The Rooted Heart / Denise Schenk, MA, LPC, LLC

The Rooted Heart / Denise Schenk, MA, LPC, LLC KIND MIND, OPEN HEART, CALM BODY
The Rooted heart offers psychotherapy services for individuals and

.new moon in Libraon the heels of the eclipse season its time for cosmic integration : time to take a breath + come back...
10/21/2025

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new moon in Libra
on the heels of the eclipse season its time for cosmic integration : time to take a breath + come back to center : recalibrate our nervous systems : a time of renewal : 

Libra dark moon energies
restore inner + outer harmony : heal relational wounds : honest communication : reset of the heart : forgiveness : move through conflict with love + integrity : trust :

create time for
yin yoga : resting : pause + notice : digital detox : journaling : set intentions : breath work practice : sing + express through your voice : allow the air element to bridge the seen + the unseen :

Journal prompts:
🔸Where has my energy been out of balance?

🔸Where in my life have I been keeping the peace at the expense of my truth?

🔸What no longer feels aligned with who I am becoming?

🔸Where am I being asked to trust more deeply?







.Healing is not about fixing.
It is an act of remembering…
of calling home the lost fragments of your soul
and learning ...
10/21/2025

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Healing is not about fixing.
It is an act of remembering…
of calling home the lost fragments of your soul
and learning to love them back into wholeness.

Often, the concept of the inner child is introduced through books, therapy, or group work. Yet beyond the concept lies something far deeper…
a living spirit within you that carries the echoes
of unmet needs, forgotten dreams, and ancient pain.

Your inner child is not a burden or something broken.
It is the gatekeeper to your light 
the diamond hidden in the darkness,
the tender pulse of your most innocent truth.
When the shadows rise 
when shame, grief, or fear come flooding in 
the child is calling.

Listen.

This is the sacred work:
to meet your inner child, your shadow,
your unhealed self and hidden fragments
with the same love, patience, and gentleness
you would offer to someone you cherish.

This is the deep initiation…
the work of integration and healing,
the path that leads you home
to the wholeness you have always been.


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.The Cottonwoods don’t resist their turning. They let their leaves blaze into gold, revealing that even endings can be b...
10/13/2025

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The Cottonwoods don’t resist their turning. They let their leaves blaze into gold, revealing that even endings can be beautiful when met with grace.

Can your heart stay rooted even as the seasons shift?














Morning routine For some, mornings are the most sacred time of the day. Others however, would much rather hit the snooz...
10/05/2025

Morning routine
For some, mornings are the most sacred time of the day. Others however, would much rather hit the snooze button until the last possible minute.

The way you rise, especially what you experience during the first thirty minutes after waking greatly influences the unfolding of your day and the overall tone.

You can start by being mindful of your thoughts, attitude, and overall mood. For instance, orienting yourself towards joy, productivity or equanimity.

This can be done through affirmations, prayer or just a simple moment of reflection. Pay attention to what you are taking in with your senses- what you read, what you hear, and your pace. Do you immediately pick up your phone? Scroll or listen to the news? Maybe you jump right into checking emails or your mental to do list, before allowing yourself time to fully awaken.

The importance of creating a morning routine, allows your mind, body and soul a chance to begin anew. A reset, if you will. It is actually an act of kindness and commitment to self, a form of honoring and establishing boundaries and structure that will support you with your vision as you move forward into your day.

Consistency is the key as it creates a sense of empowerment for your day; and strengthens you mentally and emotionally.

Some people begin their days, through affirmations, prayer, meditation, writing, stretching, coffee or tea, a walk or exercise. There is no right way. Choose one thing that feels right to you?

Personally, there is one thing that I have always done and continue to do, no matter where I am. Within the first 5 minutes of rising...I make my bed. This simple act is satisfying on so many levels, but most importantly it offers me renewal each day, and from there I can have a mindful presence.

Everyone’s routine will look different, and maybe even undergo changes or modifications over time, that’s to be expected. I encourage you to create a morning routine that allows you to check-in with yourself, prior to any outside influences that could impact your day.

No matter what you choose to put into place as your morning routine or ritual, remember that mindfulness + consistency is the key.

.It takes two to create a pattern… but only one to change it.In relationships, we often get caught in the cycle of point...
09/22/2025

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It takes two to create a pattern… but only one to change it.

In relationships, we often get caught in the cycle of pointing fingers, waiting for the other to do something differently. Every pattern is like a bend in the river, a threshold where the waters can carve a new way forward. The current shifts the moment even one stream chooses to flow differently, opening a pathway to transformation.

