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Coping Skills Seminar
This year has been so busy! In all the good ways Light Restored is flourishing. I have had the honor of sharing in seminars at a local church in Gardiner on various mental health topics. I hope to post more now and get into a cadence of sharing my thoughts and educational topics related to…
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Breaking the Stigma: Managing Mental Health with Medication
This month it was my goal to share vulnerably at least a few times during Mental Health Awareness Month. I wanted to hopefully just show one person some hope. I find when we are struggling we often assume we are alone. My history with depression and anxiety has been a presence in my life since…
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Mental Health Awareness: the Darkness in Depression
This month is Mental Health Awareness Month. I’ll be taking some time to share some topics that hopefully some will find helpful. As a mental health counselor I think it is imperative that we work to reduce the stigma that mental health carries. There are a multitude of amazing resources online. A few of my…
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Ankle Surgery Part 4: Cleared to Walk!
Part 1 is here where I share how I broke my ankle and had surgery. Part 2 is here the worst part is surgery the first 2 weeks. Part 3 was the beginning of physical therapy and waiting to heal. I began writing to help others who were feeling defeated like I was after an…
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Ankle Surgery Part 3: 2-5 weeks Post Op
It appears a lot of folks found my blog when I started posting about my surgery and now recovery process. This seems to be a need, just to hear from others about how their process went. I know for me it is always helpful to google an injury and see real stories of the journey.…
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Ankle surgery: part 2 the first 2 weeks post op
Part 1 of the broken ankle saga is here. I decided to blog about my recovery and experience given there is not many posts from runners. I hope it inspires someone who is going through something similar. Waking up from the surgery was probably the thing that will stick in my mind the most. I…
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Recovery of a Broken Ankle Part 1: diagnosis and surgery
When I started scouring the internet for blogs from runner who had this I didn’t find much. It led me to start writing to document the journey. This is part 1. Four weeks ago I went out for what I thought we be an amazing long run in fresh falling snow. I was so happy.…
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Eating Disorder: the Hard Truth
It’s National eating disorder week. As someone who has struggled with eating disorders most of my adult life I wanted to pause and reflect on my own journey this week. I looked at pictures of myself and I realized how I could find so many that I wanted my body to be right now. How…
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Ultra Running Coach!
I took the plunge almost 2 months ago and decided to follow my heart into a passion I have held for nearly ten years: being an ultra running coach. I was inspired by my coach, who posted a now hiring add. Of course my wheels started spinning and I asked the hubby about it. He…
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Hope After the Storm of Loss and Postpartum Depression
My rainbow after the storm ❤️🌈 my sixth baby was a rainbow after a loss and I never imagined them how much more joy she would bring into our lives. Her birth and trauma from that hospital stay etched in me a change. But traumas can change us, they can cause us to do one…
Colleen Smith, LMHC, NCC
Licensed Mental Health Clinician
Colleen Smith, LMHC, NCC 