Blooming Prairie Psychology- Sara Kenney,PsyD

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In cognitive behavioral therapy, thoughts, emotions, and behaviors are addressed. I often have conversations about lone...
06/23/2026

In cognitive behavioral therapy, thoughts, emotions, and behaviors are addressed. I often have conversations about loneliness with patients, so this is interesting research to read.

Reminder that tomorrow is the monthly chronic pain & chronic illness support group. All are welcome, even if you've nev...
06/22/2026

Reminder that tomorrow is the monthly chronic pain & chronic illness support group. All are welcome, even if you've never been a patient here. It's free and open to anyone. Tuesday, June 23rd at 1pm at Blooming Prairie Psychology's conference room.
4521 Ottawa Street Suite 209.
No time to eat before you come? That's ok! Food and drink are totally fine! Body too sore and tired to come in person? That's ok too! Join by zoom. Keep your camera off if you need to. Whatever works for you!

You can also join by zoom

Sara Kenney is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Topic: Chronic Illness & Chronic Pain Zoom Meeting (4th TUESDAY of Month)
Time: Jun 23, 2026 01:00 PM Central Time (US and Canada)
Every month on the Fourth Tue, until Mar 27, 2029, 34 occurrence(s)
Please download and import the following iCalendar (.ics) files to your calendar system.
Monthly: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/tZwsfuyvqDspEtfzusrRY_f1h3T94Q8lixXh/ics?icsToken=DHPGUMn4gzD_oVXBiwAALAAAAMdwS7YD9vxCnOKqQLbTq3X1qQWKIdVl1t-XYEzHwZ4iDkUmMwZpEoA0XIqeG9aSSJB8yuz45oJyAertEjAwMDAwMQ&meetingMasterEventId=xT4pMnSFQdOvv0nGz-puwA
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/88195760383?pwd=JvqdCbyS2aSx6byaZoXhS2gvlas6on.1

Meeting ID: 881 9576 0383
Passcode: 252660

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Join by SIP
• [email protected]

Join instructions
https://us06web.zoom.us/meetings/88195760383/invitations?signature=huvLQ05twJyH7QUoLMmz7fQUGdKFNxuHNfNcV315Pr4

Father's Day looks different for everyone. ❤️Today, we celebrate the fathers, stepfathers, grandfathers, foster fathers,...
06/21/2026

Father's Day looks different for everyone. ❤️

Today, we celebrate the fathers, stepfathers, grandfathers, foster fathers, adoptive fathers, and father figures who have shown up with love, guidance, and support. Thank you for the ways you've helped shape lives, often in quiet moments that mattered more than you'll ever know.

But today can also be incredibly hard.

💙 To those missing a father.
💙 To those grieving a child.
💙 To those with complicated or painful relationships with their father.
💙 To those who longed for a father they never had.
💙 To the single parents carrying both roles.
💙 To those navigating infertility, loss, or dreams of parenthood that haven't unfolded as hoped.
💙 To the fathers who are doing their best while carrying invisible burdens.

Wherever you find yourself today, your experience is valid.

As a psychologist, one of the things I see most often is that healing doesn't require pretending everything is okay. We can hold gratitude and grief. Joy and sadness. Love and loss. They can exist together.

So today, celebrate if you can.
Rest if you need to.
Remember if you must.
And be gentle with yourself, wherever this day finds you.

Happy Father's Day to all those who need to hear it, and compassion to those for whom today feels heavy. ❤️

✨ If you've ever been told "everything looks normal"... this workshop is for you. ✨Your pain and your experience is 100%...
06/20/2026

✨ If you've ever been told "everything looks normal"... this workshop is for you. ✨

Your pain and your experience is 100% real. Dr. Kenney is not just a psychologist working with chronic pain, she is also a chronic pain patient and mom, cousin, and aunt to people living with EDS/HSD. She has walked this journey as well.

Have you ever...
💜 Been told your pain is "just stress"?
💜 Wondered why your body hurts in ways no one can explain?
💜 Felt like you have to become your own medical researcher?
💜 Been exhausted from trying to convince people that you're not lazy... you're hurting?

Living with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS) or Hypermobility Spectrum Disorder (HSD) isn't just about joints.

It's navigating chronic pain.
It's medical trauma.
It's grief for the life you expected.
It's learning how to calm a nervous system that's been in survival mode for years.
It's finding people who finally get it.

That's exactly why we're hosting this workshop.

