The Intentional Clinician: Psychology, Philosophy, Therapy, & Change

Paul Krauss, MA, LPC, and world-renowned EMDR pioneer Dr. Laurel Parnell discuss how all mental health treatments as well as trauma treatment can be both more effective and more accessible. Together they explore the power of EMDR therapy, the research and early skepticism surrounding it, and how EMDR interfaces with other healing modalities around the world to accelerate perspective shifts, open the heart, and support deep inner alignment. The discussion also highlights how EMDR therapy does not erase memories but helps the nervous system clear the emotional residue of triggers so that experiences move from psychological, self-defining memory into objective memory, allowing people to reclaim their natural gifts, energetic sovereignty, and a life not limited by past trauma

In this episode, Dr. Parnell and Paul discuss how EMDR therapy can help people change more quickly by integrating fragmented traumatic material, creating new pathways for healing, and supporting clients to feel both safer and more free in their bodies and relationships. They delve into the nuances of psychological versus objective memory consolidation, the importance of inner resources and inner alignment, and how EMDR can be combined with transpersonal psychotherapy to invite experiences of connection, meaning, and spiritual opening. Drawing from Dr. Parnell's own journey, including the tragic loss of her son, they examine the limits of conventional trauma treatment and the emergence of Multidimensional Integrative Healing (MDIH) as a way to work across physical, emotional, psychological, somatic, and spiritual realms in service of post-traumatic growth rather than mere symptom reduction.

The conversation further explores how clinicians can safely integrate transpersonal psychology, energetic traditions, and Eastern spiritual practices within a grounded therapeutic frame, including working with phenomena such as shamanic experiences and releasing unwanted energetic attachments. Also, they discuss how to work with people from all spiritual orientations, including multiple faiths, agnostics, and atheist clients. Dr. Parnell describes clinical steps for helping clients identify what energies are truly theirs, release what is not, and stand in their own power, guided by an innate healing intelligence that moves toward wholeness when properly supported. Ultimately, she emphasizes that the goal of EMDR and MDIH is not simply desensitizing trauma, but helping clients reclaim the radiant presence of their True Nature so they can live more authentically, creatively, and compassionately in the world.

Dr. Laurel Parnell is an internationally recognized clinical psychologist, EMDR trainer, and leading expert on Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, best known for developing Attachment-Focused EMDR and Resource Tapping. She has trained thousands of clinicians nationally and internationally, has taught transpersonal psychology at the California Institute of Integral Studies and John F. Kennedy University, and continues to offer EMDR trainings and Multidimensional Integrative Healing programs through institutions such as Alliant International University, Omega Institute, Esalen Institute, and the Parnell Institute

Dr. Parenell's Releasing What Isn't Yours, expands on her Multidimensional Integrative Healing framework and the clinical process of helping clients recognize and let go of energies and burdens that do not belong to them, reclaim their energetic sovereignty, and reconnect with their True Nature. Other books by Dr. Parnell. 

Article Referenced: The Enigmatic Therapy That Saved My Life

• Get involved with the National Violence Prevention Hotline: 501(c)(3)

1. Donate
2. Share with your network
3. Write your congressperson
4. Sign our Petition

• Preview an Online Video Course for the Parents of Young Adults (Parenting Issues)
• Unique and low cost learning opportunities through Shion Consulting

Paul Krauss MA LPC is a Cofounder of Health for Life Counseling Grand Rapids, home of The Trauma-Informed Counseling Center of Grand Rapids. Paul is also a Private Practice Psychotherapist, an Approved EMDRIA Consultant , host of the Intentional Clinician podcast, Behavioral Health Consultant, Clinical Trainer, Counseling Supervisor, and Meditation Teacher. Paul is now offering consulting for a few individuals and organizations. Paul is the creator of the National Violence Prevention Hotline as well as the Intentional Clinician Training Program for Counselors. Paul has been quoted in the Washington Post, NBC News, Wired Magazine, and Counseling Today. Questions? Call the office at 616-200-4433. 

If you are looking for EMDRIA consulting groups, Paul Krauss MA LPC is now hosting a weekly online group.  For details, click here.

For general behavioral and mental health consulting for you or your organization.

Follow Health for Life Counseling- Grand Rapids:

Instagram   |   Facebook     |     Youtube

Original Music:

”Alright” from the album Mystic by PAWL (Spotify)

“Ikigai” from Shapes by Robohands (Spotify)

“Odysea” from Shapes by Robohands (Spotify)

 

In this episode of The Intentional Clinician podcast, host Paul Krauss MA LPC interviews Dr. Patricia Zurita Ona about her personal and professional expertise in anxiety and panic attacks, exploring how her own experiences with fear-based struggles have shaped her compassionate, research-based approach to helping others. Dr. Z candidly shares her journey of being someone whose behaviors were shaped by anxiety-from overthinking relationship decisions to second-guessing everyday choices like purchases and wardrobe selections-and how these experiences give her unique insight into working with overachievers and overthinkers who get stuck in "playing-it-safe" behaviors. The conversation delves into her Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) framework, which provides actionable skills to help people recognize how fear and anxiety can hijack their daily lives in unlimited ways, teaching them to stop avoiding discomfort and instead take value-driven action toward what truly matters to them, transforming anxiety from a barrier into a catalyst for courageous living.

