Welcome to the Soul Care for Therapists podcast, where we take a deeper look at the importance of holistic care for renewal and grounding as you grow your private practice. In this episode, Dawn shares her favorite episodes on Soul Care and her personal experience with busyness. You will learn how she felt God’s call to slow down and prioritize her soul care.
Past Episodes Focusing on Soul Care
While the podcast is now called Soul Care for Terapist, Dawn has been speaking out on the need for the soul care for quite some time. Here are some episodes that talk about soul care:
- Episode number 49: Neurotheology: How to Use Meditation in Your Faith with Bo Stern-Brady. She and I talk about how when someone focuses 12 minutes a day on a loving and kind God, how much that changes their brain pathways and it can change your life.
- Episode number 13: What is Spiritual Direction? With Stephen and Jocelyn Head. Spiritual direction is about intimacy with God, it’s about relationship with God, and the relationship and the intimacy comes about through spending time with a spiritual director … a spiritual director [is not] there to tell you how to live your life, the word director is to do with your direction toward God and the main director in this conversation is actually the Spirit.
- Episode number 24: Kent Denlinger On Spiritual Companionship. What some people know as Spiritual Direction is given a new angle through Kent who calls it Spiritual Companionship; walking alongside people to deepen their connections to deepen their relationships with God. Spiritual companionship is therefore about coming together as a community or in a relationship with other people, bringing honesty and authenticity, which in turn strengthens the relationship and the depth that they have with God.
- Episode number 51: Spiritual Conversations with Children with Lacy Finn Borgo. People experience moments of wonder and peace when they encounter God in themselves, through others, and in nature. Universally, people experience similar emotions to similar experiences, like being in a peaceful forest, seeing a grand mountain, feeling connected to a friend, and feeling validated. These moments can also be described as the fingerprints of God, as Lacy calls them, and they are the moments that people feel most connected to God when a sense of deep longing and peace is stirred within them.
- Episodes 32-35: Where Soul Care for Therapists introduced. Even though soul care is different from therapy, it can be integrated into your current therapy regime. It is a lens of wellness that can be incorporated into how you heal emotional wounds and deal with issues. Soul care is caring for the whole person with a spiritual focus; mind, body, and spirit altogether. It differs from self-care because that is something that you can do on your own. Soul care occurs in relation to someone else who is guiding you in your communion with God and your religion.
- Episode number 43: Soul Care for Therapists Retreat. Are you a therapist who needs time and space to reconnect to yourself, your creativity, and to God? Do you seek communal spaces that are welcoming and healing with other like-minded therapists? How does spending time being quiet reawaken your creativity and intuition?
The Busyness Trap
As therapists and business owners, it’s easy to get caught up in the busy trap and lose sight of what truly matters. But “This life is not for you.” We get so consumed with our work and the needs of our clients that we forget to take care of ourselves. However, as Dawn shares, it’s important to slow down and listen to God’s voice. She says, “I feel God wooing me back to say, Dawn, this busy life is not for you. Like I want a life of rest and soul care.”
Slowing Down for Soul Care
Dawn acknowledges that slowing down is not easy, especially when you love your job and are passionate about helping others. However, she encourages listeners to take a moment to stop and listen to God’s voice. She even shares a blessing and prayer that she wrote for busy therapists who are struggling to balance their work and personal life. She says, “We need you to calm our hurried hearts. The hustle can cause our spirits to deflate and our focus to get complicated. Will you usher in the wings of your strength? Will you calm our attitude?” Dawn emphasizes the importance of attuning to God’s presence and tapping into the peace that He promises. As therapists, it’s important to take care of ourselves and prioritize our soul care, so we can better serve our clients. Slowing down and listening to God’s voice can help us find balance and peace amidst the busyness of life.
A Pray and Blessing for the Busy
Jesus, thank you for the gift of running our own businesses and the gift of entering into the deep waters of the lives of others. And while each season is special and beautiful in your timing, we acknowledge this current season of busyness. We desperately need the wisdom that can only come from you.
We need you to calm our hurried hearts. The hustle can cause our spirits to deflate and our focus to get complicated. Will you usher in the wings of your strength? Will you calm our attitude? In the midst of the rush, will you prompt us to slow down when needed? Will you woo us to a place of tenderness when we are overwhelmed, as you have given us your spirit to live inside us?
May we tap into the peace that you promise, the peace that we can’t comprehend. Please give us a glimpse of that tranquility we can only have in your presence. May we attune more to your presence? Amen.
Connect with Dawn
If you enjoyed this episode, connect with Dawn on social media. She loves hearing from her listeners and responding personally to each message. You can find her on Facebook and Instagram at Soul Care for Therapist.