Tuesdays with Thrive: monthly therapist meetup
Join us for our monthly get together for therapist in Ventura, California
Tuesdays with Thrive: a monthly therapist meetup for mental health providers in Ventura, California
We meet monthly - the first Tuesday of every month in downtown/midtown Ventura, CA
Join us at Room Service Coffee from 8:30am-9:30am. Please RSVP here, so you can come and enjoy without handing out business cards, and instead receive a complimentary introduction email to all providers after to gather referrals and connections.
This group is a complimentary onramp for community and collaboration for local therapists in Ventura. Oftentimes therapist get togethers involve paying to attend, performing - i.e. - accruing CE’s or attending a happy hour to network and talk theories and clients care.
Our hope with Tuesdays with Thrive is to create an organic onramp for you to meet other providers in a human, casual and easy to connect way. Don’t drink coffee? Not a problem. Want to stop by for 10 minutes to say hello, absolutely welcome! Stay for the whole hour, or linger after to cowork or connect - it’s the perfect location!
Mosey on over on your way to work for the day, or snag a coffee + connection before heading home for virtual clients. Either way, you’re welcome here and your humanness and (dogs and postpartum babies) are too. Invite a colleague or friend, or come to this casual get together and make some new ones.
Meet your host
Claire Blakey, MA, LMFT, PMH-C
Owner of Thrive Therapy
Hi! If we haven’t met before, my name is Claire Blakey. I am the founder of Thrive Therapy Santa Barbara, and am excited to have launched a second Thrive Therapy location in downtown Ventura last year.
In addition to this new location, I also moved to a cutie house in midtown Ventura, after the wake of a divorce. While I did my graduate program and licensing hours in Santa Barbara, my roots in SB wove deeply in the therapist community. I served 10 years on the SBCAMFT board, ending my term as president/past-president.
Something I am passionate about in addition to my clinical work is cultivating community + connection for our clinical community. My theme as president was community + connection, and I feel proud of the onramps for therapists to be human and connect (surf meet ups, coffee meetups, camping trips, bookclubs, activism, and other on-ramps for collaboration).
My hope is to build connections professionally through this endeavor in Ventura, and also personally, as my life is now rooted in Ventura as well as I raise my two young daughters solo.
I am still in SB a few days a week for private practice, but am eager to cultivate a community of colleagues in Ventura, and want to foster a space that is inclusive, welcoming, does not require a hierarchy of licensing or a fee to join. All are welcome!
If you show up and don’t know anyone, let me be your wing person! I know what it’s like to be new and I’d love to get to know you. Feel free to email before to connect or refer to the photo attached to get a sense of what I look like. I’ll also have a flyer/sign so you know where to meet!
Thrive: to grow through the hard things you go through
Tuesdays with Thrive: growing with colleagues by building connections + community over coffee
Group Therapy: Healing in Community
Group Therapy is a valuable alternative to individual therapy as well as a facilitator in strengthening your support system, equipping you with tools, community, and creating a safe space for you to process in a whole new way whatever challenge you are growing through.
Individual therapy is personalized, strategic, and custom to your experience — whereas group therapy can often provide a comfort, camaraderie, and a community that can aid in accelerated growth. Imagine the impact of hearing others vocalize thoughts, experiences and struggles that you have silently journeyed through. There is strength that grows through practicing vulnerability and courage that wells up when you are inspired by others bravery to show up authentically. Plus, you never know who you’ll be encouraging by sharing your unique life journey, healing and perspective.
$60 a week for 50-minute session
What is group therapy for pregnancy and postpartum?
Group therapy is when several people meet together to share about their challenges and experiences under the guidance of a mental health therapist. Group therapy can be an effective and supportive way to process emotions, and gain tools to combat what you are navigating. Different from a support group, group therapy tends to be more formal and structured, and is always led by a mental health professional.
Benefits of group therapy for parents in Santa Barbara
1. CONNECT WITH A COMMUNITY OF OTHER SANTA BARBARA MOMS
You aren’t alone! Feeling supported by other moms in your community is an essential part of your well-being, especially as you are navigating pregnancy or postpartum. It can be hard to make new friends in postpartum who are going through similar experiences as you and group therapy can foster beautiful friendships and connections in Santa Barbara.
2. LEARN NEW COPING SKILLS
How can you take care of yourself, day to day? What are other Santa Barbara moms doing that helps their mental health? What does the therapist leading the therapy group recommend? Often times group therapy includes psychoeducation, tools, and resources to help you thrive through pregnancy and postpartum.
3. CREATE SPACE TO PROCESS EMOTIONS
It can feel really good to talk about everything that is happening in your heart, mind, and life, and feel seen and heard for these experiences and feelings. We love our husbands and partners, but sometimes, you just need to talk to someone who innately “gets it!” And bonus — they are also covered in spit up, navigating sleep progressions, gaining courage to go in public with their new little one and navigating the puberty-like experience that is matrescence - the journey of becoming a mother: mentally, physically, emotionally and relationally.
4. GAIN CONFIDENCE AND A SENSE OF EMPOWERMENT
It’s a built-in team of empowered friendship! In groups, you will celebrate each others’ littlest wins (did you and your baby both eat today? Success! Did you successfully shower AND go to a coffee shop for a quick cup? Yes girl! These moments deserve celebration from a team who knows how challenging it can be).
5. PREVENT POSTPARTUM MOOD AND ANXIETY DISORDERS (PMADS)
Group support in California is one of the most protective factors against postpartum depression and anxiety. Especially if you have a history of struggling with depression, anxiety or trauma, a group space can be so healing. It can also be helpful to have the support of a licensed therapist or associate therapist to keep an eye on things and help you access additional support if needed.
How effective is group therapy?
While individual therapy is also so useful in this phase of life, group therapy in Santa Barbara provides a unique benefit in the way that it connects you to other mamas, giving you a sense of community that is so often missing in our busy day-to-day lives. There aren’t many places (though there should be!) where your not-brushed-teeth-mom-bun-PJs on-baby-attached-to-you self is welcomed and loved.
How group therapy supports individual growth as a new mom
Does group therapy resonate or feel like a supportive option for your mental health journey? Thrive Therapy Santa Barbara offers support groups for new and expecting moms, both in person and virtually throughout the state of California. If you are pregnant or postpartum and live in Santa Barbara, reach out today.
We host in-person support groups in downtown Santa Barbara. We also offer telehealth therapy and postpartum support groups in California. These are led by a mental health therapist who has advanced training in perinatal mental health. Through community, conversations and a bit of courage, join in on our healing and supportive groups that will nurture your pregnancy and postpartum mental health.
Check out our current group offerings or reach out to schedule a complimentary consultation for individual therapy or group therapy in Santa Barbara. You can email us directly here: hello@thrivetherapysb.com