Danielle Levanas, Relationship Coach and Drama Therapist

06/01/2026

We grew up together. Our moms were best friends. And even when our families moved apart, we got together every New Year’s Eve. And so decades and 7 kids later, we moved heaven and earth to make it happen again.

1) Choose a location semi-equidistant to everyone
2) No partners allowed (this time)
3) Bring your “easiest” child (debatable in my case but one is much easier than two!)
4) Sweatpants only (not everyone followed this rule)

Here’s to a new tradition: the annual weekend after Memorial Day weekend 🤣❤️

05/27/2026

🩶🩶🩶

05/26/2026

“I’d like to say that letting my hair go gray was an intentional choice, an act of defiance, an external manifestation of my grief, but it was also an act of practical laziness. By the time we had finished with the funeral and the logistics of my mom’s death, the pandemic had begun and my hair salon closed. But I also didn’t go looking for a new one.”

No one’s relationship with their parents is perfect, but I’m realizing that there are certain things I took for granted along the way. We talk a lot about generational trauma in my field, but we neglect to acknowledge and explore different kinds of generational resources, resiliency, and wealth. Read more on my Substack. Link in bio.

03/23/2026

I see one of my roles right now - as a parent of young kids, as a white woman, as a trauma-informed therapist, as an American citizen - to model for my kids that in the face of fascism, fear and anxiety, we can be brave.

Is participating in a peaceful protest going to change things right away? Nope. But I am playing the long game here. My hope is that we all will. I bring my kids to protests because this is a key step in preparing them for the future, whatever it is. We will honor the American right for peaceful protest and freedom of speech and SHOW UP.

Is it more stressful with kids? Sometimes. Do they love it? Not always. Do I love it? In theory. Will I make different choices because I know I’m looking out for them? Definitely. No bottle necks, stay on the periphery, stick with other people caring for kids, maybe cut it short if things feel off. But I’ve never felt unsafe in any large organized daytime protest so far. (I called it quits a couple times when I brought the kids to a smaller gathering that was more about agitation than solidarity in numbers. I have respect for those types of protests too but not with my kids and not in this season of my life.)

I share this because on this Saturday March 28th we have the 3rd NO KINGS nationwide protest. If you are considering bringing your kids, I encourage you to do so! Find the smaller protests if you want, but show up. Make the signs with the kids. Ask them what they want to say. Help them feel seen and heard and proud of their contribution. Strangers are so welcoming at these rallies! Help them feel like they can be a part of something bigger than themselves and that their voice matters.

We’ll be at City Hall Downtown Los Angeles at 2pm on Saturday March 28. Hope to see you there 🫶😘❤️‍🩹

12/06/2025

Exploring the “suffering around the suffering” and how we can shift our experience slightly, even when deeply stuck. This has come up with multiple clients and friends this week. Accepting what we cannot change and finding pockets of agency can deeply shift our experience of the here and now. Not anything new, but a helpful reframe.

11/27/2025

Me in New Mexico, as seen through the eyes of my 8 year old. Gratitude feels so elusive in moments of chaos, but bountiful in times of stillness or loss. Ever holding the contradictions. I aim to find the space for gratitude today and every day. Love to you and yours ❣️

10/29/2025

As we enter into the season of darkening days, it might be hard not to let any latent anger, sadness, comparison, or grief overwhelm. And yet, there is deep beauty and satisfaction in the being enveloped by the dark when we are not fighting with ourself. Rituals bring meaning. They allow for us to be intentional around moments that would otherwise pass by in a haze of anxiety or hustle or distraction. Community rituals connect us to the fact that we are not alone. Descanso Gardens creates an ofrenda each year in the Mexican tradition for Dia de Los Mu***os. My family and I wrote the names of family members who have passed, then read so many other names and messages from others who have done the same. We are connected in a web not only of the happy times, but also in sorrow and pain. We can externalize our inner monuments and elevate them through community action and sharing.

10/01/2025

I have been lucky to be a part of Walking the Beat, a devised theater process at under the leadership of Theo Perkins and Elizabeth Youth Theater Project, for the past 5 years. Tonight we saw the final performance of this year’s cast of teens and police officers who collaborated on a deeply moving piece about Democracy. Didn’t think I’d be feeling such hope at this stage in 2025, but damn this ensemble represents everything good in our world! Through community, not through uniformity of ideas or beliefs, we can find our way out of the mess we are in. Keep meeting in person, folx. Keep talking, creating, sharing, making food, taking care of each other. Keep gathering in person. ❤️ We can be so powerful.

09/28/2025