By Austin Newcomb, M.Ed., LPC, NCC It's 11:43 PM on a Tuesday night. You promised yourself, your partner, your therapist, and possibly your houseplants that you'd be asleep by 10. Yet here you are: thumb engaged in that familiar scrolling motion, bathed in the blue...
By Austin Newcomb, M.Ed., LPC, NCC Picture this: It's 8pm on a Tuesday. You've just returned from a "fun" dinner with colleagues where you spent three hours maintaining the appropriate amount of eye contact (painful), laughing at the right moments (exhausting), and...
By Austin Newcomb, M.Ed., LPC, NCC Picture this: You're sitting in therapy, and you've just had a breakthrough about that pesky negative belief that's been running your life. You've traced its origins (childhood, check), understood its function (protection, check),...
By Austin Newcomb, M.Ed., LPC, NCC Have you ever shared something deeply personal, something that made you feel exposed and vulnerable, only to walk away from the conversation feeling strangely unsatisfied? The words were heard, perhaps even acknowledged, yet...
By Austin Newcomb, M.Ed., LPC, NCC "Have you tried meditation?" "Maybe you should keep a journal." "Just take a few deep breaths." If you've ever responded to well-intentioned coping suggestions with an internal eye roll, you're not alone. In my years working...
By Austin Newcomb, M.Ed., LPC, NCC "The most dangerous narratives are the ones we don't realize we're telling ourselves." Three weeks ago, at exactly 11:43 PM on a Tuesday, I found myself standing in my kitchen, surrounded by more sticky notes than any reasonable...
By Austin Newcomb, M.Ed., LPC, NCC The sanctuary felt different that morning. Not the building—the feeling inside my body as I stood there. A tightness in my chest. A subtle current of electricity running through my limbs. My breath shallow, caught somewhere between...
By Austin Newcomb, M.Ed., LPC, NCC Let's talk about something real for a minute. As a therapist, I've had the privilege of witnessing and holding space for many women as they navigate the complex terrain of suppressed rage and silenced emotions. What I've learned from...
By Austin Newcomb, M.Ed., LPC, NCC The grocery store at 2 AM. The closet that stays shut for months. The garden suddenly planted in December. The playlist that loops endlessly through the night. The obsessive reorganizing of photo albums. The coffee cup that sits...
By Dr. Colleen Cira For generations, women and feminine-presenting people have been taught to fear their anger. We’ve been conditioned to believe that rage is dangerous, unfeminine, and something to suppress. We’ve been called irrational, dramatic, hysterical—our...
By Austin Newcomb, M.Ed., LPC, NCC Let's talk about that moment when you're standing in your kitchen at 9 PM, eating ice cream straight from the container, trying to numb whatever feeling you're desperately avoiding. Or maybe you're doom-scrolling through...
By Austin Newcomb, M.Ed., LPC, NCC Have you ever noticed how your body feels when you're trying to be who you think you "should" be? Maybe it's a subtle tension in your shoulders, a tightness in your throat, or an unsettled feeling in your stomach. These quiet...
By Austin Newcomb, LPC Have you ever noticed how some days everything feels overwhelming – the sound of your phone notifications makes you jump, the overhead light seems too harsh, and even simple decisions feel impossibly hard? Then there are other days when these...
I’m writing to you at a difficult time in our world. It is a time when most of us are overwhelmed, and many of us aren’t safe. A time when the world is literally and metaphorically on fire. A time where hate, division, and fear seem to be...
By Austin Newcomb, LPC. Recently, I had the pleasure of joining Dr. Colleen Cira on the Healing Haven podcast to discuss something close to my heart: navigating ADHD in the workplace. As someone who straddles both worlds – being a neurodivergent professional while...
Insurance, for many, is often seen as a ticket to accessible healthcare—a privilege that opens doors to critical services and treatments. But in practice, the reality can feel far from ideal. The current insurance and managed care model is riddled with issues that...
In the aftermath of an election, conversations often seem stuck in a cycle of division, fear, and uncertainty. But I want to shift the focus from the election itself to what comes after: the path forward, the bridge we're standing on now. This bridge represents...
Have you ever felt overwhelmed by the weight of chronic stress, wondering if your health issues are tied to the constant strain of lifelong overwhelm, possibly rooted in trauma? Maybe you’re a parent juggling your mental health while also caring for a child with a...
As I write this, the rain falls gently, the sky is gray, and a mild breeze signals the change of seasons. This transition can represent so many different things… For some of us, this time of year means back to school and a return to schedules and routines. ...
Dearest Mamas, Maybe you’re reading this letter because you saw “invisible disabilities” and immediately knew this letter was written for you. Maybe your kid doesn’t have a diagnosis, but nothing about parenting them has ever felt easy or “normal.” Maybe you’ve...