Dr. Patricia Zurita Ona  known as Dr. Z, is a psychologist originally from Bolivia who has been living and practicing in the Bay Area for over 20 years, with more than 18 years of clinical experience specializing in anxiety-based struggles. She is the Director of the East Bay Behavior Therapy Center and was nominated as a Fellow of the Association of Contextual Behavioral Science in 2019, recognition for her expertise in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). Dr. Z has delivered a TEDx talk titled "Stop Playing-it-Safe and Start Living!" that has garnered over 265,000 views, published seven workbooks on anxiety, and developed the Playing-it-Safe Questionnaire to help individuals identify their fear-based behavioral patterns. She works primarily with overachievers and overthinkers across all age groups, helping them break free from ineffective playing-it-safe actions so they can engage in what works, what matters, and what they genuinely care about through her therapy practice, online courses, and published resources.

• Get involved with the National Violence Prevention Hotline: 501(c)(3)

1. Donate
2. Share with your network
3. Write your congressperson
4. Sign our Petition

• Preview an Online Video Course for the Parents of Young Adults (Parenting Issues)
• Unique and low cost learning opportunities through Shion Consulting

Paul Krauss MA LPC is a Cofounder of Health for Life Counseling Grand Rapids, home of The Trauma-Informed Counseling Center of Grand Rapids. Paul is also a Private Practice Psychotherapist, an Approved EMDRIA Consultant , host of the Intentional Clinician podcast, Behavioral Health Consultant, Clinical Trainer, Counseling Supervisor, and Meditation Teacher. Paul is now offering consulting for a few individuals and organizations. Paul is the creator of the National Violence Prevention Hotline as well as the Intentional Clinician Training Program for Counselors. Paul has been quoted in the Washington Post, NBC News, Wired Magazine, and Counseling Today. Questions? Call the office at 616-200-4433. 

If you are looking for EMDRIA consulting groups, Paul Krauss MA LPC is now hosting a weekly online group.  For details, click here.

For general behavioral and mental health consulting for you or your organization.

Follow Health for Life Counseling- Grand Rapids:

Instagram   |   Facebook     |     Youtube

Original Music:

”Alright” from the album Mystic by PAWL (Spotify)

“Miss Modular” from Dots and Loops by Stereolab (Spotify)

This episode features Paul Krauss, MA, LPC, in conversation with Los Angeles-based psychiatrist Dr. Mark Hrymoc about what actually works in addiction treatment. In this episode, they explore holistic approaches to treating addiction, person-centered counseling, and harm-reduction practices, while examining the intersection of addiction and mental health, common misconceptions about substance use disorders, innovations in psychopharmacology, the role of ketamine therapy and other emerging treatments in psychiatry, and how understanding the brain's function can reshape our view of recovery. Included in this conversation: Motivational Interviewing, The Adolescent Community Reinforcement Approach (A-CRA), Person-Centered approaches to Counseling and Psychiatry, the current research regarding Alcohol use, the accessibility and marketing of the alcohol industry, reasons for developing an addiction, how to get help with addictions, etc. 

Dr. Mark Hrymoc, MD is a double board-certified psychiatrist in General Psychiatry and Addiction Psychiatry, and an expert in the psychopharmacology of addiction and other mental health disorders. Based in Los Angeles and affiliated with Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, he leads an outpatient practice focused on the medical treatment of addiction and co-occurring disorders, including detoxification, psychiatric medication management, and ketamine-assisted therapies for mood and trauma-related conditions.

• Get involved with the National Violence Prevention Hotline: 501(c)(3)

1. Donate
2. Share with your network
3. Write your congressperson
4. Sign our Petition

• Preview an Online Video Course for the Parents of Young Adults (Parenting Issues)
• Unique and low cost learning opportunities through Shion Consulting

Paul Krauss MA LPC is a Cofounder of Health for Life Counseling Grand Rapids, home of The Trauma-Informed Counseling Center of Grand Rapids. Paul is also a Private Practice Psychotherapist, an Approved EMDRIA Consultant , host of the Intentional Clinician podcast, Behavioral Health Consultant, Clinical Trainer, Counseling Supervisor, and Meditation Teacher. Paul is now offering consulting for a few individuals and organizations. Paul is the creator of the National Violence Prevention Hotline as well as the Intentional Clinician Training Program for Counselors. Paul has been quoted in the Washington Post, NBC News, Wired Magazine, and Counseling Today. Questions? Call the office at 616-200-4433. 

If you are looking for EMDRIA consulting groups, Paul Krauss MA LPC is now hosting a weekly online group.  For details, click here.

For general behavioral and mental health consulting for you or your organization.

Follow Health for Life Counseling- Grand Rapids:

Instagram   |   Facebook     |     Youtube

Original Music:

”Alright” from the album Mystic by PAWL (Spotify)

“Taishi-Koto, Pt. 1” from Polymood  by L'Eclair (Spotify)

“Taishi-Koto, Pt. 2” from Polymood  by L'Eclair (Spotify)

Paul Krauss MA LPC interviews Jane Marie Chen about her personal life as well as her experience developing a low-cost incubator for prematurely-born babies that has saved more than 1,000,000 babies so far. The conversation addressed how childhood trauma and adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) impact high achievers who mask deep emotional wounds beneath professional success, examining Chen's journey from celebrated social entrepreneur to confronting the debilitating rage, self-doubt, and self-loathing that stemmed from growing up in a home marked by domestic violence. Jane Marie Chen opens up about childhood and the impact of trauma on her life and her path to healing. 

