Episode 41: Safe Spaces, Trying New Things, and Being Inconveniently Christian - Monica DiCristina

Oh my gosh, I had the BEST conversation with licensed therapist Monica DiCristina for today's episode of Pain to Passion Live!

I have loved following Monica on Instagram because she has such incredible therapeutic content for those of us on our healing journeys, and she is so warm and kindhearted. I was thrilled to get the chance to talk with her and hear more about her story!

On this episode, Monica shares her own experience with therapy and how it impacted her so much that she decided to become a therapist herself. She also explains what finding safe spaces and people truly means and why it is such an impactful part of healing.

I also got to pick her brain about what it's been like being a therapist in a social media era and I loved her thoughts about it and how it can be a real and genuine piece of our lives as long as we have healthy boundaries, just like with anything else in our lives.

One of my favorite parts of our conversation was hearing Monica talk about her personal faith experience, and what being a Christian means to her - and how it's her "inconvenient truth."

And of course we touched on her exciting book writing project - you'll all be excited to read her book when it comes out in the future, I just know it!

I can't wait to hear what you think of this episode - be sure to shoot me a DM or an email so I can hear your thoughts! And as always, please rate and review the podcast so we can get these incredible stories and healing insights out to as many people as possible. Thank you, friends!

More About Monica:

Monica DiCristina is a therapist with over fifteen years of experience in mental health. She runs a private practice in Atlanta, GA serving individuals and couples in therapy. Monica walks with people as they process difficult experiences, helping to bring healing to their relationship with themselves and others. She became a therapist after one changed her life in her early twenties, deciding she wanted to pass along the same hope and healing she experienced. The intersection of her years of therapy experience, her personal journey, and her faith inform her perspective. In addition to her work in the therapy office, Monica carries out her heartfelt mission to collaborate with others in their process of healing, hope, and becoming through her Still Becoming podcast, writing, speaking, and as co-creator of the here app. Monica lives in Atlanta with her husband and three children, as well as their dog Sweetie.

Connect with Monica:

Newsletter - ⁠monicadicristina.substack.com⁠

Website - ⁠monicadicristina.com⁠

Instagram - ⁠@monicadicristina⁠

Podcast - ⁠Still Becoming⁠

Kids Podcast - ⁠Still Becoming Kids⁠ ⁠Here App ⁠

Connect with Gabi:

Instagram - ⁠⁠⁠⁠@gabiruth⁠⁠⁠⁠

TikTok - ⁠⁠⁠⁠@gabiruth84⁠⁠⁠⁠

Facebook - ⁠⁠⁠⁠facebook.com/gabiruth84⁠⁠⁠⁠

Website - ⁠⁠⁠⁠gabiruth.com⁠⁠⁠⁠

Coach with Gabi - ⁠⁠⁠⁠gabiruth.com/book-a-1on1-call⁠⁠⁠⁠

Invite Gabi to Speak - ⁠⁠⁠⁠gabiruth.com/speaking⁠⁠⁠

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(TRANSCRIPT) Ep. 41: Safe Spaces, Trying New Things, and Being Inconveniently Christian - Monica DiCristina

Note: Transcript is created by AI. Please excuse errors.

Gabi: Hello, beautiful people. Welcome back to Pain to Passion Live. I'm so happy today because I get to talk to one of my favorite people on Instagram. Monica DiCristina. She is amazing. I don't know if you guys have followed her over there yet, but you definitely should. And I'll put all of her info in the show notes.

But you know how sometimes you just see people and they're like, So warm and so safe, and you can just tell that they've been through stuff and they've also done a lot of work. So that's definitely what I see in you, Monica, and I'm so grateful that we get to connect today. So thank you for being here.

Monica: Well, thank you so much and, um, thank you for such a warm introduction and I just, I'm so excited that we got to do this and just to be here today and to just hang out with you and everyone listen.

Gabi: Yes. Thank you so much. Well, mm-hmm. We would love to just hear from you, like, who are you and what do you.