This won't be another lecture filled with medical jargon.

Instead, we'll talk about:
🦓 Understanding pain and the nervous system
🦓 Practical strategies that actually help
🦓 Mental health and the emotional impact of chronic illness
🦓 Pacing without giving up your life
🦓 Building hope while living with a body that doesn't always cooperate
🦓 Connecting with others who understand

Whether you're newly diagnosed, still searching for answers, or have been living with EDS for years, you belong here.

💜 You don't have to figure this out alone.

👇 Know someone with EDS, HSD, POTS, MCAS, chronic pain, or unexplained hypermobility?
Please share this post or tag them below. You never know who might be looking for a community that understands.

🦓 Registration information is in the comments! No one will be turned away for inability to pay. Sponsorships available. Want to sponsor someone else? Let us know and we'd love to pay it forward!

06/20/2026

Let’s talk about grief and chronic illness or chronic pain. It seems to be coming up a lot in sessions lately, and I’ve dealt with it myself recently.

When people think of grief, they often think of death.

But chronic pain & illness comes with its own kind of grief.

You grieve the body you used to have.
The plans you had to cancel.
The hobbies you can no longer enjoy the same way.
The career that changed.
The friendships that faded because you couldn’t keep up.
The version of yourself that felt carefree.

Sometimes you even grieve the future you imagined.

The hardest part? Much of this grief is invisible. There is no funeral. No casseroles. No sympathy cards. The world expects you to keep going while carrying losses that happen little by little, every day.

And because these losses are ongoing, the grief doesn’t simply “move through.” It can resurface every time pain flares, every new limitation appears, or every time you compare yourself to who you used to be.

This grief is real.

Acknowledging it isn’t “giving up.” It’s making space for your experience instead of fighting against it.

Healing doesn’t always mean getting your old life back. Sometimes healing begins when we stop measuring ourselves against the past and start creating a meaningful life with the body we have today.

Your life may look different than you imagined.

Different doesn’t mean it can’t still be beautiful.

🌸 If you’re living with chronic pain, be gentle with yourself. You’re not just managing symptoms, you’re navigating loss, resilience, and learning who you are in the midst of it all.

What has been one of hardest things for you?

Dr. Sara Kenney, PsyD
Blooming Prairie Psychology

06/18/2026

We all carry some guilt around with us to some extent. If you feel it is a problem or weighing you down, consider coming out to visit with the author of this brand-new book.

Please share info about this wonderful community event, hosted in the CDHS Bavendick Shelter Community Room.

June 25 ~ 7-9 pm

June is PTSD Awareness Month 💚Trauma doesn't always look the way people expect.It isn't only what happened to you. It's ...
06/18/2026

June is PTSD Awareness Month 💚

Trauma doesn't always look the way people expect.

It isn't only what happened to you. It's what happened inside your nervous system as a result of what happened.

PTSD can develop after a single traumatic event or repeated experiences of feeling unsafe. It can show up as:

Feeling constantly on edge
Nightmares or intrusive memories
Avoiding reminders of what happened
Feeling emotionally numb or disconnected
Difficulty trusting others

Trauma doesn't just affect our emotions; it can also impact our bodies. Chronic pain, muscle tension, digestive symptoms, fatigue, and a constantly activated nervous system can all be connected to unresolved trauma. EMDR can be an effective part of helping both mind and body.

The good news? Healing is possible.

One evidence-based treatment I offer is EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing).

Despite the name, EMDR is much more than moving your eyes. It helps the brain process experiences that became "stuck," allowing traumatic memories to become less overwhelming. You don't forget what happened—but it no longer feels like you're reliving it.

Many people are surprised that they don't have to spend years repeatedly talking through every detail of their trauma to find relief.

Whether your trauma stems from childhood experiences, abuse, accidents, medical trauma, grief, or other life events, you deserve support.

Healing doesn't erase your story—it helps your nervous system recognize that the danger is over.

💚 If trauma continues to affect your daily life, reaching out for help is a sign of strength, not weakness.

Dr. Sara Kenney, PsyD
Blooming Prairie Psychology
EMDR • CBT • ACT • Pain Psychology • Trauma Therapy
In-person in Bismarck & Telehealth (ND & all Psypact States)

The Prairie Rose Doesn’t Question Whether It’s Beautiful EnoughThe prairie rose doesn’t wake up wondering if it’s worthy...
06/14/2026

The Prairie Rose Doesn’t Question Whether It’s Beautiful Enough

The prairie rose doesn’t wake up wondering if it’s worthy of blooming.

