Today we’d like to introduce you to Dr. Alaina Puff.
Hi Dr. Alaina, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I began my journey to becoming a school psychologist nearly 10 years ago, with an overwhelming passion to help children reach their fullest potential in life. I’ve always been in devotion to making the world a better place and being in service to others. While this has remained largely unchanged, my story is an illustration of how pouring into yourself is absolutely necessary before you can serve others and here’s why…
As I progressed in my career as a school psychologist, I sought job changes, returning to school for my doctoral degree, and a cross-country move, as opportunities to address my dissatisfaction related to my job and burnout. However, with every change, I found that familiar sense of unfulfillment and exhaustion relentlessly followed me. On paper, I was a high-achieving and successful professional but internally I felt like a fraud.
In graduate school, the term ‘self-care’ is often thrown around as a reminder for students to take care of themselves given the excessive demands placed on them during this time. Unfortunately, such demands don’t end once you graduate. Being in a helping profession, you are constantly expected to pour from an empty cup, leaving little to no time for self-reflection or opportunities to heal.
Becoming more frustrated with my own professional journey, I recognized that I needed to turn inward and began working with my own therapist for support and guidance. In doing so, I found the traditional ‘talk therapy’ model that I had been trained on, simply did not work for me. I required something different. And through my own healing journey, I founded Flow State Arizona Coaching and Consulting, a holistic approach to wellness. Rather than focusing on what you’re struggling with, my distinguishable approach places emphasis on your inherent gifts and abilities to help create more balance and spaciousness in your life.
Flow State was founded on the principle of helping others harness their intuitive gifts to create a more regulated existence in this lifetime. In a world that is fixated on logic and reason, as I was for much of my life, I now believe the future is grounded in activating our inner knowing and guidance found within our bodies. By learning how to tap into our gifts, we can improve our physical/mental well-being and achieve our deepest desires.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
By choosing the road less traveled in my career, there has been many challenges. I have always considered myself a disruptor, yet with everything shift in my life, I was required to adapt. The most notable challenge came recently when I decided to own and operate my business under a coaching container rather than a traditional private practice. I elected to do this because as an Intuitive Coach, I have the discretion to utilize a variety of modalities to meet my clients’ needs, rather than reducing them down to diagnosis or scripted treatment plan. This transition has been another shedding of my own personal identity and with that, comes elements of grief and loss. I intend to keep pushing up against the status quo in the mental health industry for the betterment of my clients and collectively for our society and world.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
It’s important to note that I’m not your average therapist.
At Flow State, I provide distinguishable services to children, adults, and families. Rather than focusing on your current challenges, I aim to identify your inherent gifts, abilities, and strengths. In doing so, I create an individualized roadmap to draw on those gifts all to help you feel better and gain clarity. I’ve worked with clients on restoring their nervous system, processing past traumas, healing their relationships, and much more, all by way of connecting with their intuitive knowing. At Flow State, I believe the answers are all already inside of you – I’m here to help you uncover them!
What do you like best about our city? What do you like least?
My favorite part about Phoenix is that you’ll never run out of things to do. There are so many fantastic neighborhoods and areas to explore across the valley. I also appreciate the amazing community events around the city. When I moved here a few years ago, I didn’t know anyone. However, as I began to put myself out there, everyone was incredibly kind and friendly to me. As for my least favorite part, it would definitely be the heat in the summers and traffic!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.flowstateaz.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/flowstateaz/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61551044495228
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alaina-puff-ph-d-ncsp-1a1727103/
- Other: https://open.spotify.com/show/7IWeGUfCkhNxJdqHJz3HN3?si=0a4538b7650e4fd6
