Kelsey Ruffing Counseling

09/03/2026

🌿 NEW: Living With Chronic Pain VirtualSupport Group
Living with chronic pain can affect so much more than your body—your mood, relationships, identity, sleep, and ability to enjoy life.
I’m excited to offer a 12-week therapist-led Chronic Pain Group for adults 18+ who have experienced pain for 6 months or longer.
🗓️ Two Saturdays per month
⏰ 90-minute sessions
💙 In-network with Aetna, Blue Cross Blue Shield & UnitedHealthcare
We’ll focus on nervous system regulation, coping with pain flares, grief and identity, anxiety and depression, relationships, pacing, sleep, self-compassion, and rebuilding a meaningful life alongside chronic pain.
Enrollment is required and space is limited.
📧 [email protected]
🌐

Specialized counseling services for individuals with chronic pain, illness, and sport injury.

08/22/2026

Nature is calling 🪷

Imagine waking up to birdsong, breathing crisp forest air, and spending a weekend surrounded by towering trees, gentle movement, meaningful conversation, and a community of women who understand the importance of slowing down.

07/17/2026

I’m excited to share that I had the opportunity to sit down with Destiny Winters on The Chronic Illness Therapist Podcast to talk about one of the most overlooked parts of living with a chronic illness: the identity shifts that can come with diagnosis, healing, and adapting to a new normal. We explored the grief of who you were, the challenge of redefining yourself, and how it’s possible to find meaning, resilience, and hope along the way. I can’t wait for you to listen to this important conversation!

https://open.spotify.com/episode/3hL7f1vRTfRUEgcdEYTcYk?si=upgFbkJlQcSk6bUTMCWDCg&utm_source=copy-link

07/02/2026

🌿 Introducing Root & Restore: A Women's Therapeutic Nature Retreat 🌿

This September, I'll be hosting an intimate weekend retreat designed for women who are ready to slow down, reconnect with themselves, and experience the healing power of nature.

For so many women, life has become a cycle of surviving—pushing through chronic stress, chronic illness, burnout, caregiving, anxiety, or simply carrying more than their bodies were ever meant to hold.

This September, I invite you to step away from the demands of everyday life and into the quiet of the forest for **Root & Restore: A Women's Therapeutic Nature Retreat**.

📍 **Kettle Moraine State Forest, Wisconsin**
🗓️ **September 18–20**

This isn't just a camping weekend. It's an opportunity to slow down enough for your **central nervous system to begin healing**.

Through somatic therapy, mindful hiking, nervous system regulation practices, nature-based healing, movement, campfire reflection, and genuine connection, we'll create space for deep restoration—not just physically, but emotionally and spiritually.

The forest has a remarkable way of reminding us who we are beneath the stress, the responsibilities, the diagnoses, and the expectations. Together, we'll gently reconnect with the version of ourselves that has always been there—our truest, most grounded self.

Research continues to show that intentional time in nature can reduce cortisol levels, calm the nervous system, improve mood, decrease symptoms of anxiety, support immune function, and promote emotional resilience. When we combine the healing environment of nature with somatic therapy, we create powerful opportunities for our bodies to move from survival into safety and restoration.

✨ This intimate retreat includes:
• Guided somatic therapy and nervous system regulation
• Nature therapy and mindful hiking
• Gentle movement in the forest
• Campfire healing circles
• Open-fire breakfast and dinner on Saturday and Sunday
• A supportive community of just **6 women**

Your Wellness Investment: $350
A $150 non-refundable deposit reserves your spot, with the remaining balance due two weeks before the retreat.

If you've been longing to feel grounded again—to reconnect with yourself at your core, calm your nervous system, and experience the healing that only nature can provide—this weekend was created for you.

Because healing isn't about becoming someone new.

**It's about returning to who you've always been beneath the chronic stress.** 🌿

https://www.kelseyruffingcounseling.com/eventsgroups

06/29/2026

Supporting the whole family after a Type 1 diabetes diagnosis. 💙

As a clinical health therapist, I know that when a child is diagnosed with a chronic illness, the emotional impact extends far beyond the child. Siblings often experience confusion, worry, fear, jealousy, and even guilt—but their feelings can easily be overlooked as families focus on the medical needs of their child.

As both a therapist and a Type 1 diabetes mom, I wanted to create a resource that supports siblings emotionally while helping families have meaningful conversations together.

I’m excited to share my new children’s book, Super Sibling: Helping My Sister with Type 1 Diabetes.