Jane Marie Chen is a globally recognized entrepreneur, inventor, and speaker who co-founded Embrace Global, which developed a groundbreaking low-cost, portable infant incubator that has saved more than 1,000,000 premature babies in the developing world. She received her MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business and her MPA from Harvard Kennedy School, earning accolades including an audience with President Obama at the White House and a check hand-delivered by Beyoncé. Her latest book, Like A Wave We Break: A Memoir of Falling Apart and Finding Myself (Penguin Random House), is a raw and powerful exploration of how her professional success masked unhealed childhood trauma from growing up as a Taiwanese American survivor of abuse. 

• Get involved with the National Violence Prevention Hotline: 501(c)(3)

1. Donate
2. Share with your network
3. Write your congressperson
4. Sign our Petition

• Preview an Online Video Course for the Parents of Young Adults (Parenting Issues)
• Unique and low cost learning opportunities through Shion Consulting

Paul Krauss MA LPC is a Cofounder of Health for Life Counseling Grand Rapids, home of The Trauma-Informed Counseling Center of Grand Rapids. Paul is also a Private Practice Psychotherapist, an Approved EMDRIA Consultant , host of the Intentional Clinician podcast, Behavioral Health Consultant, Clinical Trainer, Counseling Supervisor, and Meditation Teacher. Paul is now offering consulting for a few individuals and organizations. Paul is the creator of the National Violence Prevention Hotline as well as the Intentional Clinician Training Program for Counselors. Paul has been quoted in the Washington Post, NBC News, Wired Magazine, and Counseling Today. Questions? Call the office at 616-200-4433. 

If you are looking for EMDRIA consulting groups, Paul Krauss MA LPC is now hosting a weekly online group.  For details, click here.

For general behavioral and mental health consulting for you or your organization.

Follow Health for Life Counseling- Grand Rapids:

Instagram   |   Facebook     |     Youtube

Original Music:

”Alright” from the album Mystic by PAWL (Spotify)

“Begin Again” from Four Days in June by Shabason & Krgovich (Spotify)

In Episode 167 of The Intentional Clinician podcast, Paul Krauss MA LPC interviews child psychiatrist Dr. Frank Putnam, MD about his groundbreaking assertion that prevention of child maltreatment is the single most powerful way to improve the mental and physical health of our nation. The conversation likely explores Dr. Putnam's decades of research through the Female Growth and Development Study (FGDS), which has followed sexual abuse survivors for over 35 years and revealed that childhood sexual abuse causes accelerated biological aging, increasing the risk for early onset of physical and mental conditions usually associated with late life. Drawing from his new book *Old Before Their Time*, Dr. Putnam discusses how childhood maltreatment is the largest preventable cause of certain major mental illnesses, interpersonal violence, and much hard drug abuse, while addressing the wide-ranging mental, physical, and social consequences that extend across generations. 

Dr. Frank W. Putnam, MD, is a professor of clinical psychiatry at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine and an emeritus professor of pediatrics and child psychiatry at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center. He co-founded the pioneering Female Growth and Development Study (FGDS) in 1987 with the late Dr. Penelope K. Trickett, a longitudinal study that has followed female incest victims and comparison groups across three generations for over 35 years. His latest book, Old Before Their Time: A Scientific Life Investigating How Maltreatment Harms Children and the Adults They Become is part memoir and part call to action that provides an inside look at his distinguished career documenting the long-term consequences of childhood maltreatment. 

• Get involved with the National Violence Prevention Hotline: 501(c)(3)

1. Donate
2. Share with your network
3. Write your congressperson
4. Sign our Petition

• Preview an Online Video Course for the Parents of Young Adults (Parenting Issues)
• Unique and low cost learning opportunities through Shion Consulting

Paul Krauss MA LPC is a Cofounder of Health for Life Counseling Grand Rapids, home of The Trauma-Informed Counseling Center of Grand Rapids. Paul is also a Private Practice Psychotherapist, an Approved EMDRIA Consultant , host of the Intentional Clinician podcast, Behavioral Health Consultant, Clinical Trainer, Counseling Supervisor, and Meditation Teacher. Paul is now offering consulting for a few individuals and organizations. Paul is the creator of the National Violence Prevention Hotline as well as the Intentional Clinician Training Program for Counselors. Paul has been quoted in the Washington Post, NBC News, Wired Magazine, and Counseling Today. Questions? Call the office at 616-200-4433. 

If you are looking for EMDRIA consulting groups, Paul Krauss MA LPC is now hosting a weekly online group.  For details, click here.

For general behavioral and mental health consulting for you or your organization.

Follow Health for Life Counseling- Grand Rapids:

Instagram   |   Facebook     |     Youtube

Original Music:

”Alright” from the album Mystic by PAWL (Spotify)

“Midday Sun” from Four Days in June by Shabason & Krgovich (Spotify)

In this episode, Paul Krauss MA LPC interviews counselor and Chi Kung instructor Doug Hilton about his book The Tao of Addiction and Recovery: Chi Kung Practices for Restoring the Energy Flow in Mind and Body, focusing on how Taoist philosophy and Chi Kung practices supported addiction recovery alongside conventional treatment. In the conversation, Hilton draws on more than thirty years of counseling experience in trauma, addictions, and family systems to explain how Chi Kung and Taoist concepts like "Emotional Recycling" has helped people understand how addictions developed, heal underlying trauma, and prevent relapse. 