Monica: Yeah, absolutely. Um, well I am Monica DiCristina, as you said, and I am married, um, and uh, to mark my husband. And I've got three kids, um, and two dogs. And so there's just a lot of buzzing of life happening all at once, all the time. Um, I'm also a practicing therapist. I'm in my office right now. I have my own private practice in Atlanta, and I'm a writer and I love to combine, um, sort of metaphor and artistic way of thinking about the world with healing, which I also think is an art.

Um, and so, and I got into therapy because I struggled. Probably about 10 years without understanding what was happening, which is not uncommon, unfortunately. Mm-hmm. Um, what was happening within me and once I finally saw a therapist, it changed everything. I thought if I could do one thing in my life, it would help people to feel less alone.

Mm-hmm. And to help them, you know, to help be one voice that says like, you make sense, it's okay. And we can figure this out. So that's what I do, you know, in this space and you know, for a living. And I have a podcast too called Still Becoming.

Gabi: I love that. So you're like not busy at all. Yeah. Right.

Monica: Yeah. And I'm writing a book.

Gabi: Yes. Yes. Which I wanted to talk to you about. I mean, you just mentioned you're a writer and I love how you explained like your style of writing. I can totally relate to that. But, um, I'll talk to you in a bit about the book cuz I definitely am curious to know more about that. Yeah. Um, but I love that you saw a therapist mm-hmm.

And that mm-hmm. Inspired you to become a therapist. I'm sure you're not the only one, but that's like a big decision. Like it, yeah. Mm-hmm. Really significantly impacted your life. Mm-hmm. So, I'd love anything that you'd like to share about that experience, about that process. We would love to hear that story.

Monica: Yeah. Well, I think that, you know, like many people maybe going to therapy the first time I was terrified. I thought, well, certainly this person is going to confirm all my worst fears, that there is something deeply wrong with me and I am a problem and a mess, you know? And so I remember, you know, waiting in, um, it was, it was a psychologist in the basement of a church.

I don't know why I was in the basement, but a psychologist in the basement of a big church. And I just remember sweating in the waiting room and just being so afraid to see him going into his office and he had pictures of his family, which, you know, isn't always common, right? A lot of times therapists don't have pictures of their family.

Um, and I just thought, oh, they all look so normal. Like, oh gosh, I'm really gonna, Freak this guy out, you know, and, and he was just not worried. He was not bothered. He was just so calm and so accepting and, um, made me feel so safe, and then also helped me understand, right? Safety is essential. But then there's understanding, understanding, wow, this is what happened to you and this is what's happening inside of you.

Mm-hmm. And it just made such an impact because up until that point, I had been a, you know, a practicing Christian, which I still identify as, but I had gone to every prayer, prayer call, every Bible study, I'd memorized every scripture I could. And I'm not saying these aren't good things, they're great things, but they're just for the wrong medicine for what I needed, you know?

And so with him, I. You know what I actually needed and, and it was just transformative and um, and that's a big thing on my heart always is to destigmatize mental health to say, you know, if you're going to a therapist, they're not gonna tell you what's wrong with you. They're probably gonna make you feel less alone.

Yeah.

Gabi: Yeah. And I'd love to hear that. And you're right, people need to hear that and understand that. Like I know people in my life who have been afraid to go to therapy for those very same reasons. Cause there of course, yeah, there can be that stigma around it. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. And you don't want your worst fears about yourself to be confirmed.

Um, exactly. But the process of entering into a safe relationship like that where you can be vulnerable mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. And seen without shame Yeah. Is so empowering. Mm-hmm. And impactful.

Monica: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. And it's, yeah. And it's so much a part of healing is. That safe relationship, which then you learn to be with yourself as well.

Gabi: Mm-hmm. I love that. Can you, can you kind of talk to us a little bit more about creating safe spaces and what it means to be in a safe space?

Monica: Yeah. Well, I mean, I think that, you know, There's all different kinds of safe spaces to be created, right? So there's the professional safe space, like a, a, a, a therapist creates safety by, you know, unconditionally accepting the person by creating really healthy boundaries, right?