Like water, we can soften our edges, flow around resistance, + shift the way we engage without collapsing into blame or judgment. This doesn’t mean tolerating harm or abandoning your truth. Instead, it means anchoring in presence, compassion, + responsibility for your own energy. How you choose to react.

When you shift your way of responding, the current of the relationship changes.
Sometimes the other meets you there. Sometimes they don’t. Either way, you free yourself from the old eddy + begin creating new pathways for connection, love, + growth.

Like water, you can soften allowing yourself to move around obstacle, + reshape the current without force.

3 Ways to begin shifting patterns:

1. Pause before reacting. Notice the old loop starting to spin and give yourself space to choose a new response.
2. Soften judgment. Instead of blaming the other, turn inward and ask: What is this moment showing me about myself?
3. Model the energy you wish to experience. If you want openness, bring openness. If you want kindness, embody kindness.

Every ripple you create within yourself reshapes the flow between you.

Reflections for you:
Where in your relationships are you being invited to embody flow instead of resistance?

What small shift in your own current could create more ease, connection, or love in this relationship?

Where might You be clinging to the banks of certainty instead of trusting the river to carry you forward?
















.new moon solar eclipse in Virgoa powerful threshold : purposeful : karmic release : clear old stories + cycles that gri...
09/22/2025

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new moon solar eclipse in Virgo
a powerful threshold : purposeful : karmic release : clear old stories + cycles that grip : tend to your sacred soil to create fertile ground for future blooms :

virgo new moon energies
radical change : authentic transformation : release restrictive patterns : recalibrate expectations : clarity: healing : reorganization : protect your energy :

create time for
daily routines : health regime : silent contemplation : journaling : prayer : relaxation : nature walks : breathing exercises : meditation : ground into the
earth element :

Journal prompts:

🔸What has been self-critical or unsustainable?

🔸I am done with (fill in the blank) patterns and/or habits? I release you, thank you + bless you ✨

🔸Are there any reoccurring dynamics that are due to be released?

🔸What routines are draining energy or no longer effective?

🔸Is there an aspect of my identity that is based on fear or expectations?

🔸What areas do I need to establish more grounded boundaries?

🔸What small consistent steps can I take to move towards what I am desire?












.Relationships thrive on small, consistent moments of presence. It doesn’t take hours of deep talks or grand gestures. ...
09/21/2025

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Relationships thrive on small, consistent moments of presence. It doesn’t take hours of deep talks or grand gestures. Often, it’s the little check-ins that build trust, intimacy, and love over time.

One simple way to nurture your connection is to create a weekly ritual of reflection. Just 10–15 minutes together, phones down, hearts open, and a few meaningful questions can shift everything.

Here are 5 questions you and your partner can use in your weekly check-in:

Questions

1. What’s one thing you appreciated about me this week?

2. Is there anything on your heart that you’d like me to understand more deeply?

3. What’s one need, desire, or request you’d love me to meet this coming week?

4. When did you feel most connected with me recently?

5. How can we bring more joy, play, or ease into our relationship this week?

Try these once a week and notice how they open the door to deeper listening, appreciation, and playfulness in your relationship.

Please share below ⬇️ if you feel inspired. I’d love to hear from you 🩵
























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09/14/2025

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.I am Bear, and I come to you in this turning of seasons. Feel the air cooling, the leaves shifting color preparing to f...
09/14/2025

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I am Bear, and I come to you in this turning of seasons. Feel the air cooling, the leaves shifting color preparing to fall; the Earth exhaling her last breath of summer. This is my time, the season of gathering and release.

I walk the forest slowly now, taking only what I need. I do not cling to the light, nor fear the dark. I know the wheel is always turning. Autumn teaches me that surrender is strength, that letting go is part of the spiral path, a way to be reborn again.

I say to you: gather what nourishes your soul. Collect the fruits of your labor, the sweetness of your lessons. And, release what has grown heavy, what no longer sustains you. Lay it gently upon the earth as the trees lay down their leaves.

Do not fear the cave, the stillness, the silence. Within the dark womb of Winter, dreams are born. My hibernation is a conscious & figurative death…it is holy dreaming, the deep weaving of what is to come. So too, your retreat will birth your renewal.

Walk with me. Trust this rhythm. Honor the fire of autumn, the descent into quiet, the mystery of your own becoming. I am Bear, and I will guard you as you rest, as you release, as you dream.




















.It’s been over a month since my last post, and it has felt nourishing to give myself space; space to converge with natu...
09/01/2025

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It’s been over a month since my last post, and it has felt nourishing to give myself space; space to converge with nature, to let my thoughts drift without the pressure of producing content, and to honor the silence that awakens inspiration.

This pause has been a reprieve, a sacred pause… a moment of stillness.

