Ashlee Flood LMHC CCPT

10/25/2025

10/24/2025

The 4-4-8 Breath Reset 🌬️

Our bodies can’t tell the difference between a real threat and a mental one.
That’s why stress, overthinking, and even an overflowing inbox can make your heart race like you’re in danger.

When that happens, we don’t need to “think our way out.”
We need to remind the body: You’re safe.

Here’s one of my favorite grounding tools 👇

This simple pattern slows the heart rate, regulates the nervous system, and helps you come back to now.

✨ Try it right now then tell me in one word how you feel.

10/23/2025

Are You Resting… or Just Distracting Yourself? 💭

It’s easy to confuse the two especially when life feels nonstop.

Distraction can look like rest:
📱 scrolling “just for a minute”
📺 watching one more episode to numb out
🍷 unwinding with something that helps you avoid feeling

But real rest is different.
It asks you to slow down not escape.
It helps your mind and body soften, not shut down.

When we distract, we disconnect.
When we rest, we reconnect.

If you’re not sure which one you’re doing, pause and ask yourself:
“Do I feel more present after this, or more numb?”

✨ Choose one small moment today that brings real rest not just relief.

10/22/2025

Overthinking vs. Processing 🧠

They can look similar from the outside —
you’re quiet, reflective, replaying moments in your head.

But inside, they feel completely different.

Both start in the mind but only one helps you return to yourself with clarity and compassion.

✨ The next time your thoughts start spiraling, pause and ask:
“Am I processing… or am I punishing myself?

10/21/2025

One Way I’m Protecting My Mental Health Lately 💭

Lately, I’ve noticed my days getting fuller and my patience getting thinner.
Between work, family schedules, and the general noise of life; it’s easy to forget what I need until I’m running on empty.

So I’ve been protecting my mental health in one simple way:
by creating small, quiet pockets of nothing.

No phone.
No music.
No multitasking.
Just five minutes of breathing, noticing, and letting my shoulders drop.

It doesn’t fix everything but it creates space for me to show up with more intention.

Because mental health isn’t always about big changes.
Sometimes, it’s just about giving yourself permission to pause.

💬 How are you protecting your mental health lately? I’d love to hear it might inspire someone else.

10/20/2025

10/19/2025

Sunday Slow Down 🕯️

Rest doesn’t always look like bubble baths or unplugged weekends (though those are nice).
Sometimes, real rest looks like:
• catching up on laundry in silence,
• saying no without guilt,
• watching your kids play and letting the to-do list wait,
• sitting in the car for two extra minutes before walking inside.

Rest isn’t always beautiful — but it’s still sacred.
It’s the pause that lets you come back to yourself before another full week begins.

Today, I’m chose quiet presence over perfection. It was a slow start to the day.

What kind of rest were you craving today?

💬 Share in one word below — calm, cozy, still, needed, overdue… whatever fits.

10/15/2025

Name one word to describe your week.

Not a full story.
Not a list of everything that happened.
Just… a word.

Sometimes one word is all it takes to check in with ourselves to pause long enough to notice what’s really here.

For me, this week’s word would be: Tender.
It doesn’t have to be pretty or profound just honest.

💬 Drop your word in the comments.
Let’s make space for reflection, without judgment, together.

10/13/2025

Today isn’t quite what I hoped it would be. I had pictured a day full of family fall fun; cozy sweaters, pumpkins, maybe some cider and laughter. Instead, I’m at home with a cold, feeling a little disappointed and just focusing on rest.

I’m trying to listen to my body and give myself grace, even when it’s not the day I wanted.

If you have a glimmer (something small that’s bringing you joy, hope, or warmth today) I’d love if you shared it here. I could use a few bright spots in my feed while I rest and recharge. 🍂💛

10/09/2025

Dear friend,

If you’ve been feeling stretched thin lately, please know you’re not alone.

There are quiet places out there waiting to offer you care, even when it’s hard to ask for it.

Here are three free mental health resources I often share with my clients and community:

💬 988 Crisis Lifeline – Always open, always free.

💻 Mental Health America – mhanational.org for free screenings + practical tools.

🕊️ Insight Timer App – A peaceful space to breathe, pause, and reset.

You deserve support that meets you where you are: no barriers, no judgment, just understanding.

🌱 If one of these helps even a little, that’s a beautiful place to begin.

With care,

Ashlee

Mental Health America is the nation’s leading national nonprofit dedicated to the promotion of mental health, well-being, and condition prevention.

10/08/2025

✨ The Power of a Single Conversation

Sometimes, healing doesn’t begin with a grand gesture…it starts with a single, honest conversation.

One moment of courage.
One space where someone really listens.
One sentence that reminds you: You’re not alone.

I’ve seen it happen so many times; someone walks into a session feeling like everything is too heavy… and through one grounded, safe conversation, something shifts.

It’s not that everything is suddenly “fixed.”
But hope returns.
And with it, the reminder that change begins one step, one word, one breath at a time. 🌱

💭 Maybe today, that conversation looks like reaching out to a friend.
Maybe it’s asking for help.
Or maybe it’s simply being honest with yourself.

✨ Either way, that one step matters.

💬 What’s one conversation that’s changed something for you?