Abbie Ames Counseling LLC

Abbie Ames Counseling LLC EMDR therapy for women and moms in Columbus and across Ohio.

If your nervous system feels fried, try something surprisingly simple...And no, it's not another tool, or another mindse...
05/29/2026

If your nervous system feels fried, try something surprisingly simple...

And no, it's not another tool, or another mindset shift.

🤔 It's something familiar.

A nostalgic reset is going back to something that once felt safe, light, or easy.

Before everything started feeling so heavy.

It might be:
→ A comfort show you’ve seen a hundred times.
→ Music you had on repeat in a different season of life.
→ A snack, smell, or routine that instantly feels familiar.
→ Even something like coloring, gaming, or a childhood hobby you forgot you loved.

It's grounding, because your brain recognizes it faster than it can analyze it.

You’re giving your system something it already knows how to settle into.

❤️ What’s something from your childhood you still love?

*All information on this account is for educational and entertainment purposes only. It is not clinical advice or a replacement for mental health care or therapy."

05/27/2026

Crying because one day I won’t randomly find a stuffed Luigi riding shotgun. 😭

Or Batman Legos in places they definitely don't belong.

Right now, it feels like clutter, like one more thing to pick up.

But it’s also evidence of a life that’s very full.

Of imaginations that don’t stay in one room, of little hands that carry their favorite things everywhere, of a season that’s loud, messy, and constantly in motion.

🥹 And one day it won’t be, at least not in the same way.

Which is a weird kind of heartbreak no one really prepares you for. ❤️

*All information on this account is for educational and entertainment purposes only. It is not clinical advice or a replacement for mental health care or therapy.

Grief has a way of moving in waves.Some days it sits quietly in the background… And other days it rises without warning,...
05/25/2026

Grief has a way of moving in waves.

Some days it sits quietly in the background…

And other days it rises without warning, especially on days like today.

You don’t have to make meaning out of everything you feel.

You don’t have to force perspective, gratitude, or closure.

🫶 Just letting it be here, without pushing it away, can be enough.

If today feels heavy, you don’t have to carry it quietly.

❤️ And if you feel called to, you’re welcome to share their name in the comments as a way to honor them.

*All information on this account is for educational and entertainment purposes only. It is not clinical advice or a replacement for mental health care or therapy."

That immediate guilt you feel after you set a boundary can feel loud and convincing.But believe it or not, it’s not a si...
05/22/2026

That immediate guilt you feel after you set a boundary can feel loud and convincing.

But believe it or not, it’s not a sign you made the wrong choice. 🤯

It’s actually your nervous system reacting to the possibility of disconnection.

If you were conditioned to keep connection by accommodating others, your system learned that “no” can feel unsafe, even when it’s healthy.

In the moment after you set a boundary, try this:
→ Pause before you respond to the guilt.
→ Name it: “This is guilt, not danger.”
→ Bring your attention back to your body (slow exhale, hand on chest, feet on the ground).

Instead of immediately fixing the discomfort by taking the boundary back, you start teaching your system that you can feel this and stay here anyway.

💪 And over time, that reaction gets quieter.

If you’re realizing this isn’t just “bad boundaries” but a deeper nervous system pattern, this is exactly the kind of work we do in EMDR therapy.

✨ More info is in the link in my bio.

*All information on this account is for educational and entertainment purposes only. It is not clinical advice or a replacement for mental health care or therapy."

05/20/2026

Anyone else traumatized by this scene from Final Destination 2, every single time they get behind the wheel?
(please tell me it's not just me 😅)
.. You’re just driving, nothing’s wrong, and then out of nowhere your brain is like: “but what if.”

Cue the full-body tension, the quick mental image, and the split-second dread like it’s already happening.

And then just as fast… you’re back. 😮‍💨

It might feel random (or even a little ridiculous), but this is actually a really common anxiety pattern. Especially if you tend to carry a lot of responsibility, or your nervous system is used to staying a little on edge.

So no… you’re not “crazy” for having those thoughts pop in. It’s just your brain doing its job a little too well. 🫠

*All information on this account is for educational and entertainment purposes only. It is not clinical advice or a replacement for mental health care or therapy.

Sometimes you know exactly why you feel the way you do… and you still don’t feel different. 😭A lot of the healing people...
05/18/2026

Sometimes you know exactly why you feel the way you do… and you still don’t feel different. 😭

A lot of the healing people describe after EMDR therapy or intensives isn’t “new information”.

It’s their body no longer reacting like the past is still happening.