When the world feels loud, turbulent, or uncertain, one of the most radical acts we can take is to turn inward. To tend to our personal practices. To come back to what anchors us.

Time feels like it’s speeding up, and yet the medicine… is slowing down enough to remember what really matters.

Here are 3 potent steps to drop deeply into self-care when the currents of life feel too fast:

1. Claim Your Sacred Space
Even five minutes of intentional stillness can shift everything. Light a candle, step outside barefoot, or sit quietly with your breath. The body knows when it is being honored.

2. Simplify to Amplify
Choose one nourishing ritual and let it be enough—tea with presence, mindful movement, prayer, journaling, or mantra. Depth comes not from doing it all, but from doing one thing with devotion.

3. Return to the Heart
Close your eyes, place your hand over your heart, and ask, What do I need right now? Listen. Trust the whisper. Then act on it with tenderness.

Self-care is not indulgence, it’s survival. It’s how we stay rooted when the winds of life grow strong.

What is one small act of care you can offer yourself today? I invite you to place your hand on your heart and ask, “What is the medicine I need right now?”

Please share what comes through ⬇️ below I would love to hear from you?
























.new moon in LeoA cosmic invitation to reignite your creativity, passion, + self-expression : be brave, be bold : releas...
07/25/2025

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new moon in Leo
A cosmic invitation to reignite your creativity, passion, + self-expression : be brave, be bold : release what dims your light : burn away the layers of self doubt + fear : ignite your inner fire : 

Leo new moon energies 
step into the spotlight : allow yourself to shine : act from the heart even in discomfort : presence is your power : time for reflection + rebirth :

create time for
self-reflection : journaling : expressing yourself without apology : playful moments with your inner child : dance : explore the fire element : let your heart alchemize what is ready to transform :

Journal prompts:

🔹What am I being invited to slow down and feel right now?

🔹Where have I been hiding my light out of fear of being too much or not enough?

🔹If I fully trusted my inner fire, what would I say YES to? What would I release?

🔹What can I celebrate that is flowing since the last lunation?

🔹Where am I being called to embody more courage, even if it feels edgy?

🔹What part of my identity is ready to be reclaimed, celebrated, or rebirthed?










+burn

.The Art of Listening:3 Simple (but Powerful) Rules for Couples Communication in love isn’t about who’s right or wrong; ...
07/24/2025

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The Art of Listening:
3 Simple (but Powerful) Rules for Couples

Communication in love isn’t about who’s right or wrong; it’s about connection. At the heart of every healthy relationship is the ability to truly listen. Not just to words, but to emotions, longings, fears, + needs underneath.

Here are three gentle yet powerful rules to help couples listen from the heart:

1. Listen to Understand, Not to Fix or Defend
So often we listen with a running inner dialogue-preparing our comeback, trying to solve the problem, or mentally building a case for why we’re right. But in true partnership, the goal isn’t to win. It’s to understand.

What if listening became a sacred act of presence?�Try letting go of the need to fix or analyze. Instead, become a curious witness. Ask yourself:

“What is my partner feeling beneath their words?”�“What part of them needs to be held right now?”
When we listen this way, we create a safe space where real healing and connection can happen.

2. Validate Before You Respond
Validation is like water to a thirsty heart. It lets your partner know: “I see you. I hear you. Your experience matters to me.”

Even if you don’t agree with their perspective, you can honor the truth of their emotions. You might say:
“I can see why you felt that way.”�“That must have been really hard.”�“It makes sense that this touched something deep in you.”

This moment of attunement is often more powerful than any solution or defense. It’s not about who’s right; it’s about staying connected, even when it’s hard.

3. Stay on One Topic at a Time
In moments of conflict, our nervous systems can go into overdrive. We start bringing up old wounds, stacking grievances, or shifting blame. The conversation becomes tangled and overwhelming for both people.

Instead, slow down.�Take a breath.�Stay with one thread of the conversation-one emotion, one concern, one event.

This allows both of you to stay grounded + makes it more likely you’ll actually find resolution. It also helps your partner feel respected + not ambushed.

A Heartfelt Reminder:
Listening is an act of love. It says:�“I care more about understanding you than proving a point.”�“I’m willing to soften, even when I’m hurt.”�“I want us to grow, not just get through this.”

The more you practice deep listening, the more your relationship becomes a sanctuary; a space where both hearts feel safe, seen, + supported.

Address

Durango, CO

Opening Hours

Monday 8am - 6pm
Tuesday 8:30am - 6pm
Wednesday 8:30am - 6pm
Thursday 8:30am - 6pm
Friday 8:30am - 6pm

Telephone

+19707494049

Website

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