What are we really looking for when we chase achievement, approval, success, or even rebellion? For my guest Katie Padilla, so much of it came back to one very human longing: To be seen. To be loved. To feel deeply connected. Katie is a certified family law specialist, founder of Bloom Family Law, collaboratively trained attorney, certified coach and meditation teacher. But the path that brought her there is anything but conventional. As a highly sensitive child growing up in a family experiencing conflict and divorce, Katie remembers feeling alone and longing for a kind of connection she wasn't receiving. She developed a deep relationship with God at a very young age, and an inner sense that there was something more for her. Then she stopped trying to be the “good girl.” Katie became what she calls the black sheep and the rebel. She dropped out of college, moved to San Francisco, partied hard and intentionally explored the opposite of the perfectionism and anxiety that had defined her earlier life. And for a while, it worked. Until it didn't. What she thought she might find through freedom, rebellion and experience was the same thing she'd been looking for all along: deep love, connection and acceptance. So Katie changed direction again. She went back to school, worked incredibly hard, got into law school, became an attorney, and finally achieved the kind of success that made everyone around her proud. And something still wasn't right. Because people admired her accomplishments. They respected the title. But Katie realized: Admiration isn't the same thing as love. That realization eventually followed her into family law. Katie had created her own firm because she wanted to practice differently, only to discover that she'd recreated many of the same patterns she'd been trying to leave behind. Once again, she had to ask herself: Is this actually who I am? And that question changed the way she practices law. In this conversation, Katie and I explore the tension between connection and authenticity, the roles we take on in order to feel safe and valued, and what happens when we begin trusting our own internal compass rather than the expectations around us. And eventually, we bring all of that into Katie's work with divorce. Because perhaps saying “I don't want this anymore” isn't the whole awakening. Maybe it's the beginning of asking: What do I want? What is actually true for me? What have I been doing because I thought I was supposed to? And who am I when some of those roles begin to fall away? We talk about Katie's work with foster youth, her own childhood and spirituality, rebellion and perfectionism, achievement and identity, the nervous system, family court, women's changing relationship with marriage and divorce, and why she believes difficult transitions can become opportunities to meet ourselves more deeply. Katie's story left me thinking about how many different ways we can spend our lives trying to find the thing we've been looking for all along. And what might change when instead of looking outside ourselves, we begin listening to what's been there all along. Connect with Katie: Website: bloomlegalcoach.com IG: @bloomfamilylaw Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/katie-padilla-bloom The Third Presence Reiki I and II for Mental Health and Helping Professionals Reiki Retreat for People Living with Chronic Pain and Illness 🔓 From Lock to Liberation A weekly reflection on the patterns that keep us stuck, the possibilities we may not be seeing, and one question to carry into your week. → Join the conversation Share what resonated for you Thank you for listening to the Spiritually Curious Therapist Podcast. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, share, and leave a review - it helps us grow and reach more listeners! For our 2027 season, we’re exploring how we stay connected to ourselves while navigating relationships, difficult emotions, and the expectations of others. Our listeners may seem capable and composed while privately struggling with people-pleasing, perfectionism, anxiety, resentment, or persistent pain and symptoms. We’re curious about what helps people acknowledge their feelings, express their needs, and build relationships that have room for them, too. Spiritual curiosity is part of this exploration: questioning who we’ve learned we’re supposed to be, reconnecting with our values and inner experience, and discovering what makes life meaningful. Our conversations bring psychotherapy, nervous system science, spirituality, and lived experience into dialogue. Could your professional or lived experience contribute to this conversation? If so, complete an application to be on the podcast here Until next time. Stay Curious. You can find Jodi Silverman, LCSW at www.therachihealing.com ...
