Back, Rooted, Renewed

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The mic is back on, but the heartbeat is different—steadier, warmer, and anchored in a deeper why. After eight years leaning into wellness and thirteen months in full-time psychotherapy, I’m opening the door to a new season where safety is the foundation and presence beats perfection every time. I share the pivot from chef to therapist not as a reinvention, but as a continuation of the same thread: food, culture, rest, movement, and healing woven into one grounded way of living.

This conversation is part field report, part love letter. I tell the story of walking into a room of a hundred kids—terrified for a minute, then carried by their openness—and a teen mental health panel that shattered the myth that young people won’t share. We talk about what a truly welcoming therapy space looks like (soft light, real comfort, no sterile edges), and why even the most guarded clients relax when the room says, “You’re safe here.” We name the stigma many communities face, especially people of color, and the relief that comes when care is culturally aware, human, and practical. Across ages and backgrounds, one need keeps surfacing: to be seen and heard without punishment.

I also pull back the curtain on the quiet months: revamping my website, writing weekly reflections on wellness, nutrition, and mental health, and contributing to Brains Magazine to widen the conversation. Looking ahead, we’re exploring stress and burnout through a nervous system lens, cultural perspectives on mental health, and everyday practices that restore balance without the all-or-nothing trap. Expect guest voices—colleagues, clients who choose to share, friends, and the people whose paths we cross—because healing is communal. If this resonates, subscribe, share with someone who needs a gentler pace, and leave a review with the one question you want us to tackle next. Let’s build a season that feels like a safe room you can carry with you.

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Episode Transcript

SPEAKER_00 (00:21):
Welcome back to that.
I think yes, it has been awhile.
For those who've been listeningfrom the beginning, thank you
for your patience.
While I took some time away, andif you're brand new here, you

(00:45):
join me at the perfect moment.
Because this is the start of anew chapter, both for me and for
this partners.
Since my last episode, you know,life has shifted.
You know, and many of you knewme as Cheflerin, you know,
rooted in hospitality andculinary work.

(01:09):
But over the last few years, myjourney has been carrying a
little deeper, if you might, youknow, if you might notice into
wellness and healing.
Well, about maybe the last eightyears or so.
But now I am fully inpsychotherapy practice.
And it feels like a naturalcontinuation of everything I've

(01:32):
done.
Still about mind and body, butwith an even more intentional
focus on emotional well-being.
What I've realized is that thethreat has always been the same.
Food, culture, rest, movement,and healing.
It's all connected, you know.

(01:52):
And now in my practice, I get tosit with people to witness their
journeys and to walk alongsidethem because it's been one of
the most meaningful shifts in mylife.
And so I needed that time, youknow, the honeymoon moon period,
you know, to just be, you know,and enjoy being in it full time.

(02:12):
Before I was just doing a, youknow, a client here or there,
but not fully in it.
But I've been fully in it nowfor about 13 months.
And and and I must say it's beenvery meaningful.
One experience I remember in theearly this summer, United Way

(02:35):
TCI had a summer camp, and theyinvited me to come down like a
colleague to talk to the kidsabout emotions and expressing
emotions and not being ashamed.
And I thought I was maybe goingto maybe a group of 20, 25, 30.
Oh my goodness.
When I arrived, it was likeabout a hundred, a little over a

(02:59):
hundred kids.
Now, let me tell you, I'm goingto be honest.
I was terrified.
I thought, how am I going tomanage all these little ones,
even with my colleagues, andkeep their attention and guide
the session, you know?

(03:20):
But when I walked in, after awhile, like within minutes, the
fare melted away.
Everything just flowed.
The love in that room wasoverwhelming.
The hugs, the little kisses, thepure openness of these children.
It touched me so deeply, youknow.
Of course, a week later, youknow, I was laughing to myself

(03:43):
because I had the worst call fortwo weeks.
I kept joking with my friendsand colleagues that those of the
Germans just got me.
But I say that with love becauseit reminded me of how powerful
it is just show, even when we'rescared.
And the reward is always greaterthan the fair.

(04:04):
As a matter of fact, I have analternate of about a week's time
at the school.
And I have to, I am, I am justas nervous.
But you know, I'm no longerafraid.
I'm looking forward to being inmy kids again.
And another experience thatreally touched me was being on a

(04:27):
discussion panel at a one-dayconference for teenagers on
mental health.
And uh, you know, let me tellyou something.
It was it was eye-opening.
I expected a bit of resistancefrom teenagers, you know, maybe
a wall of silence.

(04:48):
But what I found was thecomplete opposite.
Those teens were so open, andtheir emotions, their fears,
what moves them, how they thinkand feel.
It was such a reminder that youjust need to give people,
especially young people, thespace and the safety to be real,

(05:10):
and they'll surprise you withtheir honesty.
That conversation filming is somuch hope about our young people
in a time when people tend tothink, you know, these kids are
so, you know, they're exposed tosocial media, they're they're
losing their empathy.
No, that's that gave me hope.

