Rachel Smith, LPC, NCC, CAS

The second half of life comes with an invitation for transformation. Often, this shows up unexpectedly as a sudden crisis, a big loss, or a life-altering event. For some, it arrives more slowly and quietly: a growing depression or anxiety that you just can’t seem to push away. Either way, this invitation arrives with suffering and big questions about who you are, how your life has shaped you, and what is possible moving forward. I believe that the arrival of this call, whatever form it takes, is an incredibly sacred time. No one would choose it, and it might look like falling apart, but on an archetypal level this is the beginning of the hero(ine)’s journey. Suffering is the soul’s call to deep wisdom. Not everyone will answer this call. You can go to your grave hustling for relief and escape, which works, though life becomes more rigid and your world smaller. Or, you can face into the suffering that that is a part of being human. This is the compassionate gateway to an honest life and a profound sense of peace, even in the midst of the mess. The first half of life is about what other people want, need, and expect from us to be successful. This is good news: we need to learn to use a fork, share our toys, find a career, raise our children. But by the second half of life, most of us learn the hard way that there are no guarantees, and that life comes with a fair share of wounds, losses, and disappointments. Life unfolds in surprising twists and turns your younger self could never have anticipated. The second half of life is when things get interesting. This is when the psyche demands not just that we fit in and find success - it asks us to grow from our suffering and find our soul’s authentic path and purpose. This time of life is a reckoning with who we are and what we really want out of this “one wild and precious life.” (This was for those Mary Oliver fans!) I offer a unique and powerful experience of counseling that can help you answer the call and use this moment of suffering to transform the loss, crisis, or current cataclysm into a life of meaning, purpose, connection to Self and Other. Through dreamwork, active imagination, art therapy, and a little bit of magic, we will take a deep dive under the surface and re-member you, and the Self you were born to be. This process is both practical and mystical. One day at a time, you will lean to honor the Spirit within, and move in alignment with your deepest, most sacred sense of Self. This is not your run-of-the-mill therapy, This is Soul Work. If you are ready to answer this call - or you’re not sure but you’re intrigued - I am ready to be your guide and companion to those deep places within. Give me a call and let’s get started!