Help for Healing

Help for Healing My name is Darcy Thiel. What people say they appreciate most about me is my genuine nature. I’m Darcy Thiel. This dovetails with the books I have written.

I utilize my professional and personal experiences to increase my understanding and compassion to help others. My career has many faces, so let me tell you about a few. I am a Licensed Mental Health Counselor in NY State and am a couple and family therapist. As an Adult Planning Specialist and End of Life Doula, I take my experiences with my parents’ and husband's illnesses and passing to help others navigate the crazy, complicated medical world we live in. Bitter and Sweet: A Family’s Journey with Cancer, the prequel to Life After Death, on This Side of Heaven is an honest and raw perspective on coping with the diagnosis and subsequent loss of Tim, my spouse. I have done extensive speaking on the above topics through live audiences, radio shows, and an occasional TV spot. For more information, see my websites at www.marriageandfamilycounseling.net, www.babycooppublishing.com, or www.darcythiel.com.

South Africa 3.0 #16Goodbyes. They are brutal. And they get worse every time I come because my relationships get deeper...
11/26/2025

South Africa 3.0 #16

Goodbyes. They are brutal. And they get worse every time I come because my relationships get deeper every time I come. Even with Maureen at the ice cream shop. She said it's going to be a sad day in the community. For me most of all. When Dumi dropped off volunteers, he had to bite his tongue because I had to jump out at every school to give a quick goodbye hug....

Goodbyes. They are brutal. And they get worse every time I come because my relationships get deeper every time I come. Even with Maureen at the ice cream shop. She said it’s going to be a sad…

South Africa 3.0 #15The ice cream outing I spent my last school day at Zusakhe. The 2 to 4 year old class did not have ...
11/26/2025

South Africa 3.0 #15

The ice cream outing I spent my last school day at Zusakhe. The 2 to 4 year old class did not have an outing (field trip) as they were supposed to this term. We were discussing having a party for them, but the whole school is having a Christmas party soon, so that didn't seem very special. I had an idea for something very simple and inexpensive....

The ice cream outing I spent my last school day at Zusakhe. The 2 to 4 year old class did not have an outing (field trip) as they were supposed to this term. We were discussing having a party for t…

South Africa 3.0 #14Still learning more about Dunoon and the culture here every day. Dunoon is full of vendor shops. Wh...
11/25/2025

South Africa 3.0 #14

Still learning more about Dunoon and the culture here every day. Dunoon is full of vendor shops. What I didn't realize is that almost all of the vendors are NOT South African. They are from other countries. I was very surprised by this. In addition, most who work in the cities at restaurants and stores are also not South Africans. …...

Still learning more about Dunoon and the culture here every day. Dunoon is full of vendor shops. What I didn’t realize is that almost all of the vendors are NOT South African. They are from o…

South Africa 3.0 #13The Principals Training Wow. I don't use the word epic very often, but I must use it today. Where t...
11/25/2025

South Africa 3.0 #13

The Principals Training Wow. I don't use the word epic very often, but I must use it today. Where to begin? Susan and I have made the principals our top priority. They must manage the schools, and if they are not equipped, there won't be any systemic change. We can give the teachers all the information in the world, but it is the principals who have to ensure they are actually utilizing the resources....

The Principals Training Wow. I don’t use the word epic very often, but I must use it today. Where to begin? Susan and I have made the principals our top priority. They must manage the schools…

South Africa 3.0 #12Footsteps I had a huge event. I spent the night at Phumi's in Dunoon. Volunteers never go into Duno...
11/21/2025

South Africa 3.0 #12

Footsteps I had a huge event. I spent the night at Phumi's in Dunoon. Volunteers never go into Dunoon at night. Actually, people who live there generally don't either. This was a great opportunity to see the sun go down in the township. I also learn new things, and sometimes it means correcting a misconception I had. For instance, some white people live in Dunoon....

Footsteps I had a huge event. I spent the night at Phumi’s in Dunoon. Volunteers never go into Dunoon at night. Actually, people who live there generally don’t either. This was a great …

South Africa 3.0 #11A while ago, a gentleman from Zambia contacted me with a project he was working on. He was the frie...
11/17/2025

South Africa 3.0 #11

A while ago, a gentleman from Zambia contacted me with a project he was working on. He was the friend of one of the principals who had heard about the work we are doing. He reaches out every now and then, and I have to keep telling him I don't have any resources for him. Today, I got a message from someone in Uganda....