By not over, uh, let me think how to say this. Not going too fast in therapy, that's all uncommon thing that can happen is. Too fast, you'd think, oh, we'll just dive right in and that can be unsafe. So yeah, there's like a professional kind of safety of a healing, you know, professional. But then there's safety in relationships and that's where we know that we can kind of show up on the outside how we are on the inside.

Hmm. And be and be met still with love. Now love doesn't mean I condone everything you're doing as the best decision in the world. You know? Love means that I, that I accept you and I will be with you, you know, with what you bring, right?

Gabi: Yeah. Yeah. So how does going to show up in a professional safe space mm-hmm.

Affect how you show up in a relational safe space?

Monica: Like for me as a therapist,

Gabi: like for, for anyone in general. Mm-hmm.

 I mean, I could answer that question for myself. I know that it's made a huge impact for me to experience safety in a therapist's office and how that has changed how I can show up relationally.

But I'd love to hear from your perspective, like Yeah. How that feels for a person, what that might look like. Mm,

Monica: well, I think that safety is something that is experienced. You know, there's definitely great, great books about it, right? Like, you know, there's the old classic like clown the cloud and p and safe people, you know, it's a good one.

Um, but I think that safety is experiential and so it's just you, you understand more what it feels like in your nervous system to feel safe. Yeah. And to be safe. And so you understand more how to. Produce that in an environment and how to listen to cues when you may not be feeling safe or someone else may not be feeling safe.

Right. You can, I think you become more and more attuned to that the more that you experience it. That makes sense.

Gabi: Yeah. No, absolutely. Mm-hmm. Which is why. Going to a therapist can be so impactful. Cause that could be the first time or Oh yeah. That you really feel that sense of safety with another person.

Mm-hmm.

Monica: Right? Yeah, absolutely. And a big part of that is being heard, being seen, being validated, having your boundaries respected. These are all really important parts of emotional safety.

Gabi: Yeah. Yeah, absolutely. Thank you for that. I l I'm, yeah, I'm like so interested in just picking your brain cuz you're just brilliant.

Yeah. And I don't know if that couch behind you is the couch that you've filmed some reels on.

Monica: Well, so, so yeah, this the, actually that's my, that's where my clients set and then the, okay. The chair you can't see is where I sit, you know, for my reels. Yeah.

Gabi: Cool. Uhhuh cool. Yeah. Yeah. So for those of you who, who don't know, Monica has done some of these reels, um, where she's just sitting, you're just sit on your couch and you like, yeah, just talk.

Mm-hmm. Yeah. And I think that, I was really drawn to those videos. Mm-hmm. Because of that sense of safety. Mm-hmm. Just kind of like, you can tell you're obviously, I'm not there in the room with you. Sure. But you're leaning in, you're attuning. Yeah. You're extending compassion and. I think it's a really good taste of what someone could experience in a professional setting.

Mm-hmm. Um, mm-hmm. With a good therapist, right? Yes. Yes.

Monica: Yes. Cause in every profession they're, they're, you know, nobody's perfect. Right?

Gabi: It's a spectrum. Mm-hmm.

Monica: Yeah, for sure. That's a good way to put it.

Gabi: Yeah, for sure. Um, so for you. Mm-hmm. Back when you were in this office, in the church basement Yeah. Uhhuh, what, what did it feel like to kind of get out of that discomfort in your body of like, this is scary to mm-hmm.

Finding, oh, I am actually safe here. What, what was that experience actually like for you that was so impactful?

Monica: That's a great question. What was it like for me to actually feel safe? I think, um, I think what it was, the acceptance and then, um, my therapist actually, you know, and I have a different therapist now.

I just, I believe in going to therapy. If I'm gonna practice therapy and I believe I'm going to therapy in general, but my therapist then, Did something that is, you know, rare in therapy and he self-disclosed. Mm-hmm. And self-disclosure is like just the, you know, overly technical term for telling something about yourself at a very important time so that you know it has a therapeutic impact.

Yeah. And so he told me about something that had happened to him that was like, what had happened to me, and it just. It transformed everything for me. Cuz I thought, wait, but you're okay. Yeah. You're a professional. Like you're the, you're the guy that's a psychologist with the beautiful kids behind you and you're, and this happened to you.