Hilton is Registered Clinical Counsellor in Canada and a certified Universal Healing Tao instructor who had integrated Chi Kung into his psychotherapy work for more than two decades, working with trauma, addictions, couples, and families.  His new book: The Tao of Addiction and Recovery (Destiny Books, November 2025), offers simple concepts and Chi Kung exercises, framed as a Taoist guide to recovering from addiction and returning to a state of wholeness.

The Tao of Addiction and Recovery: Chi Kung Practices for Restoring the Energy Flow in Mind and Body By Mantak Chia & Doug Hilton

• Get involved with the National Violence Prevention Hotline: 501(c)(3)

1. Donate
2. Share with your network
3. Write your congressperson
4. Sign our Petition

• Preview an Online Video Course for the Parents of Young Adults (Parenting Issues)
• Unique and low cost learning opportunities through Shion Consulting

Paul Krauss MA LPC is a Cofounder of Health for Life Counseling Grand Rapids, home of The Trauma-Informed Counseling Center of Grand Rapids. Paul is also a Private Practice Psychotherapist, an Approved EMDRIA Consultant , host of the Intentional Clinician podcast, Behavioral Health Consultant, Clinical Trainer, Counseling Supervisor, and Meditation Teacher. Paul is now offering consulting for a few individuals and organizations. Paul is the creator of the National Violence Prevention Hotline as well as the Intentional Clinician Training Program for Counselors. Paul has been quoted in the Washington Post, NBC News, Wired Magazine, and Counseling Today. Questions? Call the office at 616-200-4433. 

If you are looking for EMDRIA consulting groups, Paul Krauss MA LPC is now hosting a weekly online group.  For details, click here.

For general behavioral and mental health consulting for you or your organization.

Follow Health for Life Counseling- Grand Rapids:

Instagram   |   Facebook     |     Youtube

Original Music:

”Alright” from the album Mystic by PAWL (Spotify)

"Not Gone" from the album If You Don't Know Me Buy Now! by Kelley Stoltz (Spotify)

Paul Krauss MA LPC interviews wellness coach, ecotherapy guide, and author Carrie Asby explore how simple, intentional practices in nature can regulate the nervous system, soften perfectionism, and restore a sense of belonging in everyday life. Drawing from her personal story of burnout and "rock bottom," Carrie describes how yoga, breathwork, and nature-based rituals-like mindful walking outdoors, forest bathing, and sensory awareness practices-helped her move from chronic overwhelm into a steadier, more embodied way of living, and now form the foundation of the coaching work she offers to clients seeking resilience and reconnection.  Paul invites Carrie to translate these experiences into concrete tools for listeners, emphasizing how accessible daily rituals such as conscious breathing in fresh air, feeling the elements on the skin, and bringing mindful attention to the land can function as practical ecotherapy-even for those in urban settings.

 A yoga teacher, nature-healing guide, and founder of Carrie Asby Wellness, Carrie supports individuals and groups through retreats, coaching, and writing that weave together somatic awareness, mindfulness, and nature-based ritual, helping people realign with their values, reduce burnout, and remember their deep connection to the living world. Carrie hosts an online collective called the Rooted Life Collective.

• Get involved with the National Violence Prevention Hotline: 501(c)(3)

1. Donate
2. Share with your network
3. Write your congressperson
4. Sign our Petition

• Preview an Online Video Course for the Parents of Young Adults (Parenting Issues)
• Unique and low cost learning opportunities through Shion Consulting

Paul Krauss MA LPC is a Cofounder of Health for Life Counseling Grand Rapids, home of The Trauma-Informed Counseling Center of Grand Rapids. Paul is also a Private Practice Psychotherapist, an Approved EMDRIA Consultant , host of the Intentional Clinician podcast, Behavioral Health Consultant, Clinical Trainer, Counseling Supervisor, and Meditation Teacher. Paul is now offering consulting for a few individuals and organizations. Paul is the creator of the National Violence Prevention Hotline as well as the Intentional Clinician Training Program for Counselors. Paul has been quoted in the Washington Post, NBC News, Wired Magazine, and Counseling Today. Questions? Call the office at 616-200-4433. 

If you are looking for EMDRIA consulting groups, Paul Krauss MA LPC is now hosting a weekly online group.  For details, click here.

For general behavioral and mental health consulting for you or your organization.

Follow Health for Life Counseling- Grand Rapids:

Instagram   |   Facebook     |     Youtube

Original Music:

”Alright” from the album Mystic by PAWL (Spotify)

“Thirteen Sided Dice” by Cole Pulice (Spotify)

In this episode of the Intentional Clinician Podcast, Paul Krauss, MA, LPC interviews Robert C. Smith, MD, about his book "Has Medicine Lost Its Mind? Why Our Mental Health System Is Failing Us and What Should Be Done to Cure It," in which Dr. Smith argues that the U.S. mental health crisis stems from the way mainstream medicine (especially primary care doctors) are trained–where most are lacking the depth of education surrounding mental health. And further, that mainstream medicine is mainly organized around a rigid mind-body split that neglects the environmental, social, and emotional dimensions of health and illnesses. Drawing on both research and decades of clinical experience, Dr. Robert Smith explains that mental disorders are now the most common health condition physicians see, surpassing heart disease and cancer, yet roughly three‑quarters of people with mental illness receive no care or inadequate treatment. Paul Krauss and Robert Smith, MD discuss how primary care and other non‑psychiatric physicians now provide the majority of mental health care (over 70-75%), even though they typically receive only about 2-5% of their training in behavioral health and psychiatry, leading to misdiagnosis, one-size-fits-all interventions, under‑treatment, and an over-reliance on purely pharmaceutical and biomedical interventions that fail to treat the whole person, or emphasize prevention through activities that promote emotional health and well-being or even referrals to competent psychotherapists to compliment treatment.

