Healing leads to health.

Before we can get to a greater state of health, healing has to happen. I recently had a young child walk up to me and excitedly show me the scab on her knee, where she fell while playing outside with her friends. I imagine that when she fell and saw that her knee was injured and bleeding she burst into tears as we all might at the age of 4. After the initial hurt of falling, the scab begin to form, protecting her from further injury and infection, and restoring the skin to health with minimal evidence of the fall.

When it comes to our mental health, healing also happens, but is often more hidden. We can’t as easily see the neurons in our brain rewiring in response to an encouraging word, a hug from a distant friend, a note of apology, a long walk, or the unexplained relief that comes after a long period of grief.

There is no denying that we are social beings who require relationships to grow, develop, and experience the fullness of all life has to offer. It is also true that a great deal of trauma and hurt happens in relationships. But where hurt happens, healing does also. If the trauma is relational, the healing will be also. The marker of healthy relationships is repair. When we believe that we are unable to repair relationships we can become disoriented, confused, and may even experience isolation, loneliness and despair.

Establishing a therapeutic alliance with core features of mutual respect, empathy, and collaboration is the foundation of our services. According to research, positive mental health outcomes are the result of allied relationships between a therapist and a client, and can occur irrespective of the type of therapeutic modality used. Our ears are attuned to our clients, with great care and concern for the life experiences that cause much pain. Our commitment is to establishing a therapeutic alliance, because where healing happens health is not too far off.

Jordan R. Murphy, PhD, APRN, CPNP-PC
Founder, Executive Director