At this time of the year, it is common for patients to be interested in New Year’s Resolutions or other goals and aspirations. Mental health therapists are typically skilled in interventions to support crises and problems, but what about when things are calm for the moment and the main need is to observe and endorse a good outcome?

This episode highlights non-verbal communication that signals a regulated nervous system state, in order to support the treating clinician in determining when their patients are experiencing these and makes suggestions for how to respond.

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References:

How Horses Move:

https://mechse.illinois.edu/news/blogs/mechanics-motion-nature

Prochaska’s Transtheoretical Change Model:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK556005/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transtheoretical_model

It is so natural to want changes at this time of the year, and as mental health therapists we are very likely going to support someone with a significant change that makes them anxious. Knowing how to support their exploration of possibilities while intervening non-verbally can help keep the momentum going in a way that simultaneously encourages a more regulated response that sustains the change process.

Listen now for some potential ways to work in this way!

As mental health therapists, it is common to hear someone speak of New Year’s Resolutions or other big changes they hope to see in the New Year. The challenge is sometimes people are not fully bought into the anticipated changes, despite their discussions of wanting them to happen.

Learning to view nonverbal signals, such as eye-contact, can support the mental health therapist in best supporting their patient. That is, if there is consistency across the stated intentions in verbal and nonverbal communication, then typical mental health interventions usually work. However, when there is inconsistency, the mental health therapist can learn to assess these discrepancies in order to better support their patients.

We Want to Hear Your Feedback! Please Contribute to the Conversation: Share your thoughts on the podcast and how these concepts work in your practice, or ask a question and I’ll answer it in an upcoming episode: https://connection-therapy.com/contact-us

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References:

Pew Research on New Year’s Resolutions:

Who makes New Year’s resolutions, and why? | Pew Research Center

Prochaska’s Transtheoretical Change Model:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK556005/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transtheoretical_model

Brenda reflects on the highlights from the year on the podcast, including guest interviews and her own explorations. This year, episodes integrated the works of scholars including Stephen Porges, PhD and Jaak Panksepp, PhD, as well as reviewed many clinical research articles in the pursuit of improving the practice of mental health. As she reviews in the highlights, the podcast strives to find a balance between the art and science of practice, that is integrating theory and research while always recognizing and honoring what happens during the session as profoundly insightful.

Highlights are from these episodes:

Episode 28: Brenda and Kinsey Rone on the Power of Therapist Connection

Episode 27: More Than a Profession: Brenda’s Love for Psychology

Episode 36: How Animals Detect Human Nervous System States Through Scent

Episode 44: How Embarrassment Builds Trust in Relationships

Episode 49: From Fear to Curiosity: Exploring the Seeking System with Dr. Rachaël Draaisma

Episode 63: Gazes between Species and the Application to Mental Health Practice

Episode 68: How to Provide Better Mental Health Treatment for Veterans with Adam Magers, MA, LPC

Episode 71: Expecting Great Outcomes - A Look at the Pygmalion (Rosenthal) Effect

We Want to Hear Your Feedback! Please Contribute to the Conversation: Share your thoughts on the podcast and how these concepts work in your practice, or ask a question and I’ll answer it in an upcoming episode: https://connection-therapy.com/contact-us

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Kinsey Rone returns to the podcast for some reflections on the year. She and Brenda consider what interventions worked in their own practices. Brenda also shares feedback she has heard, particularly in the discussions across disciplines with the practice of equine-assisted services.

And, the invitation is enthusiastically extended for listeners to share their feedback and questions, which will be shared and answered in future episodes. See below for ways to send in yours!

We Want to Hear Your Feedback! Please Contribute to the Conversation: Share your thoughts on the podcast and how these concepts work in your practice, or ask a question and I’ll answer it in an upcoming episode: https://connection-therapy.com/contact-us

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For More Information about our Guest:

Kinsey Rone, Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor

https://www.arrowcreekcounseling.com

This episode begins by normalizing difficulties over the holidays by sharing national statistics that demonstrate the commonness of this experience. Supporting patients with concerns over the holidays can be a challenge, in part because of the difficulties themselves and also because of the strong tendency to isolate these concerns at this time.