Mm-hmm. And it just, it really, it showed the to me now, as you know, all these years later, the power of disclosure, the power of destigmatizing experiences or mental health diagnoses or, you know, emotions or hard things, you know? Mm-hmm. That. All. Oftentimes when we feel like we're alone, the second interpretation we have on that is.

And I'm bad, or yeah, this happened to me because something really is wrong with me, or it's just me. And so I think that's a big way that I had a transformative, safe experience. It was like, well, he seems okay. Wow, so maybe, maybe I could be okay too. And that's a big reason why I share my story, why I talk about things, why I write.

Because it's a way to, to do that, you know, to say, Hey, you're not the only one. Whether it's me saying I struggle with anxiety for years. There's no shame in that. Mm-hmm. It's just human, that's just being a human..

Yeah.

Gabi: Which I guess we're seeing more and more people being totally self disclosing.

Monica: Totally. Yes. All over,

Gabi: it's not like that TikTok and all over Instagram and all the things.

Yeah. Which of course there's pros and cons to all of that too, but Absolutely. Do you, do you see that that's made an impact on people even like their willingness to be open and share in therapy or come to therapy. I'm curious like what the impact it's made on your profession.

Monica: I, you know, I, it's a great question and I feel like I don't know, and I'll tell you why I don't know, because I started my career, you know, I've been a therapist for 15 years now.

Mm-hmm. And so when I started, I mean, First of all, there probably was face, I've just never used these things personally. Yeah. Facebook or Instagram, like maybe I did Instagram for a minute and then I was like, ah, this feels weird. I can't do it. Um, so I just never did those things. And they were, I'm sure were therapists writing and, but I never did any of that.

I was just so the secluded, you know, in the room, so. Mm-hmm. I have no idea. So every client I had never knew anything about me. Mm-hmm. And one of the biggest hurdles for me was, Melding these two worlds. Now I feel called to write publicly now I feel called to write, you know, speak publicly, but I've never done that as a practicing therapist, and so, wow.

I really don't know. So, so for my clients, some of my clients have found me online, of course, at this point, but I, but I never advertise it to them. And so that's just been something that I've had to learn how to allow to be, and I would say, I don't know how my clients feel, but I would say for the ones I know that have found me online, it's been just fine.

Mm-hmm. It's really, and and it's very different than how I was trained, which was don't tell anything to anybody. Right. You know? Right.

Gabi: Yeah. Yeah. Well, I don't know. That brings up a really good point, because you are very active on Instagram. Yeah. At least at this point. Sure. Um, and share amazing content like Yeah.

Um, and recently, like your quote cards and stuff have been so profound. Yeah. Um, and I think just really, really relatable to a lot of people. Mm-hmm. Yeah. But that's true. I, I actually haven't thought about that much. Mm-hmm. Because a lot of therapists. Are kind of in that same space where mm-hmm. Where, you know, you've been in private practice for so long mm-hmm.

And now, yeah. You feel this urge mm-hmm. To help as many people as you can, like online mm-hmm. As well. Mm-hmm. Yeah. Yeah. Um, what's that evolution been like? Like how long has this process been for you?

Monica: Oh gosh. Well it was so awkward at first for me. Yeah. I mean, it's, it's only been a few years and it, and it really was to serve the purpose of the work of writing and the podcast, you know, and I, and I've allowed Instagram organically to become, for me, an expression of writing.

Like I really do see it as a beautiful way to connect with people. But it, it started off again, cause I didn't have a lot of social media. Experience personally on purpose. Mm-hmm. Um, I'm just naturally a private person, believe it or not. Sure. Um, and so it just was super awkward and I just felt like, what am I doing?

Why am I doing this? But I felt really called to share. Mm-hmm. Certain things and to write and to be creative in a healing space. And so I think that's just an important thing to remember, that sometimes when we're called to something, it, it, it won't necessarily be easy and it, and it won't, you won't know what the heck you're doing and you may stumble and fall and feel awkward, but it doesn't mean it's the wrong calling.