It doesn’t compare itself to the wildflowers around it. It doesn’t wait until it’s perfect. It doesn’t hold back because it fears judgment.

It simply grows toward the light and blooms when the conditions allow.

As humans, we often do the opposite.

Many of us spend so much energy bracing for what might go wrong. We spend time worrying about being enough, being accepted, making mistakes, or getting hurt. Our nervous systems become skilled at scanning for danger. While this threat response is designed to protect us, living in a constant state of vigilance can come at a cost.

When our brains perceive threat, our bodies respond. Muscles tighten. Breathing becomes shallow. Pain can feel louder. Fatigue increases. Healing and restoration often take a back seat to survival.

The goal isn’t to eliminate fear completely. Fear is a normal and important part of being human. We also don’t want to eliminate all physical pain. Pain is meant to keep us safe. But sometimes, we get “too good” at feeling fear and pain.

The goal is to help our nervous systems recognize when we are safe enough to soften our grip on fear. This can also allow our brain to turn down the volume on pain.

To trust ourselves a little more.

To stop waiting until we’re perfect, healed, certain, or fearless before we allow ourselves to fully live.

Like wildflowers, we don’t bloom because we’ve earned it.

We bloom because growth is our nature.

And sometimes the most healing thing we can do is stop asking whether we’re worthy of taking up space and simply allow ourselves to unfold.

🌸

What might bloom in your life if you spent a little less energy protecting yourself from every possible threat and a little more energy trusting your capacity to grow?

🌸The Resilience of the Prairie Rose 🌸I have recently been thinking about how I opened Blooming Prairie Assessment & Ther...
06/14/2026

🌸The Resilience of the Prairie Rose 🌸

I have recently been thinking about how I opened Blooming Prairie Assessment & Therapy Center in Devils Lake nineteen years ago next month! I honestly can’t remember how I settled on the name, but the first iterations of my logo was a prairie rose, and that was purposeful.

The prairie rose is North Dakota’s state flower, and it seems fitting that it thrives in some of the harshest conditions. It withstands scorching summer heat, fierce winds, drought, storms, and long winters. It doesn’t grow because conditions are easy; it grows because it adapts, persists, and keeps reaching for the sun. I love seeing them on the side of the gravel road near my home.

People are often much the same.

Many of us carry challenges that others never see: chronic illness, pain, grief, anxiety, caregiving responsibilities, setbacks, disappointments, or simply the daily weight of life. Resilience doesn’t mean never struggling. It doesn’t mean always being strong or positive. Like the prairie rose, resilience is continuing to grow despite difficult conditions.

Some seasons are spent blooming. Others are spent putting down deeper roots.

If you’re in a season that feels difficult right now, remember that growth isn’t always visible. Surviving a hard day, asking for help, resting when needed, or taking one small step forward can all be acts of resilience.

The prairie rose reminds us that beauty and strength often grow side by side—and sometimes the most remarkable growth happens in places others least expect.

🌸 Be gentle with yourself. Keep growing. The prairie knows how.

Does anyone else...?Hurt more than doctors expect?Feel exhausted even after sleeping?Wonder if it's anxiety, ADHD, autis...
06/13/2026

Does anyone else...?

Hurt more than doctors expect?
Feel exhausted even after sleeping?
Wonder if it's anxiety, ADHD, autism, trauma... or all of the above?
Feel like nobody prepared you for the emotional side of EDS?

You're not alone.

Living with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome or Hypermobility Spectrum Disorder affects far more than joints. It can impact pain, sleep, mood, attention, relationships, self-esteem, and even how safe you feel in healthcare settings.

Join me for a 4-week online workshop where we'll explore the science of pain, the emotional realities of chronic illness, and practical tools to help you build a life that feels bigger than your symptoms.

📅 Monday Nights 7pm CST
🖥 Online
💜 Open to adolescents and adults with EDS/HSD and those who suspect they may be hypermobile. Family members or others who want to better understand someone living with EDS/HSD also welcome.
Recording available to attendees for 30 days following workshop ending.

Fee is $10 per week or $35 for all four weeks.
Nobody will be turned away due to financial barriers. Contact us if needed.

Register at https://forms.gle/6DZn14XFdHFrXZCn6

Address

Bismarck, ND

Telephone

(701)2028651

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