Life Behind the Badge, Behind the Therapy Office and Behind Behind the Scenes

Emilyann Behar, LCPC & Founder at Elevate Health and Wellness Mental Health Group Practice

Navigating marriage, motherhood, business, and life between the callouts. Real conversations from a firefighter wife, therapist, entrepreneur, and mom trying to hold it all together (most days). "Where sirens, schedules, and sanity collide—with honesty, humor, and hope."

Episodes

  1. 8h ago

    Putting Out Fires Without A Hose

    Send us Fan Mail Helping people for a living can make you feel like you should have it together, but the truth is messier. We get real about the gap nobody prepares you for: being good at care is not the same thing as being good at running a business. I share what it’s like to juggle clinical work, leadership decisions, and the pressure of quality oversight while still trying to be a present parent and a functioning human who needs actual rest. If you’re a therapist, group practice owner, or any kind of helper, you’ll recognize the quiet weight of carrying it all.  Then we shift into home life with a first responder schedule and why “consistent and consistently inconsistent” can be the perfect phrase for the stress it creates. When a firefighter spouse comes home after a long shift, couples often have to renegotiate parenting, chores, and emotional bandwidth in real time. That’s where miscommunication, solo parenting exhaustion, and the sense of disorientation can sneak in. We also name the taboo feelings, resentment toward the job, missing your partner while they’re sitting next to you, and the fear of scheduling or technology failures when you’re already at capacity.  We ground it with practical mental health tools and a CBT framework: thoughts and emotions show up on their own, but behavior is where we still have choices. We talk about decompression, advocacy, communication boundaries, and small rituals like weekly check ins and family meetings that can make life feel less like whiplash. Finally, we zoom in on burnout signals in the body, the clenched jaw, the tight chest, the curled toes, as a cue to slow down and reassess before you hit the wall.  If any of this hits close to home, listen through and share it with someone who’s carrying a heavy load too. Subscribe for more honest conversations, and leave a review with the coping ritual that helps you most. Support the show About The Elevate Conversations Podcast The Elevate Conversations Podcast is brought to you by Elevate Health & Wellness, a trauma-informed mental health practice dedicated to supporting individuals, couples, families, first responders, veterans, healthcare professionals, and our community through compassionate, evidence-based care. Our mission is to make mental health conversations more accessible, reduce stigma, and connect people with trusted resources, practical tools, and stories that inspire hope, healing, and resilience. Connect with Elevate Health & Wellness: 🌐 Website: elevateyourlifelv.com📧 Email: welcome@elevateyourlifelv.com📱 Instagram: @elevate_mood📘 Facebook: www.facebook.com/elevatehealthandwellnesslv▶️ YouTube: Under Construction🎙️ Follow us wherever you listen to podcasts.Thank you for listening to The Elevate Conversations Podcast. Wherever you serve, whatever you're facing, know that you don't have to carry it alone. Until next time, take care of yourself, take care of each other, and keep elevating the conversation. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with someone who may benefit. Your support helps us reach more individuals and families seeking education, encouragement, and connection. Important Disclaimer: The information shared on this podcast is intended for educational and information...

    16 min
  2. 10h ago

    What If Burnout Is Your Body Talking

    Send us Fan Mail Coffee at night, overtime call-outs, and a brain that won’t shut off, if that sounds familiar, you’re in the right place. We talk through the real-life collision of sirens, schedules, and sanity, with the kind of honesty that only shows up when you stop pretending you’ve got it all together. Whether you’re a first responder spouse, a therapist, a working parent, or a business owner trying to keep the wheels on, this conversation is a reminder that the messy weeks are not a personal failure. We use simple weekly prompts to slow down and reflect: What was your Mayday? What was your biggest challenge? What went wrong? What made you question your life choices? From broken trust in business to second-guessing a group practice and the weight of chronic stress, we name what so many people carry in private. We also talk about dissociation and that frozen, “not present” feeling, and why a steady support person can be the difference between spiraling alone and coming back to yourself with care. We close with practical, relatable truths about burnout signs, somatic stress like back pain, and the hidden load of financial management, staffing challenges, payroll panic, imposter syndrome, boundaries, and insurance headaches. Most of all, we focus on finding peace on purpose and watching for resentment and guilt before they take over. If this resonates, subscribe, share the show with someone who needs it, and leave a quick review, what was your Mayday this week? Support the show About The Elevate Conversations Podcast The Elevate Conversations Podcast is brought to you by Elevate Health & Wellness, a trauma-informed mental health practice dedicated to supporting individuals, couples, families, first responders, veterans, healthcare professionals, and our community through compassionate, evidence-based care. Our mission is to make mental health conversations more accessible, reduce stigma, and connect people with trusted resources, practical tools, and stories that inspire hope, healing, and resilience. Connect with Elevate Health & Wellness: 🌐 Website: elevateyourlifelv.com📧 Email: welcome@elevateyourlifelv.com📱 Instagram: @elevate_mood📘 Facebook: www.facebook.com/elevatehealthandwellnesslv▶️ YouTube: Under Construction🎙️ Follow us wherever you listen to podcasts.Thank you for listening to The Elevate Conversations Podcast. Wherever you serve, whatever you're facing, know that you don't have to carry it alone. Until next time, take care of yourself, take care of each other, and keep elevating the conversation. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with someone who may benefit. Your support helps us reach more individuals and families seeking education, encouragement, and connection. Important Disclaimer: The information shared on this podcast is intended for educational and information...

    17 min
  3. 11h ago

    How A Therapist Survives Firehouse Life And Business Chaos

    Send us Fan Mail I’m Emily, and I’m building a space for the messy truth behind the therapy office, the firehouse schedule, and the family life nobody posts. We name the chaos, share what helps, and keep coming back to the same bottom line: you’re not alone. • why I start this podcast and what “behind the scenes” really means  • the weekly Mayday idea for stress and survival mode  • juggling a group practice, hiring, PhD work, and basic needs  • an unexpected win and the bedtime “five things” script for kids’ anxiety  • the real-life strain of first responder schedules and missed holidays  • what nobody tells you about therapy internships, unpaid work, and supervision  • why business skills matter for therapists and practice owners  • prioritizing when everything feels urgent and catastrophic  So I really hope that you come back. Support the show About The Elevate Conversations Podcast The Elevate Conversations Podcast is brought to you by Elevate Health & Wellness, a trauma-informed mental health practice dedicated to supporting individuals, couples, families, first responders, veterans, healthcare professionals, and our community through compassionate, evidence-based care. Our mission is to make mental health conversations more accessible, reduce stigma, and connect people with trusted resources, practical tools, and stories that inspire hope, healing, and resilience. Connect with Elevate Health & Wellness: 🌐 Website: elevateyourlifelv.com📧 Email: welcome@elevateyourlifelv.com📱 Instagram: @elevate_mood📘 Facebook: www.facebook.com/elevatehealthandwellnesslv▶️ YouTube: Under Construction🎙️ Follow us wherever you listen to podcasts.Thank you for listening to The Elevate Conversations Podcast. Wherever you serve, whatever you're facing, know that you don't have to carry it alone. Until next time, take care of yourself, take care of each other, and keep elevating the conversation. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with someone who may benefit. Your support helps us reach more individuals and families seeking education, encouragement, and connection. Important Disclaimer: The information shared on this podcast is intended for educational and information...

    17 min

About

Navigating marriage, motherhood, business, and life between the callouts. Real conversations from a firefighter wife, therapist, entrepreneur, and mom trying to hold it all together (most days). "Where sirens, schedules, and sanity collide—with honesty, humor, and hope."