The Healthy Life Therapist

Therapy can teach you skills and still leave you wondering, “Do I sound real?” Ryan Ramos Master's student in Clinical Mental Health Counseling sits down with Dr. Jorge Rosales Lopez, a counseling professor at Palo Alto University, to talk about the part of clinical work that doesn’t fit into a worksheet: authenticity. We get into what it means to show up as yourself first and a counselor sec...

The right tool at the right moment can change a life—and sometimes that tool is as simple as a therapist’s business card. I sit down with best-selling author and therapist-in-training Steffan Piper to trace the small, human decisions that make care possible: being reachable in a crisis, choosing symbols that speak to resilience, and showing up for synchronous learning even when silence feels safer...

Outward success can be an elegant disguise for deep distress. We sit down with fellow clinicians-in-training: Ryan Ramos, Steffan Piper, Mady George and Stephen Crooms to unpack The Double Life of a High Functioning Alcoholic and explore how achievement, status, and social rituals can keep people sick while everything looks fine on paper. From acute care units to youth DBT groups, we share what we...

Chitra Thummarukudy, LMFT and Phd student in Counselor Education and Supervision (Palo Alto University,CA) shares her journey from fashion merchandising to becoming a licensed marriage and family therapist specializing in adolescent counseling, revealing how her experience as a parent sparked her passion for supporting youth mental health. • Child and adolescent counseling helps model healthy rela...

Counselors-in-training Mike Nguyen and Geena Ortiz join Ryan Ramos to explore LGBTQ+ youth bullying, sharing personal experiences and professional insights. The conversation reveals how discrimination impacts identity development and mental health while offering practical strategies for creating affirming school environments. • Bullying involves power imbalances and often manifests as discriminati...

What happens when a theater performer decides to channel their storytelling gifts into the therapeutic relationship? Jennifer Kiehl, associate marriage and family therapist and doctoral student at Palo Alto University, reveals the fascinating parallel between performance arts and counseling in this deeply personal conversation about career transitions and finding your true calling. Jennifer shares...