Handling grief is just not about someone in your life passing away. Sure most cases of grief is when someone is dealing with a loved one dying either unexpected or when they get older. Grief is about loss. I have seen clients deal with grief issues but struggle with the process because it is not your usual and normalized grief.

Loss of a dream

One may have thought they were on track to become a pro athlete but an injury or another life event became an obstacle of fulfilling that dream. I have seen people struggle with a music career not taking off like they thought and sink into a depression when their record/career flops. Or those that had big dreams for their children to be the next top model or become a doctor only for their child’s strong will to take over taking them in a totally unexpected and sometimes dark path. A dream deferred or dream that never happens can be a hard pill to swallow especially when people expect you to just get over it.

Loss of a relationship

Have you ever tried to get over a friend who you trusted and thought of like a family member turning on you or ending the friendship for no apparent reason? I mean you did everything together and shared things with this person that you have not shared with anyone else. Don’t think that because it wasn’t a romantic relationship that it wasn’t a significant loss or doesn’t impact you now that that person is no longer in your life. When you spend a lot of time with a person being close and sharing intimate details of your life it tends to hurt when you no longer have that confidant.

Don’t struggle alone. Find a therapist to begin processing the grief experienced for the loss. It is normal to hurt when one’s life doesn’t go as planned. It is also normal to feel pain when you lose relationships of various types when that person was a staple in your life. Talk to a trained professional who won’t judge you and creates a safe environment for you to share and finally process your grief.

I can only theorize that the consequences of impact of having a pandemic, racial tension, West Coast fires and a crazy hurricane season will have on the world.

All throughout the year I have had to hit the reset button.

1. Thought I was going to build my income by working a full time job and part time private practice. Then the pandemic hit and would no longer be needed on the full time job.
2. Anticipated with private practice psychotherapy there would be a greater need to counselors. There was. But just like I loss income so did millions of Texans (where I can legally practice and offer services) when the economy took a turn for the worst. Unemployment numbers skyrocketed and unemployment subsidy didn’t not last long.

It is okay to hit the reset button not just at the beginning of the year but on a monthly and weekly basis. Sometimes, you may have to hit the reset button on a daily basis. So what if you had a horrible day yesterday. You were blessed with another day to start anew and leave the past of yesterday’s struggle where it is.

If you tend to overthink it keeps you stagnant. You over analyze. You over plan. You over strategize. You have visualized every worse case scenario possible and then some.

Overthinking every step of….

…starting your business and the perfection it would take to make things happen will leaves you unproductive.

…dating that guy or lady has you already planning out a wedding or introducing your date to your best friend or mother.

…getting pregnant has you looking at every genetic disease on you and your mates sides’ of the family or better yet visualizing your child going to your alma mater.

It keeps you from being able to enjoy the process of becoming an entrepreneur, learning to get to know the person you are dating before determining if they are the right one and lastly, the joy of becoming pregnant or parents.

Stop robbing yourself of the here and now. Days are passing you by with overthinking.

Nekeshia Limuel, MA, LPC, LCDC

When making changes do you feel like you are going nowhere fast? Maybe you feel as if you don’t have any opportunities attractive enough to make a move. Whatever it may be, it is time to become unstuck.

Motivation

Sometimes you have to ask yourself what is my why? The one that I have learned while working or dealing with your personal life you have to have a why. The why is your motivation that keeps you going. For instance, my why for showing up at work each day (besides liking to eat) is that I feel that counseling is my calling and passion. Sessions are not a struggle at all because my why is that I feel like I am living out my purpose. My motivation/why for my personal life is that I cherish my family. I want to do whatever it takes to be able to spend as much time as possible with them. I want meaningful encounters with them as long as I have breath.

Movement

Sometimes we get stuck because (transparency) we are not taking enough action to go anywhere. It’s easy to plan or dream of what you want to do. The question that does not come so easy is …How do I get there? I know where I am and have been but the action part can be paralyzing. In order to get unstuck just start taking baby steps in the direction that you want to go. In the words of the late and great civil rights leader, “If you can’t fly then run, if you can’t run then walk, if you can’t walk then crawl, but whatever you do you have to keep moving forward.” ― Martin Luther King Jr.

At Meraki Counseling, my goal is to create a safe, affirming space where you feel seen, heard, and supported as your authentic self. Clients who work with me often seek relief from anxiety, imposter syndrome, burnout, or life transitions, and together we focus on uncovering clarity, strengthening emotional resilience, and reconnecting with purpose.

My approach blends compassion with practical strategies—helping you explore thought patterns, process experiences, and develop tools you can use long after our sessions end. I believe healing happens when you feel empowered, not judged, and when growth is rooted in both self-awareness and intention. My hope is that you leave each session feeling more confident, grounded, and aligned with who you truly are becoming.

Nekeshia Limuel, Licensed Professional Counselor