

We need to start talking about therapy differently. Somewhere along the way, therapy became synonymous with emotional dumping, a place to unload every frustration

05/11/2025

Relationship info and insights ⬇️

01/11/2025

Resharing because I think it bears repeating. Emotional safety is so important, and often underestimated or overlooked. People can be so used to living without it that they think that a constant low level of vigilance, defensiveness or waiting for the other shoe to drop is normal.

01/11/2025

Don't stay where you don't fit

01/11/2025

Emotional safety is *crucial* to a good, strong relationship. Absolutely.

If you’ve ever been in a relationship where your feelings are belittled, you’ve been betrayed, had a partner who is unavailable or erratic due to drug or alcohol use, have had communication or s*x withheld from you repeatedly, where you’ve been physically or emotionally denigrated, you know how painful, harmful a lack of emotional safety can be.

Emotional safety is important and worth learning about. It’s worth learning about how to provide it, and how to maintain it. This applies to both partners.

Julie Mennano of The Secure Relationship does an excellent job of explaining emotional safety below ⬇️

Wishing you emotional safety in your life ❤️

30/10/2025

Being vulnerable is hard. And this guy is right- people fight being vulnerable not because they’re strong, but because of fear - fear of ridicule, fear of loss of control, fear of rejection or getting even more hurt.

But here’s the thing. It takes a hell of a lot of courage to own your feelings, and to acknowledge them rather than ignoring them or numbing out. And it’s more than ok to need and seek support for when you’re struggling. It’s what we are wired for, and it’s what we need to be able to deal with hard feelings so that they don’t become destructive or unbearable.