Therapist Thoughts

At 37, I'm pivoting. After 15 years of sharing the aesthetics that inspire me—the fashion, the design, the entertaining—I'm finally asking why any of it matters. This is the essay where I stop hiding behind the beautiful and start claiming what I actually am: a therapist, a writer, and someone who knows how to find beauty even in the darkest moments.

This outfit was a dream because I actually did dream of it. Meant for another evening with another backlit backdrop per slide 4 on my Canva-made Mallorcan itinerary, I was supposed to wear this sparkly see-through number on the swanky rooftop bar of Hotel Jumeirah. However, to avoid a hike up the hillside and a meltdown from my five-year-old, we settled on a well-reviewed paella spot along the pedestrian pathway, savoring the golden hour with gelato afterwards, my extended ar

There's a word for the opposite of a trigger, and almost no one uses it. We all know what a trigger is by now — the term has fully escaped the therapy room. A trigger is a cue that drops your nervous system into threat: the tone in an email, a certain song, the smell of a hospital. Your body reacts before your mind has voted on the matter. The lesser-known truth is that the same system runs in the other direction. The polyvagal researcher Deb Dana gave that direction a name:

The Tradwife Novel That Blames Women.

My child asked for a pirates and cheese themed birthday party—And I delivered

I sit here this morning, writing at 5:30am on a Wednesday, before my son wakes up, and I start seeing back to back therapy patients. This is the only time of day I have the wherewithal to form a fully fledged thought and make a plan for my weekly content on now several social platforms including Instagram, Substack, Shop My, Pinterest and my original blog turned brand website, MonicaGisele.com. The things I like to share range from detailed accounts on why I chose a hotel roo

She wants a brand new episode of RHOBH, Hillstone on a silver platter, and 45 minutes of no human contact until she’s fully defrosted... Just kidding! Here's what she really wants from you, from a therapist's perspective. TIME TO DECOMPRESS Life can be super busy and overwhelming, for better or worse. Regardless we are all more apt for romance, connection and goodtime when we truly feel restored. Sometimes the gift of time to recollect ourselves is priceless; whether it’s a l

Not to be dramatic but I think this might be my favorite city in the US. Which is something I've never really thought about, but if asked I would have most likely said New York or Miami for all the reasons you'd expect. But given my good friend was getting married in her hometown I become very excited at the prospect of visiting now my third southern city. Which I will admit I was already turned onto for a number of reasons before my visit; the jazz, the architecture, the int

My son is likely the exception to the rule, he has a generally engaged and calm demeanor and there’s only one of him! We taking our son to restaurants from a young age, mostly for my own benefit! But we have had success and to preface this conversation, these tips are from my own experience, including this last supper on our trip to Italy in the most beautiful of places in Verona! This is not intended as parenting advice, just things that have helped us along the way. Whateve

Dear Verona, At last, we meet again, this time with a husband and kid! When you last saw me I was 20, fashion-obsessed and ready to save the world and spoke Italia more fluently. Now at 35 I call Los Angeles home, am in private practice and still spend all my money on clothes and traveling. Because of you I took a chance and moved many miles away from home after college and have established Los Angeles as my adult home. Because of you I cherish traveling and have faced many f

Smell the Citrus! Well we found a place to call home, at least for the next several years, while we embark on a forever home. After six wonderful years in our Brentwood pied-à-terre, we have said goodbye to our first home as a married couple and parents to Pearl, Muffy and Parker for greener pastures. And greener we got. This home I promptly named Citrus Court is everything our condo didn’t have that I have been yearning for. A green space with with ample opportunities for ou

The Southbay is a beachside area of Los Angeles, less known to the rest of world. We tend to think of Lalaland including Beverly Hills and Hollywood, but it’s a huge metropolis made up of vastly different neighborhoods and regions, all with their own very distinctive cultures. The Southbay is just like it sounds, a region of many ocean facing towns south of central Los Angeles that include most notably Manhattan Beach, Redondo Beach, Hermosa Beach, Palos Verdes and El Segundo

Thank you for all the beautiful memories so far and the future ones I know my family, friends, and community will build again someday again. From countless seaside walks, lively meals with loved ones, gorgeous sunsets and picturesque backdrops, this town has remained a staple in my life here in Los Angeles for the past 14 years. A slice of California perfection, a place I am so beyond blessed to be a neighbor to and where so many of both mine and Parker’s little community of

Beyond the mistletoe, lassic movies, enticing treats, ornate decorations and overhaul of lofty expectations for happiness, altruism and gratitude, lies the not so jingle worthy reality that holidays can also be hectic, stressful, overindulgent, lonely and expensive. When our friends, families, partners, kids and coworkers can bombard us with small talk, uncomfortable political discussions, the overconsumption and ugliness of too much food and booze. When we are reminded of th

I’m currently mourning the loss I thought this country had made… Just as I was for the first time in 2016, several times after and now again today. I am still deeply saddened by the way our country voted against women, against freedom, against democracy and respectful rhetoric but I’M NOT AT ALL SURPRISED. To all the women out there who are scared, I see you and your pain. TO ALL THE YOUNG GIRLS AND BOYS WHO ARE TRIGGERED BY A RAPIST BECOMING OUR PRESIDENT, AGAIN, I see yo

Just turned 35 but was born 50 . What a year; it feels like my official coming out following an extended pandemic stress, health scares, building my private practice, starting to travel again and watching my baby grow into a preschool aged, talking toddler, the most exciting perhaps of them all. The last five years have been a whirlwind since I turned 30, got married to the love of my life, remodeled our first home together, adopted our girls and birthed Parker! Everything in

Say what you will about her, but she was a huge part of pop culture in the early aughts and original influencer. Hence why I choose her memoir for my book club pick. She started a cultural phenomenon, the first woman to capitalize on her likeness without a “justifiable talent” per traditional routes like a movie studio, record label or fashion magazine. Influencing is an industry predominantly made for and by women, and hence why it’s still so undervalued by society despite