Faith, Therapy, & Healing: Letting God use Every Tool Part 1 (feat. Rachael Elmore)

Today I sit down with Rachael Elmore, a licensed clinical mental health counselor, supervisor, speaker, and award-winning author with more than 20 years of experience helping people navigate the intersection of faith, emotional health, relationships, parenthood, and real life. Rachael shares the personal journey that ultimately led her into the mental health field, beginning with a difficult season in college when she experienced profound emotional distress following a breakup.

After reaching a point where she struggled to get out of bed, Rachael’s mother encouraged her to see a Christian counselor. That experience not only helped her through her own pain, but also became an important part of discovering her purpose and realizing that she wanted to help others experience healing and growth.

Rachael reflects on what it has meant to spend more than two decades sitting with people in their pain and witnessing them become healthier, while acknowledging that being a counselor does not mean having every answer. We also talk about the importance of recognizing that mental illness is not a sin and mental health is health.

Rachael talks about what she has learned from neuroscience research and how advances in understanding the brain have demonstrated that conditions such as postpartum depression and bipolar disorder involve real differences in how the brain functions. The episode also explores burnout and the emotional demands of being a mental health professional.

Rachael shares how she personally protects her own mental health while running a practice, speaking publicly, writing, podcasting, and holding space for other people's trauma. She talks honestly about the importance of having gone through therapy herself and explains why she would not want to work with a therapist who had never personally experienced therapy.

This episode offers an honest conversation about what it can look like to take both faith and mental health seriously, while challenging the idea that seeking therapy, learning about psychology, or taking medication means a person has failed spiritually. Rachael encourages listeners to recognize the different tools available for healing while continuing to surrender the process to God.

What’s covered in this episode: ● Rachael's personal mental health journey and what led her to become a mental health counselor. ● The misconception that christians should simply be able to “pray away” mental health struggles plus how christian counseling has evolved and become more open about difficult and uncomfortable topics. ● Rachael's experience with postpartum depression plus how medication changed her experience during postpartum depression. ● Why mental health should be treated as part of overall health and the idea that mental health is not a sin. ● The importance of using available resources rather than viewing mental health treatment as a spiritual failure. ● The importance of prayer, humility, professional boundaries, and continued personal growth for mental health professionals. Resources and links mentioned in this week’s episode: ● You can connect directly with Rachael Elmore on her INSTAGRAM ● You can check out and purchase Rachael’s book of A Mom is Born on AMAZON ● Find out more about Rachael’s work via her WEBSITE ! ● Leave a review ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠here ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ if anything in today’s episode resonated with you! ● Check out our faith based women of color shop ⁠⁠HERE⁠⁠ where you can get a variety of products from T shirts, tote bags, crewnecks, journals and many more ● Connect with us on Instagram! ( ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@roughedgeswithsarah⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠)⁠ ● Connect with us on YouTube! ( ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@roughedgeswithsarah⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ) ● Connect with us on Facebook! ( ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@rough.)⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ● Follow us on TikTok! ( ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@roughedgeswithsarah⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ) ● Want us to be a guest on your show?

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