Full Bloom Counseling & Coaching

Full Bloom Counseling & Coaching Christian counseling practice for individuals, couples, and families in Washington, MO.

We integrate faith and evidence-based care to support connection, healing, and hope—building healthier individuals, families, and communities.

06/15/2026

The geese at the lake are beautiful to watch, but they can also leave quite a mess behind. 🪿

Life can feel that way too.

Sometimes the things we love most come with challenges, hurt, confusion, or circumstances we never expected. When life feels messy and you’re struggling to make sense of it all, you don’t have to do it alone.

At Full Bloom Counseling & Coaching Services, we’re here to walk with you through the cleanup, the healing, and the growth.

🌱 You were never meant to carry it all by yourself.

06/05/2026

Working with couples in marriage counseling used to intimidate me.

I know that’s funny to say now because I absolutely love working with couples, but it’s true.

Early in my career, when couples would come into session carrying a lot of hurt, anger, and resentment, and they would start arguing, I often felt helpless. Looking back, I think part of that was because it reminded me of what it felt like to desperately want out of a conflict but having no clue how, or even worse, my best efforts not being enough.

What changed for me wasn’t just training. It was my own experience in marriage counseling.

Years ago, my husband Justin and I went to counseling together, and it was one of the best decisions we ever made.

We learned that we weren’t actually fighting about what we thought we were fighting about. We were caught in a cycle. One of us would withdraw to calm down and process, while the other one—me—wanted to resolve things immediately. The more I pursued, the more he withdrew. The more he withdrew, the more I pursued.

We also learned how important vulnerability is. Underneath frustration and conflict are often deeper emotions, fears, and needs that aren’t being expressed.

That experience changed my marriage, but it also changed the way I work with couples.

Now, when couples sit across from me, I can often help them recognize the cycle they’re stuck in and begin moving toward each other instead of against each other.

If you and your spouse keep finding yourselves having the same argument over and over, know that you’re not alone. Sometimes having a safe place to slow down, understand what’s happening beneath the surface, and learn new tools can make all the difference.









06/04/2026

I’ve never related to a pig more than I do in this moment.

She finally got out of the pen. The thing she’d probably wanted to do for weeks.

Freedom. A bigger space. No fence.

But instead of running off to enjoy her newfound independence, she stood at the fence trying to get back to her friends.

And then came the hard part.

Getting back in.

Cue me and my fellow therapist spending the afternoon trying to wrangle a pig that suddenly realized she didn’t want to be on the outside anymore.

The whole thing got me thinking…

I’ve had seasons where I was convinced the grass was greener somewhere else. Seasons where I pulled away, isolated, or tried to carry everything on my own.

But sometimes what we’re really longing for isn’t a bigger field.

It’s community.

It’s belonging.

It’s being known.

And here’s what I’ve learned as a counselor: realizing you need connection is one thing. Finding your way back to it can be another challenge entirely.

Sometimes we need support. Sometimes we need someone to walk alongside us. Sometimes we need help finding our way back to the people, relationships, and parts of ourselves we’ve lost touch with.

Healing rarely happens in isolation.

(And apparently neither does getting a pig back into her pen.)

If you’ve been feeling disconnected, overwhelmed, or alone, counseling can provide a safe place to start reconnecting—with yourself, with others, and with the life you want to live.

💚 Full Bloom Counseling & Coaching Services

What’s something you’ve had to find your way back to?


06/02/2026

Yesterday, I came home to find one of our baby goats stuck.

And when I say stuck, I mean really stuck 🥴

This little girl has a special talent for finding herself in predicaments, and somehow she managed to wedge her foot into the strangest spot imaginable. She had fought hard to free herself but couldn't get loose. With temperatures climbing into the 90s here in Missouri, she likely wouldn't have survived much longer without help.

But that's not the part of the story that stayed with me.

We have cameras in our goat shed, and when I checked the footage, I noticed something remarkable. While she was trapped, she wasn't alone.

Her mama stayed nearby.

Her sisters stayed nearby.

Her half-sisters stayed nearby.

Even her auntie goats stayed nearby.

None of them could free her. None of them could solve the problem. None of them could get her unstuck.

But they stayed.

And sometimes that's exactly what we need, too.

When life has us trapped in grief, anxiety, depression, overwhelm, relationship struggles, addiction, trauma, or circumstances we can't seem to escape, the people who love us may not know how to fix it. They may not have the answers.

But their presence matters.

The friends who sit with us.

The family members who check in.

The church community that keeps showing up.

The people who refuse to leave us alone in our hard places.

What a gift that kind of community is.

And sometimes, while that community is faithfully standing beside us, we need additional help to find freedom. That's where counseling can come in.

At Full Bloom Counseling & Coaching Services, we deeply value the role of family, friends, and faith communities. Therapy isn't meant to replace those relationships—it's often a way to strengthen them while receiving specialized support for the challenges you're facing.

If you're feeling stuck, please don't hesitate to reach out. Whether we're the right fit for you or not, we genuinely love helping people find the support they need. Sometimes that means working with us. Sometimes that means connecting you with another provider.

Either way, we love seeing people find freedom.

And I have to admit, I was pretty happy to see one stubborn little goat find hers yesterday, too. ❤️🐐

05/26/2026

I thought one of my ducks was gone for good.

Days passed with no sign of her, and I had already started grieving what I believed was lost.

