Life and Work with Rachelle Friedman

Today we’d like to introduce you to Rachelle Friedman.

So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I started as a psychology major at ASU. I fell in love with psychology, human behavior, and how our brains work. I began to learn about how our minds functioned in relationships and found it all utterly fascinating. After I graduated with my bachelor’s degree, I decided to go and get my MSW. I had considered going and earning a Ph.D., however, I had medical issues that came up, and this caused me to stop and think about what my needs were going to look like throughout my life. While I was getting my MSW, I was trained in EMDR therapy. I was incredibly lucky and had this opportunity while I was still a student to attend the training and learn to use this fantastic technique. I fell in love with EMDR because you can really see how quickly it works (compared with other modalities), and I was able to comprehend how it functions in our brain and what mechanisms that were used to accelerate healing. I started out working with addiction, and I loved it! I loved the clients and I loved helping the patient understand their brains and how addiction works. I am incredibly passionate and have found it to be an honor to be an observer to their healing. After that, I decided that I wanted to work with chronic pain and chronic illness because it is something that I have seen affect my life, and other people’s lives in such a significant way. When I first started struggling with my health, I couldn’t find a therapist that specialized in health conditions and that was incredibly difficult. I wanted to be a therapist that could hold the space for somebody so that they could grieve the body that they imagined that they would have had without their medical conditions. I wanted to help people recognize that they are incredibly strong in learning to live in a sick body.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
It has definitely not been a smooth road. When you live with chronic health conditions, you learn that nothing goes as planned. I had to grieve the body that I wanted, that I thought that I would have. I think that’s an incredibly important component for anybody living in a body that they didn’t expect to have, we have to grieve. My advice for other women is to advocate for yourself. Make sure that you express yourself clearly, and know what goals you’re trying to meet in any meeting. I don’t know that anyone truly has a “smooth road,” but I do feel like this is a road that I have been happy to explore.

Please tell us more about your work, what you are currently focused on and most proud of.
I am a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and I do EMDR (eye movement desensitization and reprocessing) therapy, as well as EFT (emotion-focused therapy), and I use other mindfulness-based approaches to help my patients learn to grieve their bodies. There are sessions where I use my dog, Ben, he has been trained as a therapy dog, and he is incredibly helpful for people. He also seems to enjoy being with others, when he gets ready for work he is really happy. I also help people struggling with addiction learn to manage their addiction. There are usually traumatic events that “hold hands” with these different life events. I am most proud of the fact that I have been able to be an observer to some truly amazing people in their healing journey. I don’t know that we are ever truly “healed” from the trauma of living chronically ill or in pain but I am proud to be a part of that journey. I think that what sets me apart, is that I have been on that journey. I live in chronic pain. I know what it is like to know that the pain is not going to “just go away.” I also have the background to understand how the brain is working in therapy and to understand how our brains can heal.

Who have you been inspired by?
My Grandma is a huge inspiration to me. She was able to start a business of her own back when women did not do that sort of thing. She was able to make something out of nothing back in the ’40s. Whenever I doubt myself, I try to remind myself that I am her Grandaughter and even though I have some physical limitations, I can still be a powerhouse, just like her.

Contact Info:

• Address: 1600 W. Chandler Blvd.
  Suite 220
  Chandler, AZ 85224
• Website: brainysocialworker.com
• Phone: 480-568-2543
• Email: rachelle@brainysocialworker.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brainysocialworker/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/brainysocialworker/
• Other: https://www.pinterest.com/brainysocialworker/?eq=brainy%20social%20worker&etslf=1329

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