Robert Smith, MD, MACP, is a general internist and University Distinguished Professor of Medicine and Psychiatry Emeritus at Michigan State University, where he has focused since 1985 on teaching and research in patient‑centered communication and primary care mental health. He and his colleagues defined the patient‑centered interview in concrete behavioral terms, validated it in randomized controlled trials, and authored the widely used textbook "Smith's Patient‑Centered Interviewing: An Evidence‑Based Method," now in its fourth edition and translated into multiple languages. A Master of the American College of Physicians, Dr. Smith has been widely featured in national media for his work on improving the doctor-patient relationship, chronic pain care, and mental health treatment in medical settings, and he continues to write and lecture internationally on the biopsychosocial model of care.

• Get involved with the National Violence Prevention Hotline: 501(c)(3)

1. Donate
2. Share with your network
3. Write your congressperson
4. Sign our Petition

• Preview an Online Video Course for the Parents of Young Adults (Parenting Issues)
• Unique and low cost learning opportunities through Shion Consulting

Paul Krauss MA LPC is a Cofounder of Health for Life Counseling Grand Rapids, home of The Trauma-Informed Counseling Center of Grand Rapids. Paul is also a Private Practice Psychotherapist, an Approved EMDRIA Consultant , host of the Intentional Clinician podcast, Behavioral Health Consultant, Clinical Trainer, Counseling Supervisor, and Meditation Teacher. Paul is now offering consulting for a few individuals and organizations. Paul is the creator of the National Violence Prevention Hotline as well as the Intentional Clinician Training Program for Counselors. Paul has been quoted in the Washington Post, NBC News, Wired Magazine, and Counseling Today. Questions? Call the office at 616-200-4433. 

If you are looking for EMDRIA consulting groups, Paul Krauss MA LPC is now hosting a weekly online group.  For details, click here.

For general behavioral and mental health consulting for you or your organization.

Follow Health for Life Counseling- Grand Rapids:

Instagram   |   Facebook     |     Youtube

Original Music:

”Alright” from the album Mystic by PAWL (Spotify)

”Rice Harvesting Day” from the album soft shakes by Go Kurosawa (Spotify)

In this episode of The Intentional Clinician Podcast Paul Krauss, MA LPC, sits down with former FBI Special Agent and behavioral expert Robin Dreeke to explore how trust, communication, safety, and deceit show up in everyday relationships and high‑stakes situations. Drawing from his years leading the FBI's Counterintelligence Behavioral Analysis Program, Robin shares practical frameworks for predicting behavior and assessing trustworthiness, while Paul connects these insights to clinical work, trauma, and real-world relational dynamics, including key ideas from Robin's book Sizing People Up: A Veteran FBI Agent's User Manual for Behavior Prediction.

Robin Dreeke is a human behavior expert, author, speaker, and retired FBI Special Agent who spent over two decades in federal service, including as Chief of the Counterintelligence Behavioral Analysis Program, where he specialized in building trust and recruiting spies through advanced rapport and communication techniques. He is the author of Sizing People Up, which outlines a practical system for evaluating trustworthiness and forecasting how others are likely to act using six core behavioral indicators, and now teaches organizations and individuals worldwide how to build authentic connections, assess risk, and navigate complex interpersonal situations.

• Get involved with the National Violence Prevention Hotline: 501(c)(3)

1. Donate
2. Share with your network
3. Write your congressperson
4. Sign our Petition

• Preview an Online Video Course for the Parents of Young Adults (Parenting Issues)
• Unique and low cost learning opportunities through Shion Consulting

Paul Krauss MA LPC is a Cofounder of Health for Life Counseling Grand Rapids, home of The Trauma-Informed Counseling Center of Grand Rapids. Paul is also a Private Practice Psychotherapist, an Approved EMDRIA Consultant , host of the Intentional Clinician podcast, Behavioral Health Consultant, Clinical Trainer, Counseling Supervisor, and Meditation Teacher. Paul is now offering consulting for a few individuals and organizations. Paul is the creator of the National Violence Prevention Hotline as well as the Intentional Clinician Training Program for Counselors. Paul has been quoted in the Washington Post, NBC News, Wired Magazine, and Counseling Today. Questions? Call the office at 616-200-4433. 

If you are looking for EMDRIA consulting groups, Paul Krauss MA LPC is now hosting a weekly online group.  For details, click here.

For general behavioral and mental health consulting for you or your organization.

Follow Health for Life Counseling- Grand Rapids:

Instagram   |   Facebook     |     Youtube

Original Music:

”Alright” from the album Mystic by PAWL (Spotify)

”All that we Perceive” from the album The Richest Man in Babylon by Thievery Corporation (Spotify)

”Sky Blue Sky” from the album Sky Blue Sky by Wilco (Spotify)

 

Paul Krauss, MA LPC's conversation with Marcia Bonato Warren MA, MA LPC centers on her somatic, cross-cultural approach to understanding identity, belonging, and the body, as developed in her work on Embodied Code-Switching® and her new book on multicultural identity and somatic healing. They explore how culture, ancestry, and trauma live in the nervous system, how the body can become a "cultural home," and how movement, sensation, and body-based awareness help people who navigate multiple cultural worlds reclaim agency and coherence in their sense of self. Throughout the discussion, Marcia weaves her personal story and clinical lens with reflections on social justice, intergenerational trauma, and the role of contemplative, somatic practice in healing within and across communities.

