Jennifer Komis Phelps Mindfulness Therapy and Coaching

04/09/2024

Hi friends! I've been privileged to serve as a therapist at The Mindfulness Center for the last 4 years. With their support, it's come time for me to stretch my wings and start my own practice, Jennifer Komis Phelps Mindfulness Therapy and Coaching. I will continue to see teens, adults, couples and families, typically virtually but in-person options are available. I truly love working with my clients and welcome you to spread the word with those who may be seeking a welcoming and compassionate therapist. Feel free to learn more at my new website and reach out anytime:

Counseling offering Telehealth appointments. Paperwork can be filled out online. Schedule an appointment today.

01/17/2023

Hi everyone, as we move into the new year, I have 3-4 open spots in my private practice therapy schedule. It's been awesome to see clients meet their goals and "graduate" from regular counseling and move into a maintenance phase. I also know there are people out there currently struggling and wondering how and when to seek help. If you are, or know, one of those people, feel free to reach out or share my information. May what's chaotic feel peaceful, what's hurting feel healed, and what's missing feel found in 2023.

08/15/2021

As school kicks back into session, I've opened 3 new virtual therapy client spaces ready to support kiddos, adults, families, and couples. It's natural and normal to struggle with emotional regulation, stress, anxiety, and depression. Treatment and support truly make all the difference.

01/19/2021

Hi everyone! New client spaces are moving quickly this New Year, but there's still a few open to start your mindfulness journey

01/18/2021

I remember the day I came to the mind-shattering conclusion that the right pair of yoga pants wasn't going to bring me peace. I also remember the day, after a week of grueling busy-ness, I found myself in the little nook between my closet and my bed, taking deep breaths, repeating, "You are going to be okay. You are safe." And feeling calmer than I'd felt in years.

Many of us aren't sure how to soothe ourselves as adults. Maybe we learned that anxiety and panic are just a part of daily life. But here's the thing. They don't have to be.

Mindfulness therapy takes you on a journey. You get to decide what's sacred (read: peace-bringing) to you. You get to decide what is not. You get to play around and build your own toolbox of sacred habits that keep you centered in a world that often feels it is tilting on its axis.

Lately, for me, it's cuddling up with a movie a few nights a week and being quiet, a pet on each side. Other times, it's walking through the woods, noticing the feel of winter on my cheeks, the crisp sense of something new being ushered in. Sometimes it's a patio drink with a friend on a worknight when the world tells me I should be asleep.

Staying sane in our world requires us to carve out these nooks and crannies that bring peace. They are not indulgent. They are necessary. They are our sacred, centering habits. And I invite you on a journey to uncover yours.

Email Jennifer.Komis@louisvillemindfulnesscenter.com to learn more about therapy session options.

01/18/2021

Our expectations for ourselves are often far higher than our expectations for others. Why couldn't we see into the future about how that marriage would end? Why did we say the wrong thing in that interview? Why can't we find the motivation to do A, B, C, D, E, F, G....the list goes on.
It's like someone told us that we are supposed to get everything right the first time, and that we are off the rails if our life map involves various stops and starts.
The more people I meet, the more convinced I am that this is all an illusion. The truth is we all crash down only to rise up again. And again. So my message to you is this: The next time you hear that self-critical voice in your head, pause. Notice it. Grab on to grace. Hold it against your chest. Breathe it in. Listen. Let go of the judgement. And give yourself some rest.
If you'd like to learn more about therapy with Jennifer Komis, email Jennifer.Komis@louisvillemindfulness.center.com.

09/16/2020

I've always loved the musical Wicked. The moment where the "wicked" witch (whose not so wicked after all, it turns out) realizes she HAS to be true to herself despite what others say or think about her, even if it means going it alone... WHOA. That's powerful stuff.

This world has a lot of rules about a lot of things. Be thin. Be smiley. Be straight. Be strong. Be married by 25. Be successful. Be ALL. OF. THE. THINGS.

So what happens when the rules don't make sense to you? Do you try to fit in? Do you tuck up, get quiet and blend? Head down. Just keep walking.

Let's pause. Here's the hard truth: Any success at avoiding who you authentically are is going to be temporary at best. You've GOTTA be you. And the secret is, the world NEEDS you to be you.

We don't need another insta-mom, perfectly made up with a baby on her hip. We need real, complex, 3-dimensional you, the good parts, the scared parts, the angry parts, the undefined parts, and yes, even the "wicked" parts.

Your deepest responsibility is this. Listen for the you that needs to speak. And speak.

Interested in learning more about living from you authentic self? Email Jennifer@louisvillemindfulnesscenter.com

09/08/2020

"Falling in love and having a relationship are two different things."
- Susan Piver

Wow. Every now and then an article cuts through the fluff and makes me want to run around the room and yell, "YES"! Think relationships are hard? You are not alone. Feel like a failure in relationships? You don't have to. In fact, you have permission to LET. THAT. GO. (like, today). Read more about why relationships are complex, triggering, beautiful, scary, amazing, and terrifying all at once and how to recognize real love in your life.

For more information on relationships or to schedule a therapy or coaching appointment, email Jennifer@louisvillemindfulnesscenter.com

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-angry-therapist/202009/3-things-make-love-real

They're not what you think.

09/04/2020

"You are lovable. Yes, you.
Just because people haven't been there for you, just because certain people haven't been able to show love for you in ways that worked, just because relationships have failed or gone sour does not mean that you're unlovable.
You've had lessons to learn. Sometimes, those lessons have hurt.
Let go of the pain. Open your heart to love.
You are lovable.
You are loved."
-Melody Beattie

What if you lived from this reality today? What would be different? Would you feel better, lighter, more at peace? Because, here's the thing: It's all true. YOU are lovable and worthy of love

09/01/2020

I don't know about you, but this year has felt like a tornado of constant change. And that's putting it mildly. Whether you're pulling your hair out homeschooling your kids, bent over a laptop trying to work from your couch, or trying to figure out what dating looks like in the time of COVID, all of us are experiencing some feeling of mental spinning. Change... now adapt. Change... now adapt. And repeat.