This story helps young siblings understand Type 1 diabetes in an age-appropriate way while reassuring them that they have an important place in their sibling’s care journey. The book also includes a companion workbook filled with activities, reflection prompts, and discussion questions to help children identify and process their emotions and strengthen family communication.

Whether you’re a parent, therapist, educator, or healthcare provider, my hope is that this resource helps children feel seen, heard, and empowered during a time of significant change.

Because caring for a child with Type 1 diabetes means caring for the emotional well-being of the entire family. 💙

If you know a family who could benefit from this resource, I’d love for you to share this post.

https://a.co/d/01OA7P8P

When a child is diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes, the whole family learns how to adjust — including brothers and sisters. helps children understand: Through gentle storytelling, engaging illustrations, and emotional learning tools, children discover that being a sibling means being part of the ...

06/09/2026

I’m honored to share that I was recently a guest on the 108 Podcast by Type One Together!

As a clinical health therapist, Type 1 mom, and chronic illness advocate, I had the opportunity to discuss the emotional realities of living with and caring for someone with Type 1 Diabetes. We explored topics including caregiver stress, medical trauma, resilience, advocacy, and the importance of supporting the mental health of both children and families navigating chronic illness.

Type 1 Diabetes affects so much more than blood sugars—it impacts relationships, identity, emotions, and daily life. I’m grateful for opportunities like this to help bring greater awareness to the psychological side of chronic illness and to support the incredible T1D community.

Thank you to Type One Together for creating a space for these important conversations.

🎧 Have a listen and let me know what resonates with you most!

https://open.spotify.com/episode/2DVcsmHnsvPmHopfpRTghm?si=ML4sjwSTT7Gf4JAglbxnVQ

The 108 Podcast - Type 1 Diabetes · Episode

05/12/2026

Living with chronic illness often means more than managing symptoms. It can mean fighting to be heard, coordinating care, navigating insurance, researching treatments, and advocating for yourself over and over again — all while exhausted.

Over time, this constant state of stress can lead to chronic illness burnout: emotional exhaustion, nervous system overwhelm, brain fog, anxiety, numbness, and feeling defeated by healthcare systems.

Burnout is not weakness. It is often the nervous system responding to prolonged stress and survival mode.

Somatic and nervous system-based therapies can help individuals reconnect with safety in the body, process medical trauma, reduce overwhelm, and support emotional healing alongside physical health.

You should not have to fight this hard to be heard. 🤍

For many people living with chronic illness, the illness itself is only part of the struggle. The other part is navigating the healthcare system. Managing chronic illness often requires becoming a researcher, organizer, advocate, scheduler, insurance negotiator, symptom tracker, and emotional supp

05/12/2026

Grateful to be recognized by Influential Women, an organization that supports and broadcasts the voices of women in leadership; Empowering, creating, connecting, and leading the way! Thank you!

04/06/2026

Life doesn’t always give us gentle transitions.

Sometimes it’s sudden, disorienting, and deeply personal—whether it’s a health diagnosis, a shift in identity, a relationship change, or simply realizing life doesn’t look the way you thought it would.

And in those moments, we often feel pressure to “get back to normal.”

But what if the goal isn’t to go back?

Both positive psychology and Buddhist psychology remind us:
✨ You are not meant to return to who you were—you are meant to grow into who you are becoming.

Resilience isn’t about pushing through or pretending things are okay.
It’s about:
• Learning to sit with uncertainty
• Softening the inner criticism
• Reconnecting with your body and nervous system
• Finding meaning, even in the middle of the hard

Growth doesn’t happen after the storm.
It happens within it.

If you’re in a season of transition, give yourself permission to move slowly, to feel deeply, and to trust that something new is taking shape—even if you can’t see it yet.

💬 What has helped you stay grounded during difficult transitions?

From both positive psychology and Buddhist psychology , resilience is not about “bouncing back” to who you were before. It is about becoming someone new with deeper awareness, compassion, and strength .

03/04/2026

Many people seek medical care hoping for answers, but instead experience dismissal, missed diagnoses, or being passed from doctor to doctor without clarity. Over time, these experiences can create medical trauma—leaving individuals feeling unheard, anxious about appointments, and questioning their own symptoms.

The emotional toll of navigating a system that doesn’t listen is real. Healing means addressing both the physical and psychological impact of these experiences.

At Kelsey Ruffing Counseling, we recognize the profound impact medical trauma can have.

Read the blog here:

For many people, seeking medical care is supposed to bring clarity, relief, and healing. Yet for countless individuals living with chronic symptoms, rare conditions, or complex illnesses, the healthcare system can instead become a source of trauma .