Yeah. Right. And so, so I would say like, it was, it, it's been an evolution. Now I feel totally comfortable and just have accepted all these different parts of me. Wow. As part of the whole Yeah. You know, but it, but it was definitely super awkward at first for me. I don't know how it was out there watching me, but it was inside, it was awkward.

Gabi: Yeah. No, that totally makes sense. Absolutely. Yeah. And I, I kind of love that you just shared that like it was scary and awkward, but you felt called. Because don't we all kind of find ourselves in that space at one point or another?

Monica: I think so. Yeah. Doing anything new is gonna feel awkward. Yeah. And when you're called to something, it's gonna be new.

Gabi: Yeah. So how do you tread that line of like, I know I'm called, but this is really uncomfortable and moving into that like Hmm. In a titrated way. Yeah. So it's not too. Retraumatize yourself or overwhelm yourself. Mm-hmm. In an unhealthy way. What are your tips for that?

Monica: That's a great, that's a great question.

I think, I think. The first thing is to remember that ease something being easy is not confirmation of it being correct. Right. Love that. Mm-hmm. We, we so often have those two together, well, it's gonna, I'm gonna be totally peaceful if this is the right thing when, when your anxiety may be triggered, but it doesn't mean it's wrong.

So I think remembering that ease is not confirmation. Ease is great. I mean, sitting on the sofa and feeling easy is great, you know, but I think, I think more than that is always checking in with your. Like, what's my why? What's my why? Because that that'll keep you out of performance. That'll keep you out of trying to be like somebody else because your why is just for you.

Right? Yeah. And, and then I think, you know, good old-fashioned boundaries, you know, I mean, I really, um, really am boundaried, even though I'm on, on, you know, Instagram, I, Facebook, I'm officially on, I think, but it just loads there. I don't really know how to use it, um, which I'll learn something, but it just, you know, having really, really not strict.

Honoring boundaries to myself. You know, like, I, I don't need to look at this. I'm gonna put this away. I take long periods of time where I've just been totally off of it, you know? And I think that that's important. Yeah. Because it's, it is, it is. I, I don't really resonate when people say, this is not real life, cuz it is real.

I met you there. You're real work. This is real.

Gabi: Yeah. Right. Totally.

Monica: But this conversation is real. Mm-hmm. But it's just important. It's not your physical life too. Yeah. So it has to, you have to be able to keep everything, you know, just like your physical life. You have to have boundaries.

Gabi: Right. Totally. It, it is a piece of your real life, especially.

Absolutely. You know, so many people are using it in a professional capacity at this point. Yeah. Mm-hmm. Plus, you know, Post Covid. It's like, I can't even tell you how many friends I've made on social media that are real people.

Monica: Exactly. It's a real relationship.

Gabi: Yes. Mm-hmm. Exactly. But it's also true, like everything in our lives, the food we eat, the way we move our body, how much we sleep.

Yeah. There's all spaces for that. And this is.

Monica: Yes. The same. Absolutely. Yes. There has to be boundaries around it. Mm-hmm.

Gabi: Yeah. Yeah. I love that. Yeah. And you mentioned connect with your why, which we hear a lot. Yes. And I love that. Yes. And I, mm-hmm. I get it. Mm-hmm. But for someone who's always like, Seeing this connect with your why.

What is your why? Like what is, what does it mean?

Monica: Yeah. Oh gosh. You've got the best questions. Okay. So, you know, I mean, I think what it means is it's, um, and this is how I would think about it, is it's putting guardrails up in your life so that you don't get lost on the path, right? I feel like the why is the guardrails, like so, so if I'm doing this because I feel called to share about this, It helps me to stay within the guardrails and not get lost off in the weeds about, well I don't have as many followers as so and so, or this post didn't do as well as that thing, cuz that's actually not the point.

Mm-hmm. If one person was helped by what I shared, then I'm still within the why. I, I guess, I don't know if listeners can see my hands, but they're moving.

Gabi: Some will, some won't. Yeah.

Monica: Okay. Yeah. Moving parallel. Yes. Um, but yeah, so I just think the why helps us stay within, you know, what, why we're doing it.