Brenda then considers how nature operates during this time of winter as a helpful example for supporting these experiences.

Enjoying the podcast?

There are now playlists for you to navigate to your favorite topics: https://connection-therapy.com/playlist

Contribute to the Conversation! Share your thoughts on the podcast and how these concepts work in your practice, or ask a question and I’ll answer it in an upcoming episode: https://connection-therapy.com/contact-us

References:

American Psychiatric Association

https://www.psychiatry.org/news-room/news-releases/americans-more-anxious-about-the-holidays

American Psychological Association

https://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/2023/11/holiday-season-stress

National Alliance of Mental Illness (NAMI)

https://www.nami.org/press-releases/mental-health-and-the-holiday-blues/

https://www.nami.org/blog-post/surviving-painful-holiday-emotions/

https://www.nami.org/from-the-ceo/the-most-difficult-time-of-the-year-mental-health-during-the-holidays/

Old Farmer’s Almanac (information about the Winter Solstice):

https://www.almanac.com/content/first-day-winter-winter-solstice#:~:text=The%20first%20day%20of%20winter%20in%20the,December%2021%2C%202025%2C%20at%2010:03%20AM%20(EST).

In this episode, Dr. Brenda Murrow goes back to one of the foundational studies in psychology that still has resonance today. The Pygmalion or Rosenthal effect is from research that explored how when teachers viewed their students as having high-potential, the students did better. It speaks to the uncanny experience that when we expect greatness from others, especially young children in grade school as this study originally investigated, it sometimes becomes reality.

Brenda combines the concepts from this foundational study with the idea of Winnicott’s potential space and incorporates recent real-life and timely examples from guests on the podcast to have an important discussion. Essentially, she illustrates that we can do the simplest of therapeutic acts, that is looking at someone with expectations for great things, and see results.

Enjoying the podcast?

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Contribute to the Conversation! Share your thoughts on the podcast and how these concepts work in your practice, or ask a question and I’ll answer it in an upcoming episode: https://connection-therapy.com/contact-us

References:

Pygmalion (Rosenthal) Effect:

https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/education/pygmalion-effect-rosenthal-effect

D.W. Winnicott’s idea of “potential space” in Playing and Reality. (1971, Penguin).

Brenda continues the discussion about the research on mental health treatment with veterans, as referenced in earlier podcasts in order to assist practitioners in understanding the implications for practice. She provides historical context to some of the current treatments for PTSD and invites consideration for future possibilities.

Enjoying the podcast?

There are now playlists for you to navigate to your favorite topics: https://connection-therapy.com/playlist

Contribute to the Conversation! Share your thoughts on the podcast and how these concepts work in your practice, or ask a question and I’ll answer it in an upcoming episode: https://connection-therapy.com/contact-us

Sign-up for the February 2026 Course with Adam Magers, MA, LPC

https://connection-therapy.captivate.fm/course-with-adam-magers

References:

Adam Magers, MA, LPC

https://www.odysseusandtheoar.com/

https://www.thebattlewithin.org/team

More information about classical conditioning, prolonged exposure, Pavlov & Seligman:

https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/psychology/learned-helplessness

Monroe, M., Whitworth, J. D., Wharton, T., & Turner, J. (2021). Effects of an Equine-Assisted Therapy Program for Military Veterans with Self-Reported PTSD. Society & Animals, 29(5/6), 577–590. https://doi-org.pgi.idm.oclc.org/10.1163/15685306-12341572

Mentioned in this episode:

Feb 2026 Course with Adam Magers, MA, LPC

Learn more about the Feb 2026 course with Adam Magers, MA, LPC

Course with Adam Magers, MA, LPC