Serenity Therapy Services, LLC

02/12/2026

Valentine's Day has a way of bringing things to the surface, front and center, staring at you right in the face.

Pressure to feel chosen.
Pressure to feel secure.
Pressure to prove — to yourself or others — that you’re loved.

In therapy, this time of year often brings up self-criticism, comparison, and old attachment wounds. Especially the quiet belief:
“If I’m single… something must be wrong with me.”

Let me be clear:
💛 Your relationship status is not a measure of your worth.
💛 Self-love isn’t about forcing positivity or pretending you don’t need connection.

Self-love looks like:
• Treating yourself with compassion
• Honoring your needs
• Staying connected to your values
• Choosing self-trust over self-criticism

FREE SUPPORT:
New downloadable guide on the website *Self-Love Journaling: Journal Prompts for supporting emotional healing, self-compassion, and a healthier relationship with yourself

Download here: https://www.serenitytherapyservices.org/resources

And if you’re partnered and noticing that self-criticism or comparison is affecting your connection, I’m also offering a limited February beta (email me for the discounted rate of $47) of my Roadmap Back to Connection mini-course — a gentle, structured way to rebuild closeness without blame. Click here to read more: https://www.serenitytherapyservices.org/relationshipcourse

You don’t have to prove anything this Valentine’s Day.

Staying connected to yourself is enough.

02/06/2026

Looking for *3 more couples* who want to feel closeness in their relationship again.

February is commonly known as the month for love. If you're looking to set intentional time for your relationship -- this is one way to start.

Details:
- Offering the course at a discounted rate of only $47 this month! (February special)
- Provide feedback and testimony (completely anonymous!)
- to read more about the Roadmap for Couples: Back to Connection click the link below:

https://www.serenitytherapyservices.org/relationshipcourse

*E-mail me for the discounted rate. I will send you a link once payment goes through that you can access the course immediately. The course is approximately 90 minutes long, and you can take it at your pace!

02/02/2026

CYou feel the resentment creeping in.
You've tried to reach out and express how you're feeling.
It's met with resistance, quietness, no change.

Relationships don't fall apart over night. They tend to fade quietly.

You got busy. Life got busy. Stress with work, stress with parenting. Conversations become more about other things rather than about your relationship.

One day, you feel more like you're just co-existing rather than a partnership.

Hear this: The distance does NOT have to mean you have failed -- or that love is gone.

It means connection has been unintentionally neglected.

Disconnection can look like:
- less emotional safety (can't talk to him/her about what is happening for you emotionally so you stay quiet)
- quiet resentment and keeping score of who is doing what
- less curiosity, more assumption
- feeling unseen, unheard, not cared about
- feeling alone even when together

Many couples fall into the push-pull cycle at some point in their relationship -- one partner reaches out, the other shuts down -- and both end up feeling unsafe, just in different ways.

Good news:
*connection can be rebuilt!
* emotional safety can be restored!
* you don't have to do this perfectly to do it differently

If your relationship has felt distant lately, you're not alone -- and support can help you reconnect without blame or pressure.

Free Resource (grab it and read when you have time): https://www.serenitytherapyservices.org/resources/couples-resources
Couples Online Program (mini-course): Relationship Connection -- practical tools for breaking cycles and rebuilding closeness: https://www.serenitytherapyservices.org/relationshipcourse

02/01/2026

You’re always busy. Always thinking ahead. Always finishing one thing so you can move on to the next — but rarely feeling calm or satisfied.

This isn’t because you lack discipline or time management skills.

It’s often high-functioning anxiety.

Staying busy can become a way your nervous system tries to feel safe — even when it’s exhausting you.

If this feels familiar, you’re not alone. And it doesn’t have to stay this way.

Read more about what is happening & how to overcome it here: https://www.serenitytherapyservices.org/blog//signs-high-functioning-anxiety

(can also find this blog linked in bio, under "blog" tab on website; or DM me and I'll send a direct link!)

01/30/2026

Agree or disagree?

Are you on board with using AI tools like ChatGPT and Claude, etc?

If so, what are your favorite tools and prompts to use?

01/27/2026

Rest shouldn't feel this stressful -- but for a long time, it did.

I used to think that something must be wrong with me because 'slowing down' made me feel more anxious... not less like everyone suggested it 'should'.

If I was sitting still, had 'nothing to do,' my mind was racing: "what am I forgetting," "what am I needing to get done," "what if I do x and get ahead and then rest later"...

Rest felt undeserved -- as if I hadn't earned it yet.

