If you’ve ever navigated life after trauma, faced the invisible challenges of illness, or simply felt like your inner world is at odds with your outer reality, this podcast episode is for you. Join a deeply honest and insightful conversation between a host and her therapist of three years as they explore transformative healing through Internal Family Systems (IFS), psilocybin therapy, and the power of being truly witnessed. From coping with life-altering diagnoses to unlocking the subconscious mind, this episode offers wisdom, compassion, and tangible practices for anyone on a journey of grief, resilience, or self-discovery. Tune in—you might just find a piece of yourself in their story.

“So eventually I related to the illness as it really just my body seizing an opportunity to tell me that you're walking so far down the wrong path that we have to stop you from walking, yeah, and like you need to just slow down and sit in your being and see if what you're doing is actually in resonance with who you are.” - Abby

Key Points:

• Healing Isn't Always About Fixing—It's About Integration: Healing from trauma or life-changing illness doesn't necessarily mean returning to who you were before. Instead, it's about integrating what happened, accepting your current reality, and learning to live fully with it.

• Internal Family Systems (IFS) Offers a Path to Rewire the Brain: IFS therapy works by allowing individuals to access subconscious parts of themselves—often inner children or protector parts—and rewire long-held beliefs through imagination and compassionate attention, even without the use of psychedelics.

• Psychedelics Can Trigger Profound Shifts—but They're Not the Only Way: Psilocybin and other psychedelics can unlock hidden brain pathways and offer healing insights, but similar brain states and outcomes can be reached through visualization, meditation, and IFS.

• Invisible Disabilities Carry Unique Emotional Weight: Living with a disability no one can see can be isolating and frustrating. The episode brings attention to the emotional burden of being misunderstood or overlooked and the strength it takes to keep going.

• Being Truly Heard and Witnessed Is Inherently Healing: The simple yet powerful act of being seen, believed, and validated—without judgment—can be transformative for those processing trauma or grief.

• Slowing Down Changes Brain States and Promotes Healing: Most adults operate in beta brainwave states (analytical, overthinking mode), but healing often requires shifting into alpha or theta states through mindfulness, visualization, or guided meditation—where deeper emotional processing can occur.

About Abby White:

Abby provides individual adult psychotherapy sessions both virtually & in-person via her private practice "Butterfly Affect Psychotherapy & Counseling LLC", located in Boulder, CO. She specializes in working with those coping with life-changing illness & trauma, college/post college anxiety & identity development, & music industry professionals. Her approach to treatment is heavily rooted in the IFS (Internal Family Systems) tradition of therapeutic intervention in which client & clinician explore together the parts of self holding onto subconscious beliefs so that they may be released, integrated, & updated to support current client goals in life & in therapy. She also uses mindfulness-based interventions, training in non-violent communucation, & transpersonal approaches to support individual client recovery & aid in the development of life purpose & personal passions.

Connect with Abby:

Website: butterflyaffectpsychotherapy.com

Phone (text preferred): 203.536.0813

Email: abby@butterflyaffectpsychotherapy.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/butterflyaffect/

Connect with Meagan:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/meaganoberle/