Welcoming September: An Invitation to Reflect & Rebalance
Hello Brave Ones,
Welcome to September, the beginning of the “ber” months and a natural turning point in the year. In many traditions, this is a time of harvest — both literal and metaphorical. We invite you to slow down and take stock:
Where has abundance shown up in your life this year?
What internal growth has come to fruition since spring?
Are there areas — habits, thoughts, relationships — that feel ready to be pruned back or released?
As the days begin to cool and the light gently shifts, you may notice subtle changes not just in nature, but in your inner landscape too. These seasonal transitions can stir a sense of disorientation or dysregulation in the nervous system. It’s natural.
That’s why this month, we’re leaning into grounding practices and the theme of balance which is a timely reflection as we approach the Autumn Equinox on September 22nd-23rd, when day and night stand in equal measure.
The equinox is a beautiful reminder of life’s and our own inherent dualities:
Shadow and light
Rest and effort
Outward growth and inward reflection
But here's something many of us need to remember:
Balance is not a place we arrive — it’s a practice.
It’s not a final state to “achieve,” but rather a dance we commit to daily. Think about balancing postures in yoga for a moment: you don’t hold them perfectly still. You're wobbling, adjusting, falling out, catching yourself, overcorrecting after you fall, and then trying again finding some semblance of balance. And that’s the point — you’re in the process of balancing.
Let’s move from concept to embodiment now — and explore what this actually feels like in your body.
Section 2: Somatic Practice — Experiencing Balance in Tree Pose
This month, we invite you to feel balance by practicing Tree Pose, a grounding and centering posture from yoga. Try this as a way to reconnect with your body, breath, and the natural wobbles that come with being human.
Stand tall
Come to a standing position with both feet directly stacked under ankles, knees and hips.
Bring awareness to your breath. Let your arms rest gently at your sides.
Imagine growing tall like a tree — crown reaching upward, feet rooted below.
Find your footing
Shift your weight slowly onto your left foot, feeling all four corners of that foot connect with the earth.
Engage your core and gently lift your right foot off the ground.
Place your right foot
Bring the sole of your right foot to the inner ankle, calf, or thigh (avoid the knee).
Use your hand to guide your foot into place, and press foot into leg and your leg back into your foot.
Find a gaze point in front of you (something that is not moving) to help you.
Grow your tree
Bring your hands to a place that feels right to you today (perhaps heart center, or raise them overhead like branches).
Notice and feel your breath. Stay here in tree pose for 30 seconds to 1 minute.
Feel the micro-movements and adjustments in your foot, ankle, calf, knee, quad, glutes, core and spine are making — those little shifts are your body balancing. Feel the dance
You might wobble. You might fall. That’s okay — gently return to the practice of the tree pose.
Let go of “getting it right” and instead stay curious about the process.
After 30 seconds to 1 minute (or more), release gently and switch sides.
Journal Reflection:
Did you notice the ongoing adjustments? If so, describe them here.
What did you learn about the practice of balance during this practice? Were there moments of stillness... and moments of effort? What else did you learn?
This is what balancing in life feels like too — not perfect, not something we ever achieve, but presence, attunement and responding.
How can you take what you learned in tree pose into your current life and the shifting of the seasons?
In the next section, we’ll introduce you to one of our gifted therapists who can support you in this season of life transitions.
Section 3: Therapist Highlight: DaShelle Barco
Meet the creative and intuitive DaShelle Barco!
DaShelle (she/her) is a Licensed Professional Counselor in Colorado who loves helping folks get "unstuck" and arrive at the place of having the unwavering belief that your past pain and trauma does not define you.
In her career as a therapist, DaShelle has worked with a variety of people ranging from children and families impacted by domestic violence, folks in the prison setting, and people facing drug & alcohol addiction. DaShelle is well-versed in the private practice setting as well, and knows from personal experience that there is power in sitting 1:1 with people who initiate therapy for themselves.
DaShelle uses and integrates various therapy methods and modalities including...
◾️ Mindfulness practices
◾️ CBT
◾️ Insight oriented therapy
◾️ Supportive reflection
◾️ Interpersonal therapeutic techniques
DaShelle specializes in helping people...
◾️ Who are feeling stuck and uncertain about how to move forward
◾️ Develop a healthy view of themselves and improve their self esteem
◾️ Who feel that their past unresolved trauma is holding them back
◾️ Implement supportive tools and coping mechanisms that minimize and eventually eliminate exhausting symptoms and trauma responses
◾️ Who want to feel safe and enjoy life
DaShelle as a person↓
►Personality: Serene, Creative, Adventurous
► Interests: Being in nature especially by water or on a trail during cool sunny days. Dashelle is a beginner gardener and a lover of fruits & veggies and is always creating new plant-based recipes! She also self-identifies as a fashionista
►Travels: Scotland, Barbados, New York, Florida, and California and she's hoping to travel to Japan, Africa, and Jerusalem in the future
►Favorite Foods & Drinks: Raw vegan wraps, nice cream (non dairy ice cream), fruit salad, fresh squeezed juices, fruit smoothies and coconut water
►Pets: A mini poodle named Diamond
►Favorite Quote: "If you can't fly then run, if you can't run then walk, if you can't walk then crawl, but by all means, keep moving forward." -Martin Luther King Jr.
We offer FREE 30-45 minute consultations. If DaShelle, or any of our other amazing therapists catch your eye, let us know -- we will get you connected ASAP!
With warmth, joy, and compassion,
♡ The Brave Embodiment Counseling Team
P.S. If you’d like support with seasonal or other types of life transitions you’re going through, reach out for a FREE consultation.
Click here to get in touch!