Episode 223: I Went Back to Therapy, And Here's Why--with Mary Fran Bontempo

“Please don’t assume you’ll just talk yourself out of dark places. Help is there—and there’s a reason for it.” ~ Mary Fran Bontempo: Brilliantly Resilient podcast host and author of "From Broken to Brilliant: How to Live a Brilliantly Resilient Life" This week on the Brilliantly Resilient Podcast, I’m getting personal. I recorded a solo episode about something we all face—but rarely talk about: knowing when it’s time to ask for help. Lately, I’ve felt overwhelmed, anxious, and just plain out of juice. So I did something both difficult and powerful—I went back to therapy. In this episode, I talk about how I knew it was time, why vulnerability doesn’t make us weak, and how admitting you’re not okay is actually one of the most resilient things you can do. Living a Brilliantly Resilient life is a process--one that I repeat over and over. No one becomes Brilliantly Resilient and stays there; life's challenges don't allow it. Putting up your hand to ask for help, along with building your tribe of support, are two of the most important pillars of the Brilliantly Resilient process. But when we're in a good place and breezing along, asking for help and support are rarely uppermost in anyone's mind. Further, asking for help makes us feel vulernable, and I'd rather run a marathon than feel vulnerable. (P.S. I hate running.) But when the cost is too high, as when anxiety takes hold, it's essential to embrace humility, recognize our own humanity, and ask for help when we need it. If you're carrying more than you were built to hold right now, I hope this episode gives you permission to reset—and reminds you that help is not only available, it's brilliantly necessary. Be sure to tune in to this week's episode of the Brilliantly Resilient podcast and listen for these additional bits of Brilliance (if I do say so myself!). (Please note how each of these quotes relates to the Brilliantly Resilient process. Full disclosure, AI provided the quotes' relationship to the process--and I'll take it!) “There are times when you just have to put up your hand and say, ‘I need some extra help.’” → Reset: Acknowledging the need for support is strength, not weakness. “You learn how to not only feel when anxiety is coming on, but also recognize when it’s becoming too much for the tools you already have.” → Rise: Recognize when your resilience needs reinforcement. “I needed someone to hear me. I needed to acknowledge that I was being someone I didn’t want to be.” → Reveal: Brilliance comes from radical honesty with yourself. “You don’t always get what you need from those closest to you—and that’s okay. Sometimes you need a neutral, kind, third party.” → Reset: Your support system can extend beyond family. “My anxiety didn’t disappear, but I was reminded of tools I already had and ways I could make things better—not perfect, just better.” → Rise: Resilience is about better, not perfection. “I hate feeling vulnerable. But looking at hard things is the only way to grow.” → Reveal: Brilliance lives on the other side of discomfort. “It’s okay to let the ‘little black dog’ follow you around. But don’t let it sit in your lap.” → Reset: Live with awareness, not control by your emotions. “I needed to get back to someone who didn’t judge me and had no expectations of who I should be.” → Rise: Safe spaces are essential to becoming your best self. “You don’t have to know everything. You just need to be willing to say, ‘I’m out of juice right now.’” → Reveal: Admitting you’re depleted is an act of courage. “Please don’t assume you’ll just talk yourself out of dark places. Help is there—and there’s a reason for it.” → Reset and Rise: Don’t go it alone when there’s a lifeline available. Let's be Brilliantly Resilient together! With love and resilience, Mary Fran