But then… she appeared.

Hidden away, quietly sitting on a nest of 11 ducklings that were about to hatch.

What I thought was dead wasn’t dead at all.
Something new was being formed in the hidden places.

Isn’t that true in our own lives sometimes?

We mourn relationships, dreams, opportunities, seasons, or parts of ourselves that seem gone and lifeless. We assume the silence means the story is over.

But sometimes God is simply doing His deepest work out of sight.

Sometimes what looks buried is actually being prepared for new life.

If you’re in a season where things feel still, silent, or lost, don’t lose hope too quickly. What feels dead today may be the very thing preparing to spring forward tomorrow.

New life often begins in hidden places.

05/14/2026

Today God reminded me that sometimes we need a different perspective.

I walked my usual route in the opposite direction and noticed things I had never seen before — beautiful flowers, areas needing cleanup, and details I had completely missed.

It made me think about how often we approach struggles the same way and wonder why nothing changes.

Sometimes God grows us by changing our perspective before He changes our situation. 🌸

05/12/2026

Whose voice are you listening to, and how do you respond to it?

I recently started taking a walk every day around our homestead. Every walk begins with me “calling” to our goats — and they always call back and run to meet me at the fence. Then I greet them all and let them have some grazing time.

It’s a mental health boost for me and freedom for them 😝

But every time, it makes me think about how important it is to be discerning about the voices we listen to.

Are you listening to voices that lead you toward anger, frustration, division, depression, or confusion?

Or are you tuning in to voices that produce love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control?

It’s worth taking time to pay attention to the fruit that comes from the voices you consume.

Also… this video is a perfect example of why I probably need a social media manager 😂🫣

Watching the workers in the shark tank reminded me how important connection and support really are.Some people were doin...
05/12/2026

Watching the workers in the shark tank reminded me how important connection and support really are.

Some people were doing the hard work of cleaning, while others stayed nearby—watching carefully, protecting them, and redirecting danger before it became a problem.

I think life works that way too.

We all need people who help us feel seen, supported, and safe. And often, connection is built through small, everyday moments more than grand gestures:
• checking in with a simple “How are you really doing?”
• dropping off a meal during a stressful season
• offering to help with childcare or errands
• sitting with someone in grief instead of trying to fix it
• remembering important dates or hard anniversaries
• sending the text that says, “I’ve been thinking about you.”
• praying for a friend and letting them know they’re not carrying things alone

These kinds of moments build trust. They remind us we matter to someone.

In a world that can feel isolating, genuine connection is one of the greatest gifts we can offer each other. 💛

More insights from my (Elyssa ☺️) recent visit to the Kansas City Zoo & Aquarium!As we wandered through the aquarium, co...
05/11/2026

More insights from my (Elyssa ☺️) recent visit to the Kansas City Zoo & Aquarium!

As we wandered through the aquarium, completely mesmerized by the sea creatures, I suddenly looked up and saw a pair of human legs near the top of the shark tank! Thankfully, the rest of him was there too. 😂

At first, it just seemed funny and a little risky. But the longer I watched, the more I noticed something deeper happening.

Some workers were cleaning the tank, while others stayed nearby watching carefully—protecting them and redirecting any curious sharks away from danger.

And honestly, it made me think about how much life works the same way.

Some seasons find us doing the hard work—showing up, carrying responsibilities, healing, growing, surviving. Other times, we’re the ones standing nearby for someone else: encouraging, protecting, praying, listening, or simply reminding them they’re not alone.

We were never meant to navigate life without support.

Sometimes the people around us help carry the weight in ways we don’t even fully realize until we look back and see who was quietly watching over us all along. 💛

I’m annoyed at this mug this morning.And yet, because I’m in the middle of a process myself, I also love this mug this m...
05/07/2026

I’m annoyed at this mug this morning.

And yet, because I’m in the middle of a process myself, I also love this mug this morning.

Since I’m trying to be more intentional about gratitude and practicing what I encourage others to do—focusing on what is good and true—I’ll start with why I love it:

1. It’s true. We are all in a process of some kind. I try to remind myself that what feels impossibly hard right now won’t always feel this hard. Sometimes we just can’t see our way through while we’re in the middle of it.

2. It’s pretty. I love the wide handle, the shimmer, and the sparkle.

3. I love that God continues to show up, refine me, and shape me into someone better and more useful. A verse I refer to often is I Corinthians 9:27 to help keep me motivated ❤️

4. I think being a human who is still “in process” helps me better serve people in both therapy and teaching spaces. I’m not speaking from a place of having arrived—I’m walking through it too.

Why it annoys me:

1. I’m human, and I want things to be easy. But easy now often creates harder things later—or worse, stagnation.

2. Sometimes I burn out because I’m not taking good enough care of myself. In those seasons, I can become really negative and struggle to see past what hurts. Even when a reminder like this is exactly what I need, I can still resist it.

3. I sometimes convince myself that negativity is helping me “prepare” for bad outcomes—as if expecting the worst will somehow protect me from it. But honestly, it usually just blinds me to the blessings and opportunities right in front of me. I’m also far less creative and joyful in those moments. Not exactly great soil for growth.

Who can relate? ❤️

And heart the photo you like best from my morning walk. (Yes, I walk with an open coffee mug and occasionally do full-on mug photo shoots 😝)

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1874 Highway A, Suite 102 And 104
Washington, MO
63090

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