When life brings this level of upheaval, it's going to bring stress. And that's normal. In fact, it would be pretty unusual for you NOT to feel stressed right now. Stress alone doesn't have to be a bad thing. But recognizing when you need a little help managing your stress is a good thing. Check out the image below to understand more about how too much stress can effect your mind, body, emotions and behavior.

Interested in learning how to manage your stress? Email Jennifer@louisvillemindfulnesscenter.com.

08/19/2020

Wow! I am so thankful to each and every person who has "liked" this page and supported my practice and The Louisville Mindfulness Center. This week, we reached 400 page likes! This means you've helped spread the good word of mindfulness, non-reactivity and healing from anxiety, depression, and life challenges to many people desperate for hope. Here's the thing, the BIG secret our mind often forgets: There is always hope, ALWAYS. Let's join together in continuing to share this message! Positive energy and peace your way

08/19/2020

Have you ever spent time with someone who views her or his self as the best human in the room? Maybe it was a friend, partner, boss, or coworker. How did it feel? How'd the conversation go? Did you enjoy it? Want to talk more to this person or less?

It's hard NOT to assume we don't own the truth. Our experiences shape us to believe and think certain things, sometimes passionately. It's hard for us NOT to see our version of reality as the right (or only) version of reality. BUT. While it may feel threatening, there's so much more freedom and opportunity in allowing others to "own truth" too. Think of it as trying on another's experiences, imagining how their life may have led them to their thoughts, fears, biases, dreams. Think of it as trying on humility.

When we get stuck in the idea that we own the truth, we constrict around that. People become "good" or "bad" as judged by our inner critic and we fight against them and their ideas from a place of self-protection. We are less apt to seek to understand them. Instead, we seek to protect our truth above all else because we believed a false rumor that doing that protects us. We hunker down, refuse feedback, and struggle to imagine that safety, security, AND multiple truths can coexist.

Instead of trying to be the best human in the room, what if we tried to be the best version of ourselves in the room, in our families, careers, and relationships? What if that was less about proving something and more about listening? What if the deepest strength is really found in compassion, empathy, and humility? How might we experience ourselves and life differently if we trust that?

To learn more about cultivating your own inner strength, email Jennifer@louisvillemindfulnesscenter.com.

Stay positive, stay moving, and stay healthy, friends.

08/08/2020

How we talk to our kids about the changes COVID-19 has brought? How do we help them express their feelings about going back to school, virtual learning, or missing interactions and time with their friends? How do we meet them where they are? The good news is so many strategies are at our fingertips. Here are a few tips for managing this time of change. To learn more about helping your kids flourish this school year, email Jennifer@louisvillemindfulnesscenter.com and schedule an appointment.

07/31/2020

I learn a lot from my 3-year-old niece. Last time she visited, she walked in and immediately said, "Do you have Popsicles?" When I said "no" (terrible aunt oversight), she looked at me point blank and said, "Well, you should get some."

Such directness. Such self-assurance. She asked for what she wanted. And while her attitude is typical of a 3-year-old, she made me wonder on a deeper level how we lose this directness, this wildness. When do we stop asking for what we need? What causes us to get all "polite" and quiet and afraid to say things like, "I need this. I want this. I miss this. I love this. I don't like this."

I think many of us stop making these requests as adults. We think staying quiet equates to "making things work" or "keeping the peace." But does it? Isn't there still a voice inside of us that has something important to say, something that might make life more authentic and real? Isn't there still a barrier created when you don't share those words?

How do we share our truth in a kind and direct way? How do we ask for what we need and hear others' requests for what they need? It's certainly not easy, but when we do it, when we begin to cross those bridges with ourselves and others, we find ourselves feeling closer, realer, and safer than we ever could have imagined. Be you. Be loving. Be wild.

07/11/2020

For a very long time, I thought my messy parts were unacceptable. I thought the "in process" version of me needed to be hidden in order to be loved and accepted. And so I hid, and watched many of those around me do the same.

I was presenting to the world the image of a final product instead of the messy, always-becoming work in progress that I am, that we ALL are. And that was not helpful. If anything, it was destructive and furthering a lie that being all of ourselves is somehow not okay.

Here's the truth (as I see it). The world NEEDS you to be messy because it gives others permission to be messy (read: real) too. When we stop pretending we have it all together all the time, we meet each other in actual reality, which is complicated, beautiful, good, bad, scary, exciting, and so much more. We grow together in ways false facades don't allow. Most importantly, we get real and know that we are loved precisely because of that realness.

To learn more about embracing your full self, contact Jennifer@louisvillemindfulnesscenter.com

07/06/2020

It seems to me like acceptance in general is hard. Accepting others for who they are. Accepting ourselves for who we are. Accepting situations for what they are. We have MANY ideas about how people and situations could be better. And while change and improvement is always available, we miss "what is" if we live in those expectations.

Here's my challenge to us: Take a deep breath. Look around. Take another one. Slow everything down. Sit in that moment. Don't push or pull or say "I'll be happy when a, b, or c changes..." just be here now in the stillness without judgement. This moment just is, for better or worse. And this moment, like all others, will pass and be part of a much larger story. And that story will be part of a much larger life that will be profoundly beautiful because it's uniquely yours.

Interested in learning more about mindfulness exercises? Email Jennifer@louisvillemindfulnesscenter.com