We had the good fortune of connecting with Tracey Lamers and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Tracey, can you share a quote or affirmation with us?
“The wound is the place where the light enters you” Rumi

I went through an existential crisis after the deaths of my oldest brother and both parents in a span of 18 months. As a result I found a meditation teacher who was also a therapist. In this process of learning mindfulness meditation I was able to grieve one moment at a time. Grief is not a linear process that you magically end with acceptance. It is life long journey that gets woven into the fabric of your life. So much loss; the wound of grief was where I began to move towards my life’s purpose. Difficult as it was it taught me to live with intention as I realized the fragility of time. As a result I wanted to help others in their grief journey. I returned to school to get a Masters in Transpersonal Counseling Psychology. I offer mindfulness based grief support groups as well as individual grief work in my private psychotherapy practice.

I love this quote by the Sufi poet Rumi because it is applicable to so much of life. The challenging times in my life have lead me to the most growth. One must know darkness to know light. ok

What should our readers know about your business?
I am a psychotherapist in private practice in Boulder, CO.
I am grounded, insightful and present. I will root for clients and encourage them with sensitivity and compassion to help them reach their full potential. My therapeutic approach is mindfulness based. I specialize in: anxiety, attachment, grief/loss, life transitions, LGBTQIA issues, caregiver stress, relationship issues, women’s issues and college stress. I offer mindfulness based grief support groups. I have a horticulture background & we can co-create a memorial garden in memory of a deceased loved one. As both psychotherapist & professional gardener, I offer a wholistic approach that includes the use of plants and herbs to help ground clients and get them out of their racing thoughts and more connected to their body & the present moment.

I had a gardening business in Wisconsin for 20 years before taking the leap to go to graduate school and become a therapist. Having been self-employed before I knew the challenges that starting a private practice would bring. My work as a gardener was a visual display and it spoke for itself. I did not have to advertise. My business grew by word of mouth and by people witnessing my work and inquiring with me directly. In an area where there are lots of psychotherapist there was a new challenge. How to get people to find me. Clients come through word of mouth, Psychology Today, referrals from clients or other therapists. I am good at running a business, but not so good at marketing myself. This piece is a work in progress as I am working to develop a new website and a podcast about grief. One big lesson I have learned is to trust that things will work out. The more you stress about it the more that energy shows up. If you let go and trust, things fall into place more readily.

Covid was a challenging time for my business as many people lost their jobs or were unable to afford the expense of therapy. Thankfully I was able to move clients to virtual and I made it to the other side.

I have had a lot of death in my family which first happened when I was 10 years old and my older brother died of a brain aneurysm. Life becomes very serious for a child when they experience a death loss. There is a constant fear of who will die next?
My parents died 105 days apart, 13 months after my oldest brother died. This set me on a journey of what was next for me; what was my life’s purpose? I was able to navigate that overwhelming time in my life by learning about mindfulness meditation. I was able to be with my grief one moment at a time. If you are paying attention you can see the slight shift in the experience from one moment to the next. These challenging experiences made me want to hold space for others in their grief. To give them permission to grief in their own way; not on a prescribed timeline of stages. I can never know exactly how another feels, but I can help them recognize and navigate their grief journey. I am also the Clinical Director of Camp Erin Denver and grief camp for kids ages 6-17. I am passionate about this camp as I wished I had had this resource available to me when at 10 my older brother died.

A Japanese gardener put a phone booth is his garden where he could call and speak to his deceased cousin. After a tsunami in Japan that had killed 15,000 people he opened the phone booth to the public (The Wind Phone). In 2022 I decided to build a wind phone for the grieving kids at Camp Erin. They are able to make calls to their dead loved ones in the privacy of a booth set out in nature. I am proud to have created this and have witnessed the impact on these children.

I have a lot of life experience and wisdom that I bring to my private practice.
I was a competitive runner and cyclist and marathon cross country ski racer for many years. I also competed in triathlons from sprint to Ironman distance. I have a zest for life that is infectious. In my free time I enjoy hiking, trail running, cycling, gardening, cross country skiing, playing pickleball, and absorbing the healing power of nature.

Rebranding coming soon:
www.thesproutedmind.com
To sprout means to grow, to come forth. People have approximately 60,000 thoughts per day. 75% are often repetitive thoughts and mostly negative. We have the ability to change what we focus on. With a large portion of our repetitive thoughts being negative, it takes conscious effort to grow and to find a new path for our conditioned thought process. Grow the good thoughts. As a therapist my goal is to help people begin to grow in a new direction by mindfully noticing their thought patterns and actively working to grow new more positive pathways of thinking.
Another goal of mine is to engage people with the healing power of nature. In simplest form to connect them to plants and to the land. This is critical for our climate that is in crisis that people engage with and care for mother earth. I taught Horticulture Therapy in the Wilderness Therapy program at Naropa University for give years. I witnessed the healing power of nature as it relates to the health of the mind.

For more information contact:
tracey.lamers@gmail.com
720-583-3593

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
First up a concert at Red Rocks starting with a tale gate picnic

There are endless breweries to visit, but with time restraints I would take them to Odd13 Brewery in Lafayette and Four Noses of Broomfiled. Many of their beers are gluten reduced which is a bonus.

Hiking, hiking and more hiking … to Odesssa Lake in Rocky Mountain National Park, the Mesa trail of Chautauqua,
Walker’s Ranch.

Food – Sushi Den, Ras Kassa’s Ethiopian Lafayette, Root Down, Zeal,

Watching the sunset from Waneka Lake
A drive up Flagstaff to see a mountain view
Hiking Flora Peak in Winter Park to see the Continental Divide

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Mare Chapman my mentor and teacher

Chapman, M. Unshakeable Confidence: The freedom to be our authentic selves: mindfulness for women.
Madison, WI: Chapman: 2017.

My colleague and friend Diane Israel who encouraged me to look into the Mindfulness Based Psychotherapy program at Naropa University. Sadly she died in 2021

Sara Chadil – The Volunteer Coordinator for Camp Erin Denver Kids Grief Camp

Website: https://www.traceylamers.com

Linkedin: Tracey A Lamers, MA, LPC

Other: Psychology Today – Tracey A Lamers, MA, LPC

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