Open Arms Counseling, LLC

07/04/2026

Happy 4th of July everyone!!!🇺🇸🇺🇸

07/02/2026

June is Men’s Health Month, a time to recognize the importance of men’s overall well-being.

Too often, conversations about men’s health focus only on physical fitness, while mental health is left out of the discussion. Open conversations about mental well-being can help reduce stigma and remind men that seeking support is a sign of strength, not weakness.

This month, ADAMH encourages men to prioritize their mental health, check in with themselves and one another, and remember that simply talking about how they're doing can make a meaningful difference.

06/09/2026

Check out this first video of ASK ANN. Just a first time thing... so please be kind :)

Welcome to the first episode of ASK ANN! 🎉In this new series, Ann...

06/03/2026

03/28/2026

"I had become fluent in the language of obstruction: I could narrate every closed door, every wrong timing, every force that had ever worked against me. But I had no language for the times life had undoubtedly conspired in my favor.

In all sincerity, I hadn’t even been paying attention to those. Or worse — I had noticed them but I immediately blocked myself from fully receiving my blessings by looking for the catch. As in, “This is great… but what’s the catch?”

I’ve now since learned to have more compassion and patience for myself because a nervous system that grew up constantly bracing for trouble doesn’t immediately know what to do with unexpected goodness. It doesn’t trust it. It waits for it to be taken away.

But what if, without my say on the matter, there are times when I am also being held and supported by forces outside of my own control?

That’s what I mean when I say learn to trust in what you don’t know. To give yourself the opportunity to be held and supported by forces outside of your control.

That sometimes 's**t happens' — but grace happens too."

—Jovanny Varela, excerpt from Gentle Reminder No 130: "On trust and the unknown and what happens when your body finally learns that it's safe to be held & supported"

If you're currently facing the edge of your comfort zone and you genuinely have no clue what’s on the other side of a decision you're about to make, I wrote this one for you ❤️🫂

Read the full piece: jovannyvarela.substack.com

Whit love,
Jovanny

Artwork by Elijah Jambalaya

03/28/2026

we might lose our footing for a while but even the strongest of waves don't last for too long 🤿

03/05/2026

catch me living in the present!!

01/31/2026

12/26/2025

Holding our communities close this holiday season ❤️