More Than A Menu

Close your eyes if you'd like,

Take a slow deliberate breath in,

And let it ease out.

Feel yourself arriving,

Not at a drive-thru window,

Not at a transaction,

But here in this moment.

Imagine for a moment that therapy is mistaken for fast food.

Someone pulls up,

Rattles off their order,

Expecting quick service.

Here's your advice,

Here's your fix,

Thank you,

Have a great day.

Notice how that image feels,

Just flat,

Rushed,

Impersonal.

And now notice how you feel as you set it down.

Instead,

See yourself not as a server at a window,

But as a companion who steps out into the open air.

There's no menu,

No scripted response.

There's only you,

Your presence,

And the person in front of you.

You greet them not with a bag of ready-made answers,

But with curiosity,

With openness,

With the courage to be present.

Now imagine the client who asks for something that isn't on the menu,

A request that feels unfamiliar,

Uncertain,

Even uncomfortable.

Breathe into that moment.

Feel what rises in your body,

Tightness,

Worry,

The pull to say no.

And also feel the space that opens when you choose presence instead of panic.

You do not have to have it all ready-made.

You only have to be here,

Connected enough to listen,

Detached enough to hold boundaries.

Inhale connection.

Exhale release.

Inhale openness.

Exhale boundaries.

Like tides,

Both are necessary.

Bring to mind now your own self,

The therapist,

The human being.

You too must nourish yourself.

You cannot serve presence if your well is dry.

So breathe in the reminder that self-care is not selfish.

It is the soil that allows presence to grow.

Every inhale reminds you that you are human.

Every exhale reminds you that you are professional.

Together they create balance.

Rest in that rhythm for a few moments.

Breathing in presence.

Breathing out professionalism.

Breathing in connection.

Breathing out release.

When you are ready,

Imagine returning from this place.

See yourself not behind a drive-thru window,

But walking into a room,

Sitting across from a client,

Fully human.

You are not here to hand over an order.

You are here to listen,

To hold,

To guide,

And to honor that moment.

And when the session ends,

You close the space gently.

Knowing you can set it down.

Knowing that you can return to yourself.

You can take one final deep breath in and one long breath out.

Carry this presence with you into every session,

Into every moment.

And when you are ready,

Open your eyes.

Thank you.