A while ago, a gentleman from Zambia contacted me with a project he was working on. He was the friend of one of the principals who had heard about the work we are doing. He reaches out every now an…

Your support at work. Your donations enabled Footsteps to get a new grass carpet for their play area. Phumi is extremely...
11/16/2025

Your support at work. Your donations enabled Footsteps to get a new grass carpet for their play area. Phumi is extremely excited because it has arrived in time for their graduation ceremony. Dumi is such a ham. The school year runs from January to December here, so graduation is around the corner. When the environment is clean and appealing, the parents are pleased....

Your support at work. Your donations enabled Footsteps to get a new grass carpet for their play area. Phumi is extremely excited because it has arrived in time for their graduation ceremony. Dumi i…

Nyakallo I've been thinking that I am quite lucky lately. This week, a couple of the Swedish volunteers were informed th...
11/14/2025

Nyakallo I've been thinking that I am quite lucky lately. This week, a couple of the Swedish volunteers were informed their visas to Tanzania were being revoked because they don't want anyone traveling there with all of the issues going on. August was not long ago when I was there, so I'm grateful for the timing. A girl on a horseback safari here in South Africa was attacked by a lion last week....

Nyakallo I’ve been thinking that I am quite lucky lately. This week, a couple of the Swedish volunteers were informed their visas to Tanzania were being revoked because they don’t want …

Back to work. I changed my schedule to go to a school that is really struggling. Remember I said once that the principal...
11/12/2025

Back to work. I changed my schedule to go to a school that is really struggling. Remember I said once that the principals ARE the schools? Well, she is struggling. She had to let a teacher go for hitting the children, and it was the straw that broke the camel's back. She said I can share her story with no names....

Back to work. I changed my schedule to go to a school that is really struggling. Remember I said once that the principals ARE the schools? Well, she is struggling. She had to let a teacher go for h…

Baboons get more airtime. They get a bad rap. With good reason, of course, but they get a bad rap. I remember the first ...
11/12/2025

Baboons get more airtime. They get a bad rap. With good reason, of course, but they get a bad rap. I remember the first time I was in South Africa, I saw a baboon squad- police dedicated to keeping baboons out of the towns. They shot paintball guns at them to keep them from going into the city. If they got into a house, they would literally destroy it....

Baboons get more airtime. They get a bad rap. With good reason, of course, but they get a bad rap. I remember the first time I was in South Africa, I saw a baboon squad- police dedicated to keeping…

Animals, lots of them. I had a challenging conversation tonight with a couple of my South African friends. They were con...
11/11/2025

Animals, lots of them. I had a challenging conversation tonight with a couple of my South African friends. They were concerned about the lion walk and how the animals may be exploited. I promised to do some research, but I definitely am hoping I might disagree. I certainly would not want to support something that is harmful... At any rate, the different drives/cruises we went on yielded lots of sightings of animals....

Animals, lots of them. I had a challenging conversation tonight with a couple of my South African friends. They were concerned about the lion walk and how the animals may be exploited. I promised t…

My tour took me to Botswana for two days. It was strange driving up to the border. I felt like it was a movie set where ...
11/11/2025

My tour took me to Botswana for two days. It was strange driving up to the border. I felt like it was a movie set where they show people deciding whether to cross or not. You just pass through the gate and wa la, you are in another country. Apparently, foot and mouth disease is a big issue. You must "wash" your shoes before crossing by stepping in a pan of water....

My tour took me to Botswana for two days. It was strange driving up to the border. I felt like it was a movie set where they show people deciding whether to cross or not. You just pass through the …

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Darcy Thiel

I’m Darcy Thiel. What people say they appreciate most about me is my genuine nature. I utilize my professional and personal experiences to increase my understanding and compassion to help others. My career has many faces, so let me tell you about a few.

I am a Licensed Mental Health Counselor in NY State and am a couple and family therapist. As an Adult Planning Specialist and End of Life Doula, I take my experiences with my parents’ and husband's illnesses and passing to help others navigate the crazy, complicated medical world we live in.

This dovetails with the books I have written. Bitter and Sweet: A Family’s Journey with Cancer, the prequel to Life After Death, on This Side of Heaven is an honest and raw perspective on coping with the diagnosis and subsequent loss of Tim, my spouse. I have done extensive speaking on the above topics through live audiences, radio shows, and an occasional TV spot.

For more information, see my websites at www.marriageandfamilycounseling.net, www.babycooppublishing.com, or www.darcythiel.com.