Therapy by Carly: A Healing Resource Rooted in Connection and Self-Growth
Image of Carly Juarez.
Interview by: Alana Eastling
Editor: Jeni Fjelstad
Creative Direction: Catie Menke
Answering these questions is an opportunity for a mental health check-in. But when brought up in casual conversation, are we inclined to answer honestly? Working with a psychotherapist is a healing resource rooted in connection and self-growth. A professional, who “cares for their clients and guides you to help you understand yourself better,” can provide a space to safely explore the answers to your questions.
Carly Juarez is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) located in Newport Beach, California. The foundation of her practice is helping others understand what she calls “the who, the how, and the why” about the person that they are. I met Carly in undergraduate school at Chapman University. She had such an inviting presence about her, comfort and ease in every interaction. Post-graduation, we remained connected through social media. At a time when I was struggling to find a therapist I fit with, Carly’s therapy practice’s Instagram profile provided support. Profiles like @therapybycarly and other mental health advocates offer an accessible “wealth of knowledge [and resources] to help people feel less alone and more understood.” The guidance she shared about navigating barriers to counseling was just the encouragement I needed at the time.
Image of Carly Juarez.
As a therapist, Carly prioritizes creating a safe space to hold her clients as they explore awareness, understanding, and insight. The impact of attending therapy in her early adolescent years influenced Carly’s passion for working with children and teens in that same age range.
An internship through the Boys and Girls Club, where she mentored high schoolers, solidified her preference for working one-on-one with young people. In working on her professional development, Carly later facilitated in-home Applied Behavior Analysis for children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Carly felt her calling in the conversations with the parents, providing the “permission to be human, validation, support, encouragement, [and], sometimes, just somebody to listen.”
By immersing herself in her clients’ journeys, Carly is challenged to accept the lack of closure she may feel once a client departs from her practice. Carly’s clients “are human beings that I care about, and [I] have to accept I’m not going to know the end of the story. [I have to be] okay with being in a moment of their lives, but not part of the whole journey.”
Carly has developed practices of mindfulness over the years, which she uses to ground herself when holding space for others. She focuses on being emotionally present with her clients’ feelings. They are “sharing and saying,” and Carly works on “really hearing and understanding the person in front of me.” Over time, she has focused on the connection that she and her clients “are all just human beings doing the best we can.”
To Carly, the most rewarding part of her job is the trust her clients give her when they share the personal and vulnerable intimacies of their lives.
Discussing the perception that therapy is a one-sided relationship, Carly revealed that she gains a lot from the therapist-client relationship, too. Especially within the population she works with, adolescents, teens, and young people are eager and ready to work with their therapist. She is constantly learning from her clients and is inspired by their bravery, wisdom, and perspective.
Thank you, Carly, for your grace and eloquence in sharing your story. Your compassion radiates throughout your community.
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