The, the reason for it, you know, it is really guardrails.

Gabi: I love that. Yeah, that was a great description. Thank you for that. I very much appreciate that. So, a little bit off topic of where we are right now, but something that I would love to hear about is, um, cuz you mentioned earlier like you were. Going to church, you were memorizing scripture.

Mm-hmm. Praying all of those things, but still felt like, yeah, there's something really going on, which, mm-hmm. A lot of people can also relate to. Yeah. Oh yeah. I mean, I know a lot of people my age. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Specifically. Mm-hmm. Like we grew up in this certain, mm-hmm. Um, Culture of like faith fixes everything, maybe even anti therapy.

Mm-hmm. Sure. And so to move into like understanding there are so many different ways that God has given us to heal. Yeah, I would, I would love to hear kind of what your faith. Metamorphosis has been like,

Monica: mm mm Well that's good. Okay, so my faith, I, I really do love your questions. My faith metamorphosis would be, you know, I wasn't raised in a, like, um, a, a evangelical Christian household.

I was raised in a Catholic household, but nominally, my parents got married Catholic and they. Sent me to the Catholic classes because that's what you, that's what they promised when they got married Catholic. Mm-hmm. But, but, um, they were not necessarily going to church. I just went on Wednesday nights, you know.

Mm-hmm. And did all the things. And so, so it was, you know, I would say culturally, and my dad is Spanish, he's from Spain. And so culturally Catholicism was just a part of the culture, you know? Sure. But it wasn't like a real, for me, in my home, I know that it is for many practicing Catholics. For me, in my home, it was a nomin.

Cultural thing. And so, um, you know, when I was a teenager, I was, I, I was already in the throes of suffering from anxiety and ran into a lot of very evangelical people at school and really learned about God and became a Christian, um, you know, that way and went to church and, and really just got into it, you know, and, um, I.

I've always been uncomfortable with organized religion. I've always been uncomfortable with, um, so many things that the Christian Church has done. So I've never been comfortable fully identifying as that way, even though I am, I would call it my inconvenient truth. Mm-hmm. Because there's so many things that are really hard for me about it.

Yeah. Um, But, so I would say personally for me though, my, I have never been able to not be fully honest about how God met me in my suffering. Mm-hmm. I really, really, really, and still do have felt like I, I will, I cannot deny my experience no matter how uncomfortable I am with Christianity. Mm-hmm. My experience with meeting God, I really can't, and I think that God saved my life.

And I think that that is why I ended up in therapy and why I ended up being a therapist. You know, I would just pray, God, please help me. Mm-hmm. Please help me. And all those prayers have been answered, not in the way that I thought. I never thought that I'd be here. I thought I'd be an artist. I didn't think I'd be doing being a therapist, but I.

Really all those, all those prayers were answered. And so my metamorphosis today is, you know, I would say I still identify as a Christian, very inclusively. So I work with a lot of people wounded by the Christian Church. Yeah. And, and so, so I'm really careful in my language, it feels, I'm sure you know, since we follow each other online, I'm very, very careful with my language because there's been so much language that has hurt so many people.

Yeah. And so I really am just trying to. As, and I know I mess up all the time, just intentional and careful as I can, knowing that I believe all healing you. Can come from God, whether I whatev whatever words I use. Yeah. You know, so yeah. That's, I would say, would be my, my story.

Gabi: Yeah. That's beautiful. Thank you for sharing.

Um, I can definitely relate in many ways. Yeah. I'm sure others can as well. I agree. It can, it can be uncomfortable and inconvenient, however, it's also your truth. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. The very fact that you're here today, Yeah. Is your evidence of mm-hmm. What God has done in your life? Um mm-hmm. But that doesn't mean that.

You're going to be speaking in a certain mm-hmm. Language, a certain lean that's out there. Right. And especially hurtful to a lot of people. But that's, mm-hmm. I mean, I think that's what I love about a lot of people like you in this space right now. Mm-hmm. Is, yeah. Um, the language is changing slowly but surely.

The language is, To mm-hmm. In my opinion, reflect Jesus better. Yeah.

Monica: Yeah.

