Creatures of Change Episode #5: Melanie Reese on Expanding Perspectives with Religion, Healing Chronic Illness, and More
By Valerie Martin
You never know when an old acquaintance will chance to cross your path again.
In this case, Melanie Reese— a therapist I worked down the hall from for over a year— saw the news about this podcast and reached out about being a guest. In this ~40 minute conversation, we connected on a deeper level than we ever did during that whole year.
It was a joy to hear Melanie share some of the growth and healing she’s experienced personally throughout the pandemic, and how that continued evolution has allowed her to support her clients in new and deeper ways.
In this episode, Melanie and I talk about the the huge business leap she took just prior to the pandemic (spoiler alert, it involved OFFICE SPACE 💀😂) and what she learned weathering that challenge, the process of shedding her Christian identity (and the difficulties that arose in some family relationships), and how her own experience of living with chronic pain and illnesses has continued to evolve along with her spirituality, impacting the way she approaches her client work as well.
🎧 To listen to the episode, stream from the podcast player below, or visit this link to find the episode in your favorite podcast player. There will not be additional new episodes of Creatures of Change, but the existing episodes will live on in Valerie’s main podcast feed (which is now Bad B*tch Therapist podcast).
About Melanie
Melanie Reese is a board-certified, psychotherapist and owner of Trauma Therapy of Nashville, LLC, a private practice specializing in holistic trauma healing. She is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, Certified Clinical Trauma Professional and Certified Brainspotting Practitioner. Melanie and her team of therapists specialize in the treatment of trauma, women’s issues, relationships and chronic pain & illness. Melanie’s education and professional background in both the mind and body gives her a unique and effective approach to therapy with clients. She works heavily from a neuroexperiential perspective, using modalities such as Brainspotting, EMDR, mindfulness, somatics and body movement. As an AAMFT Approved Supervisor, Melanie also helps guide clinicians in their development as skilled therapists and individuals.
Additional Links + Resources
@traumatherapynashville on Instagram
The Surrender Experiment by Michael Singer
Perrennial Wisdom for the Spiritually Independent - edited by Rabbi Rami Shapiro
The Daily Stoic podcast with Ryan Holiday: Episode with guest Daniel Lubetzky (founder of KIND Snacks)
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