EMDR therapy and other trauma-focused approaches help the brain and body actually reprocess stored experiences, not just understand them intellectually.

So instead of staying in the loop of “I get it, but nothing changes”...

People often start noticing: “I feel lighter… calmer… like it’s no longer gripping me the same way.”

Save this if you’ve been starting to wonder whether understanding it has been enough on its own.

05/15/2026

Sometimes what looks “irrational” on the surface actually makes a lot of sense underneath.

Spending money you didn’t plan to, numbing out, avoiding, overdoing, shutting down, or repeating the same thing even when you know better. 😮‍💨

Your brain is trying to cope the best way it knows how, especially if something in that moment feels overwhelming, heavy, or familiar in a deeper way.

So it reaches for something that brings relief, distraction, or control… even if it doesn’t make sense later.

🤯 That’s why talking about it can only take you so far.

You don’t just need more insight.
Your brain + body just need to actually process what’s underneath the pattern.

EMDR therapy helps uncover what's underneath.

Instead of just understanding the behavior, we start to shift the 'why it keeps happening' part.
So you’re not stuck in the same loops, wondering why nothing is shifting.

If you’ve done years of talking and still feel like nothing’s actually changing… let’s do something different.
🔗 Link in bio to learn more.

*All information on this account is for educational and entertainment purposes only. It is not clinical advice or a replacement for mental health care or therapy.

😅This will either make you love me or hate me as a therapist…→ I’m going to gently ask if what you’re doing is actually ...
05/13/2026

😅This will either make you love me or hate me as a therapist…

→ I’m going to gently ask if what you’re doing is actually working for you.
→ I might point out patterns you didn’t realize were there.
→ I’ll notice when your inner voice is being really harsh and call that out.
→ I’m human in the room (yes, iced coffee included), not a brick wall.
→ And I will challenge you… but in a way that still feels safe.

So yeah… it’s not everyone’s style. 🤣

But here’s the thing, it’s not about being “direct” for the sake of it.

Real healing usually means doing something different, and that often requires stepping outside of what feels familiar.

Patterns don’t change by just talking around them.

They change when we can actually see them clearly and do something different in real time.

And I’m not asking you to go somewhere I haven’t been myself.

I’ve done this work too… on the other side of the chair.

So I know how uncomfortable, vulnerable, and also how life-changing it can be.

Which is why my goal isn’t to just make you feel better in the moment...

It’s to help you actually experience something different.

😅 Be honest… did this make you feel relieved or slightly called out?

*All information on this account is for educational and entertainment purposes only. It is not clinical advice or a replacement for mental health care or therapy.

05/11/2026

You’ve done the talking, you understand your patterns, you can explain where it all comes from...

And somehow… you’re still reacting the same way. 😤

That’s the frustrating part.

But... it’s usually because you’ve been working at the insight level, NOT the processing level. 🤯

Your brain understands what happened, but your nervous system is still responding like it’s happening.

It still feels the same, so the patterns keep showing up.

➡️This is where EMDR therapy comes in.

We’re not just talking about your experiences. We’re helping your brain actually process what it hasn’t been able to let go of.

So instead of just understanding your triggers, they start to lose their intensity, and things don’t hit the same way they used to. 🥹

If you’ve been feeling like you’ve “tried everything”, this might be the missing piece.

👩‍💻 Link in bio to learn more about EMDR therapy.

*All information on this account is for educational and entertainment purposes only. It is not clinical advice or a replacement for mental health care or therapy.

Millennial moms, you’re holding a lot that no one really sees. 😮‍💨You’re the default for everything… all the time.You’re...
05/08/2026

Millennial moms, you’re holding a lot that no one really sees. 😮‍💨

You’re the default for everything… all the time.

You’re trying to be present and patient, but somehow you’re still questioning if you’re the problem.

It’s a heavy place to live.

And it’s not because you’re doing anything wrong.

It’s what happens when you’ve been carrying more than you were ever meant to carry… for a long time.

With Mother’s Day coming up, there’s a lot of pressure to feel grateful and happy.

And you might be…

But that doesn’t cancel out the mental load, the exhaustion, or everything your body is holding underneath it.

Both can exist at the same time. 🥹

Which is why self-care isn’t just about squeezing in a break when you can.

It’s about actually feeling supported in the life you’re living, not just temporarily escaping it.

✨ Therapy counts as self-care too.

*All information on this account is for educational and entertainment purposes only. It is not clinical advice or a replacement for mental health care or therapy."

Address

951 High Street Suite 202
Worthington, OH
43085

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