Marcia Bonato Warren, MA, MA LPC (she/her) is a trauma-informed Somatic Counselor/Body Psychotherapist, interculturalist, and author with more than 30 years of cross-cultural experience spanning somatic counseling and education, international educational exchange, Native American policy and advocacy, minority business development, and community-based social justice work. She holds a Master of Arts in Somatic Counseling/Body Psychotherapy from Naropa University, where she now serves as adjunct faculty and guest lecturer in the Buddhist-Informed Contemplative Counseling and Somatic Counseling graduate programs, and she maintains a private practice providing counseling, clinical supervision, training, and consultation in culturally responsive, body-based approaches to trauma, identity, and belonging. Her published work includes her foundational chapter on Embodied Code-Switching® and co-authored scholarly writing on the body as cultural home, and her recent book extends this somatic, culture-centered lens to clinicians and communities seeking liberatory, embodied ways to heal across differences.

• Get involved with the National Violence Prevention Hotline: 501(c)(3)

1. Donate
2. Share with your network
3. Write your congressperson
4. Sign our Petition

• Preview an Online Video Course for the Parents of Young Adults (Parenting Issues)
• Unique and low cost learning opportunities through Shion Consulting

Paul Krauss MA LPC is a Cofounder of Health for Life Counseling Grand Rapids, home of The Trauma-Informed Counseling Center of Grand Rapids. Paul is also a Private Practice Psychotherapist, an Approved EMDRIA Consultant , host of the Intentional Clinician podcast, Behavioral Health Consultant, Clinical Trainer, Counseling Supervisor, and Meditation Teacher. Paul is now offering consulting for a few individuals and organizations. Paul is the creator of the National Violence Prevention Hotline as well as the Intentional Clinician Training Program for Counselors. Paul has been quoted in the Washington Post, NBC News, Wired Magazine, and Counseling Today. Questions? Call the office at 616-200-4433. 

If you are looking for EMDRIA consulting groups, Paul Krauss MA LPC is now hosting a weekly online group.  For details, click here.

For general behavioral and mental health consulting for you or your organization.

Follow Health for Life Counseling- Grand Rapids:

Instagram   |   Facebook     |     Youtube

Original Music:

”Alright” from the album Mystic by PAWL (Spotify)

”Champion” from the album Radiate Like This by Warpaint (Spotify)

 

Paul Krauss MA LPC had the honor of speaking with Ashok Gupta who is offering cost-effective and accessible options for those suffering from chronic conditions as well as those who want to feel more vibrant and reduce symptoms of fatigue and inflammation. Ashok has put years of creativity into the program he offers people around the world and it really is incredible how such a holistic program can have such stunning scientific outcomes. If you are interested, check out this episode. 

Ashok Gupta, MA(Cantab), MSc who is an internationally renowned speaker, filmmaker and chronic illness and neuroplasticity expert. Ashok is the director of the Gupta Program, the original neuroplasticity and holistic health program for chronic conditions such as ME/CFS, Fibromyalgia, Post-Covid Syndrome, and associated conditions. The Program has helped thousands of people regain their lives.  www.guptaprogram.com The program is backed by solid science, including peer-reviewed studies, and it’s gotten the thumbs up from leading health professionals. A recently April 2025 randomized controlled study demonstrates that the Gupta Program is significantly more effective than standard medication in improving symptoms of fibromyalgia.

• Get involved with the National Violence Prevention Hotline: 501(c)(3)

1. Donate
2. Share with your network
3. Write your congressperson
4. Sign our Petition

• Preview an Online Video Course for the Parents of Young Adults (Parenting Issues)
• Unique and low cost learning opportunities through Shion Consulting

Paul Krauss MA LPC is a Cofounder of Health for Life Counseling Grand Rapids, home of The Trauma-Informed Counseling Center of Grand Rapids. Paul is also a Private Practice Psychotherapist, an Approved EMDRIA Consultant , host of the Intentional Clinician podcast, Behavioral Health Consultant, Clinical Trainer, Counseling Supervisor, and Meditation Teacher. Paul is now offering consulting for a few individuals and organizations. Paul is the creator of the National Violence Prevention Hotline as well as the Intentional Clinician Training Program for Counselors. Paul has been quoted in the Washington Post, NBC News, Wired Magazine, and Counseling Today. Questions? Call the office at 616-200-4433. 

If you are looking for EMDRIA consulting groups, Paul Krauss MA LPC is now hosting a weekly online group.  For details, click here.

For general behavioral and mental health consulting for you or your organization.

Follow Health for Life Counseling- Grand Rapids:

Instagram   |   Facebook     |     Youtube

Original Music:

”Alright” from the album Mystic by PAWL (Spotify)

"This Spring" (feat. Veda Hille) from the album This Spring: Songs by Veda Hille by Nicholas Krgovich (Spotify)

"Burst/Neighborhood Song" from the album This Spring: Songs by Veda Hille by Nicholas Krgovich (Spotify)

 

If you are interested in how writing creatively and reading books may be therapeutic, this is the episode for you. Paul Krauss MA LPC and Nick Kondyles LLPC discuss creative writing and how to integrate the act both into psychotherapy and your personal life. Nick takes a practical approach by emphasizing many different types of learning to write and express one's experience. Many tools for writing as well as books and magazines are mentioned.