Gabi: Um, yeah. Honestly, so, yeah. I love that you shared that. I really appreciate that and I, I'd love to hear like, cuz I know you're in the process of writing a manuscript, which is a big deal.

Monica: It's a huge deal.

Gabi: Yeah. Uhhuh. But would just love to hear about your writing project and what's coming for.

Yeah.

Monica: Well, you know, I'm back in my therapy office now. I actually took the whole, that's part why I haven't been doing my reels. I took the whole month of March off from seeing clients as like a sabbatical to get started on the book. Awesome. And, and I would say about the book, you know what, what I hope it'll be is me putting my hand in someone else's hand and them not feeling alone.

Like, I'm just gonna, we're gonna talk a lot about. Pain and identifying it and a lot of validation and a lot of destigmatizing things and, and I hope that the book will be like a actually. So much of what I try to create, I want it to be a therapeutic experience itself. Yeah. And so I'm hoping that the book will feel like that.

So I'm trying to craft it in that way. Um, but it's been all, it's been a long time coming. It's why I got on Instagram in the first place, and. You know, I, I really like to say about it. I'm glad I didn't give up. And so if there's anybody listening, whatever it is, maybe it's not a book for them. I don't know what it would be.

But I remember talking to my husband saying like, I really wanna write, like, I really wanna write. And he's like, well, maybe you should write, you know, like these years ago, you know? And I, and so I just started, you know, and I, and this was my dream to get a publishing contract and it happened and, but I'd always heard people say that, and I was like, well, that's for.

That's for them. That's for them. You know? And, and that's, that's part of the healing is realizing No, it's for you too. And so, yeah. You know, for anyone listening, I would love just to, for them to know it's for them too. Whatever. It's, yeah. Whatever it is to keep going towards that thing. Yeah.

Gabi: And co to continue reminding yourself of that through the process.

Oh yeah. Cause I'm sure you've hit up against like, what am I doing?

Monica: Oh my gosh. Yeah. It's, it's a rollercoaster. Some days I feel like, so excited and some days I feel like, What am I doing? I have no idea what I'm doing. How is this gonna come together? And then other days it feels like trying to fit an ocean into a straw.

Like I'm just like, I, it's just too much. Like I can't do that.

Gabi: So, yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Relatable. Relatable content. Monica. Yeah. So, so good. Well, I cannot wait to read it. I mean, you're creating it and you are very gifted at creating therapeutic moments for people. So I'm, I'm sure the book will reflect the same, and I'm very excited.

I'll have to have you back on the podcast and promote. Yeah, I will. I would be honored. I would be honored. Yeah, that would be, I'd love that. Yeah, that would absolutely love that. Well, I so appreciate your time today. Very, very glad we got to connect and I, yeah. Anything that you would like to share about, um, any ways to connect with you Yeah.

Or anything else that you have Yeah. Inside your brain that you'd like to share before we go. We'd love to hear that too.

Monica: Um, I think that, you know, Instagram, @monicadicristina. I think that on top of that though, is my newsletter, my CK that I really love writing on. I really love hearing from people about, I really love hanging out there.

So that's on, that's on my Instagram too. And then the podcast is kind of. Still happening, kind of taking breaks as I just create this new thing. Yeah. So, yeah.

Gabi: Yeah. And totally worth going back and listening to old episodes too, anyway. Mm-hmm.

Monica: So good. Yeah. Yeah. I hope so. Yeah. Yeah. There's a lot of meditations there that I hope are timeless.

Gabi: Yeah, they're wonderful. Highly recommend for sure. Well, I will make sure to include all your info in the show notes. Okay, thank you. So anyone who's thank's listening you, if you wanna find Monica, um, you can go click on those in the show notes and I'll be excited to see how this writing project unfolds.

And, um, thank you guys to see what, what else happens as you move into your future in all of this. Next phase of your life. Very excited. Thank you.

Monica: Thank you so much. And thank you for, um, having me on and for such a great conversation and such good questions.

Gabi: Absolutely. And I will connect with you again soon.

Monica: Okay, sounds good. Bye.

Bye.