The myth I believed: If I relax, it means I am lazy.

but that wasn't true... What I eventually learned is that my nervous system had learned that staying busy was the safest option. Being productive meant I could keep things feeling under control. Rest didn't feel calming -- it felt risky.

Another myth that often comes up for people when they think of resting is: "If I slow down, I'll fall behind or people will think less of me."

In reality, rest feels stressful not because you are doing it wrong, but because anxiety has tied your worth to how much you are doing. Just not true.

This shift can change everything for you.

Here's the thing... High functioning anxiety doesn't mean you're incapable of rest. It means your body and mind has adapted in ways that once helped you survive -- even if they're costing you now.

You're not lazy. You're not going to fall behind. What others think of you is for them, not you. How you think of you is what truly matters most.

To read more about high-functioning anxiety and rest, go here: https://www.serenitytherapyservices.org/blog//signs-high-functioning-anxiety

*can also find in the link in bio under "blog" tab

01/23/2026

You know the feeling...

Sitting on the couch, not doing anything cause you just need a break.

It might feel safe(r) to do this when you're alone, but the moment someone gets home, or walks in, you feel like you need to either a) jump up and go do something or b) you quickly jump into justifying why you're just sitting.

It might not even feel safe to do this when you're alone.

You have these thoughts, beliefs, in your mind that say "you should just get it done," or "don't be lazy."

When in reality... if you take a step back, you actually have achieved a lot that week already.

It's hard to give yourself a break.

If this is you, you're not alone.

Many people struggle with rest and feeling guilty when resting.

To read more about this + signs you might have high-functioning anxiety (& what to do about it), click here: https://www.serenitytherapyservices.org/blog//signs-high-functioning-anxiety

(also located in link in bio under tab "blog")

01/21/2026

What’s the point of journaling??

Well, there’s several. But one of the biggest reasons is because journaling helps you slow your mind down so that your nervous system can catch up.

Thoughts are very quick.

Thoughts pass quickly.

Thoughts can cause you to spiral and feel overwhelmed.

Journaling helps to slow them down. Writing, specifically, helps to slow them down. Yes, you can journal on your computer but you won’t get quite the same effect.

Other reasons why journaling is beneficial:

✨ Helps you to feel more clear emotionally (emotional clarity). Much like therapy helps you to make sense of your thoughts, journaling can be a great aid to use between sessions.

✨ Helps you to feel less overwhelmed, scattered, and helps you to organize your thoughts, your needs, your wants, your desires.

✨ Helps you to make sense of what you’re going through. Anxiety and trauma specifically tend to be more fragmented and memories are harder to recall. We tend to fill in the blanks in our minds, whereas journaling helps to slow these down and make more sense of what you are experiencing.

❕Journal-Prompts: reduce overwhelm, provide guidance (not forcing) of self-reflection, and help you to go deeper more quickly.

(If you know me, you know I whole-heartedly believe in getting to the root. This helps.)

Journal prompts also help to guide and target specific goals (reduce anxiety, increase self-esteem, reconnect with self, etc).

If you’re new to journaling… or even if you’re not… and you want to do some reflection, I have put together journal writing prompts to help you get started.

Check it out here:

Download a free self-love journaling worksheet created by a licensed Missouri therapist. Gentle prompts for anxiety, trauma, and self-compassion.

01/19/2026

Slowing Down = fear, uncertainty, anxiety

If I 'slow down' then something bad might happen.

If I don't get x done, then something bad might happen.

I need to get x and y done so that I can rest...

Rest brings feelings of anxiety, racing thoughts, irritability, and an urge to just get up and do something... Rest feels hard.

Is this you? If so, here are a few gentle tips that you can incorporate to help

1. Practice giving yourself permission.

2. Practice self-compassion (i.e. I am loved, I am good enough, no matter what I accomplish today)

3. Challenge the thoughts that are talking negatively to you. The thought that says "if you don't get x done...." with "If I don't get x done today, I can make time tomorrow or the next day."

4. Read my most recent blog for more help: https://www.serenitytherapyservices.org/blog//signs-high-functioning-anxiety

01/17/2026

Sometimes, what we call "stress" is actually a nervous system asking for safety.

And sometimes, what we call "trauma" is just stress that we are having a hard time learning how to navigate.

Regardless, feeling these things doesn't mean you are broken, nor something is inherently wrong with you.

This post breaks down the difference.

Looking for help to navigate stress, anxiety, or trauma? Reach out. Here to help.

https://www.serenitytherapyservices.org/

Oh! And if you haven't heard yet -- sign up for my weekly emails! They are supportive, filled with insight and care. I promise to be non-spammy. That's not my vibe.

10/10/2025

It’s a good day, and a good life.
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