Some of the Creative Writing Resources Mentioned:

https://authorspublish.com/17-approachable-literary-journals/https://www.va.gov/WHOLEHEALTHLIBRARY/tools/therapeutic-journaling.asp

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/neuroscience-proven-expressive-writing-protocol-with/id1146941306?i=1000645136217

A Neuroscience-Proven Expressive Writing Protocol with Dr. James Pennebaker 

The Believer Magazine

Nick Kondyles, LLPC MA is a therapist serving the Grand Rapids, MI area in person as well as the entire State of Michigan via teletherapy. Nick accepts most health insurance plans. Nick’s specialties are in anxiety, depression, relational issues and identity exploration. He enjoys working with adolescents, adults, as well as the LGBTQIA+ community. He is also interested in serving those experiencing grief and loss, substance use and career development employing interventions such as legacy life review and visiting issues like work/life balance. Nick endeavors to serve those parenting or dealing with relationship struggles, providing supportive services such as learning different communication skills and others in the interpersonal domain. 

Nick is a proud cat dad to a tuxedoed feline named Obi and loves to read books of any kind. When not in the therapy room, you can find Nick playing the occasional video game, biking or hanging out with friends. Nick hopes to work with you to find meaning in a healing process individualized to you and your needs while honoring your life story in a safe and warm environment.

• Get involved with the National Violence Prevention Hotline: 501(c)(3)

1. Donate
2. Share with your network
3. Write your congressperson
4. Sign our Petition

• Preview an Online Video Course for the Parents of Young Adults (Parenting Issues)
• Unique and low cost learning opportunities through Shion Consulting

Paul Krauss MA LPC is a Cofounder of Health for Life Counseling Grand Rapids, home of The Trauma-Informed Counseling Center of Grand Rapids. Paul is also a Private Practice Psychotherapist, an Approved EMDRIA Consultant , host of the Intentional Clinician podcast, Behavioral Health Consultant, Clinical Trainer, Counseling Supervisor, and Meditation Teacher. Paul is now offering consulting for a few individuals and organizations. Paul is the creator of the National Violence Prevention Hotline as well as the Intentional Clinician Training Program for Counselors. Paul has been quoted in the Washington Post, NBC News, Wired Magazine, and Counseling Today. Questions? Call the office at 616-200-4433. 

If you are looking for EMDRIA consulting groups, Paul Krauss MA LPC is now hosting a weekly online group.  For details, click here.

For general behavioral and mental health consulting for you or your organization.

Follow Health for Life Counseling- Grand Rapids:

Instagram   |   Facebook     |     Youtube

Original Music:

”Alright” from the album Mystic by PAWL (Spotify)

”Pink Tiger” from the album Pink Tiger by Apollo Ghosts (Spotify)

”But I'll Be Around (Electric Version) ” from the album Pink Tiger by Apollo Ghosts (Spotify)

 

 

In episode 159 of The Intentional Clinician Podcast, Paul Krauss, MA LPC, interviews Cezary Pietrasik, author of Homo Idioticus: Why We Are Stupid and What to Do About It to unravel the paradox of human intelligence and folly. Through engaging dialogue, they explore why, despite our vast cognitive abilities, humans repeatedly make irrational and self-sabotaging decisions. Pietrasik discusses psychological, evolutionary, and cultural factors that explain recurring lapses in judgment, and offers practical frameworks for recognizing and overcoming our mental blind spots. Listeners are challenged to reflect on their own thinking patterns and are encouraged to adopt new strategies for greater self-awareness and wiser decision-making.

Cezary Pietrasik is an economist, entrepreneur, and investor with a diverse background spanning investment banking, private equity, digital health, and behavioral AI. He is the president and co-owner of Synerise, a leading behavioral AI company, and the founder of The Butterfly Effect Foundation, which supports education for underprivileged children. Pietrasik is also the author of several books, including Homo idioticus, and is committed to making a positive difference through both business innovation and charitable work.

• Get involved with the National Violence Prevention Hotline: 501(c)(3)

1. Donate
2. Share with your network
3. Write your congressperson
4. Sign our Petition

• Preview an Online Video Course for the Parents of Young Adults (Parenting Issues)
• Unique and low cost learning opportunities through Shion Consulting

Paul Krauss MA LPC is the Clinical Director of Health for Life Counseling Grand Rapids, home of The Trauma-Informed Counseling Center of Grand Rapids. Paul is also a Private Practice Psychotherapist, an Approved EMDRIA Consultant , host of the Intentional Clinician podcast, Behavioral Health Consultant, Clinical Trainer, Counseling Supervisor, and Meditation Teacher. Paul is now offering consulting for a few individuals and organizations. Paul is the creator of the National Violence Prevention Hotline as well as the Intentional Clinician Training Program for Counselors. Paul has been quoted in the Washington Post, NBC News, Wired Magazine, and Counseling Today. Questions? Call the office at 616-200-4433. 

If you are looking for EMDRIA consulting groups, Paul Krauss MA LPC is now hosting a weekly online group.  For details, click here.

For general behavioral and mental health consulting for you or your organization.

