A Confession About Tessa đ She walked in mid-October wearing the kind of exhaustion that doesn’t show up in photos. Tessaâ27, law school, Master’s degree, financially independent for five yearsâwas quietly falling apart because her boyfriend’s mother had suggested she’d […]
In the Therapy Room - Lucian Blackwood
In the Therapy Room: Suicidal Ideation and the Architecture of Despair
The Man Who Researched His Own Exit đ€ Thaddeus walked into my office that November afternoon carrying the weight of someone who had already decided to leave. He was forty-three, successful by conventional measures, and utterly convinced that his life […]
In the Therapy Room - Jas Mendola
In the Therapy Room: Family Restructuring and the Experience of Betrayal
Why Family Restructuring Feels Like Betrayal đ The old man sat in his truck outside the diner, hands on the steering wheel at ten and two, staring at nothing. His daughter had stopped answering texts. His new girlfriend had suggested […]
In the Therapy Room - Sophia Rivera
In the Therapy Room: Emotional Invalidation and Gaslighting in Relationships
The Presenting Problem đ I remember Tessa sitting across from me, doing that thing people do when they’re trying to convince themselves more than youâthe forced smile, the quick “I know it sounds bad, but…” qualifiers. She’d just spent ten […]
In the Therapy Room - Jas Mendola
In the Therapy Room: Dealing with Exclusion and Emotional Pain
The Setup: Your Inner Committee Is Having a Meltdown đ§ Here’s what most people miss about exclusion: it’s not a single emotion. It’s a full-blown internal coup. When Jenson got that text, multiple parts of his psychological organization activated simultaneously, […]
In the Therapy Room - Sophia Rivera
In the Therapy Room: Infidelity, Blackouts, and Rebuilding Trust
The Presenting Problem đš Brandon walked into my office twenty-five years old, eight months away from marriage, and carrying a weight that hollow eyes can’t quite hide. He’d watched his fiancĂ©e kiss her best friend at a partyâa moment seared […]
In the Therapy Room - Lola Adams
In the Therapy Room: The Anxiety of Online Discourse and the Search for Authentic Desire
The Coffee Shop Conversation đ€ It was a Tuesday at 4:47 p.m. when Saskia arrivedâthree minutes early, as high-achieving professionals always doâher perfectly pressed Reiss blazer somehow still crisp despite the humid Manhattan afternoon. She ordered an oat milk cappuccino […]
In the Therapy Room - Jas Mendola
In the Therapy Room: Emotional Numbness in Men
The Man Who Showed Up But Wasn’t There đȘ The man across from me had good teeth and good posture. He held his coffee like someone trained by military or corporate Americaâor both. His watch cost more than my first […]
In the Therapy Room - Jas Mendola
In the Therapy Room: Emotional Numbness in Men
â A Bloke at the CafĂ© Who Couldn’t Feel Anything He sat across from me at Three Bags Full in Fitzroy on a Tuesday morning, the kind of cafĂ© where Melbourne’s thin winter light cuts through the windows like a […]
In the Therapy Room - Samuel Hartwell
In the Therapy Room: Toxic Workplaces and the Lasting Impact of Emotional Trauma
A Confessional đȘ Tabitha sat across from me on a Tuesday afternoon, autumn light casting long shadows through my office windows. She was doing that thingâthe one I’d learned to recognize over twenty-five years of sitting with wounded professionals. She […]