(05:32):
And that's what I've reallyfound across the board in this
new chapter, you know, when I'mconnecting with a 20-year-old, a
48-year-old, a 60-year-oldclient, nine times out of 10,
what people need most is safety.
And I strive to provide that.
You know, that's become myfoundation because it took me a

(05:54):
long time to find that sense ofsafety for myself.
And that's why it's so importantto me because once I did, I
realized how powerful it is.
So now I try to create it forothers.
When somebody steps into mytherapy room, space, you know,
space for it feels like a littlelounge.

(06:16):
That's what somebody says.
There's soft cushions andcandles and blankets and posing
chairs.
It's not clinical at all.
There's nothing clinical at allthe room.
The lighting is warm and it'sinviting.
It's like a place to breathebecause I created that safe
space for me.

(06:37):
And this and as a therapist, I'msharing it with my clients.
And you know what?
Even the guys who come in,sometimes nervous, sometimes a
bit guided.
Eventually they relax and theyrealize I'm not a scary
therapist.
We just connect human to human.

(06:59):
And um another thing I foundvery meaningful in this whole
chapter over the past year hasbeen the diversity of people
that I've worked with.
As a black woman, it means a lotto connect with people of color
and to hold that space in a in ain a culture that we still deal

(07:23):
with stigma and fear about whatare people gonna think about me
going to a therapist.
But it's also been helpful toyou know to work with clients
from different backgrounds,Asia, or Latin America, the
parts of the Caribbean, and evenCaucasian clients, and that
commonality of creating a safespace has been the key to that.

(07:48):
Because what I've learned isthat the need for safety, the
need to be seen and heard, ittransfer, it transcends the
race, background, or culture.
Mental health is a common needthat connects all of us.
That's emotional connection.

(08:09):
So when I stepped back from thepodcast, at first it wasn't a
conscious decision.
I was just too busy.
But then it became a consciousdecision.
I wasn't sure when or how Ireturned, but that time allowed
me to grow to deepen my practiceand to really understand what I

(08:30):
want this platform to be.
And now I come back with newenergy, new stories, and a
strong sense of purpose.
Even though the podcast has beenquiet, I haven't been completely
absent.
My website has been completelyrevamped.
It's uh, you know,theitellifestyle.com.

(08:52):
And my blog on the the page hasbeen updated, you know, weekly
and with reflections onwellness, nutrition, and the
mental health.
So that's a good thing.
And something when I'mespecially called up, I've
become an executive contributor,executive contributor for Brains

(09:13):
Magazine, writing mostly aboutmental health and lifestyle.
That has given me another way toshare my voice and to you know
just connect with a widercommunity of readers who are
also on their journey.
So, what's the new direction ofthe podcast?
That's so new, just anotherchanges.

(09:35):
Still, we're gonna still stickto honest conversations about
mental health and real life,reflections and insights from my
psychotherapy practice, and asalways, a holistic approach to
that connects mind, body, andspirit.
My hope now is that am I thereyet?
Becomes a space where we canslow down and reflect, and just

(10:00):
remember that we are not alone.
And I want this to beinteractive.
I I still love, I still love theoccasional message from one of
my listeners, but I I would lovesome more.
Like I'd love to hear whatquestions you're carrying, what
topics you'd like me to explore.
You can reach me through mysocials, I tell lifestyle, or I

(10:23):
am I am Irish Auto.
You can send me a message frommy my blog, my podcast page on
BuzzGround.
This isn't just my journey.
It has become very clear to me,Delton Down, that this is our
journey.
What started out as a solo, justme during COVID, just talking

(10:47):
through things for myself tomake sense of things, has turned
into a community, and I reallyappreciate that.
So we're here, a new season, anew chapter, and I thank you all
for giving me the space topause.
And I thank you for being herenow as we move forward together.

(11:11):
In the weeks ahead, I'm thegathering to themes like stress
and burnout, culturalperspectives on mental health,
and practical ways to restorebalance in our daily lives.
I'm looking forward to this newjourney with openness and joy.
It really is a new game.
And I'll have guests, of course,maybe some of my fellow

(11:34):
colleagues, clients who want toshare their stories, my friends,
just people who I meet, as youknow, I meet people and we just
jump into it.
So that's being said, this isjust this episode was just to
say hello, hello, hello, helloagain, and that I'm back.

(12:00):
And on to the next time,remember, progress isn't about
perfection, it's about presence.
So this is Larry, and you'relistening to Aye There Yet.
I'll see you in the nextepisode.

(12:20):
Bye bye.