Follow Health for Life Counseling- Grand Rapids:

Instagram   |   Facebook     |     Youtube

Original Music:

”Alright” from the album Mystic by PAWL (Spotify)

“Sandy Legs” from Sandy Legs by Kolumbo (Spotify)

In this episode, Paul Krauss, MA LPC, interviews author and philanthropist Nick Cooney about his new book, "What We Don't Do: Inaction in the Face of Suffering and the Drive to Do More." Together, they examine how Cooney challenges listeners to confront the hidden consequences of their inaction, arguing that today, failing to act in the face of suffering can have even greater repercussions than direct harm. The conversation delves into psychological barriers that keep people from responding to global and local crises, while highlighting practical, empowering steps to transform awareness into meaningful intervention. Through accessible dialogue and Cooney's research-driven insights, Krauss guides listeners to reflect on how cultivating an attitude toward considering what they don't do and what they do-- can translate everyday choices into powerful, positive change.

Nick Cooney is the founder and Managing Partner of Lever VC, a venture capital fund focused on alternative protein startups with a global investment reach. He has spent nearly two decades advancing the alternative protein sector, including founding the Lever Foundation and Good Food Institute, and has written extensively on food innovation and philanthropy. Cooney is an influential industry leader, recognized for his investments, writings, and global speaking engagements on plant-based and clean meat industries.

• Get involved with the National Violence Prevention Hotline: 501(c)(3)

1. Donate
2. Share with your network
3. Write your congressperson
4. Sign our Petition

• Preview an Online Video Course for the Parents of Young Adults (Parenting Issues)
• Unique and low cost learning opportunities through Shion Consulting

Paul Krauss MA LPC is the Clinical Director of Health for Life Counseling Grand Rapids, home of The Trauma-Informed Counseling Center of Grand Rapids. Paul is also a Private Practice Psychotherapist, an Approved EMDRIA Consultant , host of the Intentional Clinician podcast, Behavioral Health Consultant, Clinical Trainer, Counseling Supervisor, and Meditation Teacher. Paul is now offering consulting for a few individuals and organizations. Paul is the creator of the National Violence Prevention Hotline as well as the Intentional Clinician Training Program for Counselors. Paul has been quoted in the Washington Post, NBC News, Wired Magazine, and Counseling Today. Questions? Call the office at 616-200-4433. 

If you are looking for EMDRIA consulting groups, Paul Krauss MA LPC is now hosting a weekly online group.  For details, click here.

For general behavioral and mental health consulting for you or your organization.

Follow Health for Life Counseling- Grand Rapids:

Instagram   |   Facebook     |     Youtube

Original Music:

”Alright” from the album Mystic by PAWL (Spotify)

“Easy Rider” from You Become the Mountain by Jeffrey Silverstein (Spotify)

In this episode, MaryCatherine McDonald PhD and Paul Krauss MA LPC discuss the concept and emotion of Joy. During dark times, it is difficult for most to "think of joy," however, Dr. McDonald has completed some compelling research and investigation into the benefits of "exercising Joy" along with expressing the troubles in our lives. MaryCatherine McDonald, PhD has authored a book entitled "The Joy Reset" --which helps readers identify barriers that prevent them from accessing joy—hypervigilance, emotional numbing, fear of loss, conditioning, guilt, and shame—and then redefines positive emotions as those tenacious, gritty, often tiny experiences that appear within the darkest moments and form the very foundation of psychological resilience.

MaryCatherine McDonald is a research professor and life coach who specializes in the psychology and philosophy of trauma. Her work focuses on thinking critically about how we understand, define, and heal from traumatic experiences. She has published several research articles and book chapters, as well as three books on trauma. In addition to her academic work, Dr. McDonald coaches individuals and corporations and creates trauma-based curriculum for non-profit organizations and schools.

• Get involved with the National Violence Prevention Hotline: 501(c)(3)

1. Donate
2. Share with your network
3. Write your congressperson
4. Sign our Petition

• Preview an Online Video Course for the Parents of Young Adults (Parenting Issues)
• Unique and low cost learning opportunities through Shion Consulting

Paul Krauss MA LPC is the Clinical Director of Health for Life Counseling Grand Rapids, home of The Trauma-Informed Counseling Center of Grand Rapids. Paul is also a Private Practice Psychotherapist, an Approved EMDRIA Consultant , host of the Intentional Clinician podcast, Behavioral Health Consultant, Clinical Trainer, Counseling Supervisor, and Meditation Teacher. Paul is now offering consulting for a few individuals and organizations. Paul is the creator of the National Violence Prevention Hotline as well as the Intentional Clinician Training Program for Counselors. Paul has been quoted in the Washington Post, NBC News, Wired Magazine, and Counseling Today. Questions? Call the office at 616-200-4433. 

If you are looking for EMDRIA consulting groups, Paul Krauss MA LPC is now hosting a weekly online group.  For details, click here.

For general behavioral and mental health consulting for you or your organization.

Follow Health for Life Counseling- Grand Rapids:

Instagram   |   Facebook     |     Youtube

Original Music:

”Alright” from the album Mystic by PAWL (Spotify)

“Minute Papilion” from Open Source by World Brain (Spotify)

“hEARTSPACE” from Open Source by World Brain (Spotify)

"Joy does not exist only in the moments that are free of pain. In fact, the brightest, tiniest, most important pieces can only be found in the dark. I want to teach you how to harness and amplify the power of that glinting magic–because this sustainable, endless light source will do more than help you get through your darkest, scariest, loneliest times."- Dr. Mary McDonald