Follow Gather & Grow OC on Instagram as we share in-depth therapist profiles introducing our diverse team of LGBTQ+ affirming mental health professionals. Getting to know our backgrounds, specialties, and values can help you find the right therapeutic match and make starting therapy feel more personal and less intimidating.

It may not solve life’s troubles, but it can soften them. But don't be fooled by its gentleness, self-love is hardcore.

Please be advised this piece covers sensitive material related to self-harm.

Our inner child represents our purest, most authentic self - the part of us that exists before life's influences shaped our behaviors and beliefs. When we learn to listen to and trust this inner wisdom, it becomes our North Star, helping us navigate life's journey with more clarity, joy, and purpose.

Reconnecting with your authentic self after years of self-suppression can feel both awkward and comforting - much like reuniting with a childhood friend after decades apart. This delicate journey involves rediscovering parts of yourself that were hidden away for protection, while experiencing the bittersweet mix of familiarity and strangeness that comes with meeting an old friend who has grown and changed over time.

Perfectionists think control will keep them safe from shame. But more often than not, it will keep all the aspects that make life exciting, memorable, and worth living at bay. You, me, and all of us are imperfectly perfect.