JoJo spent decades helping others. After an ethics complaint, she felt broken and questioned her worth. Journaling, faith, and time helped her rediscover self-love and separate her identity from her career.

Even Jesus needed to retreat to the mountains.

JoJo is a seasoned counselor in her early 60s. Before becoming a therapist, she spent years as an elementary school teacher, mentor, and caregiver. She entered the counseling profession later in life—driven by deep compassion and a calling to walk alongside others.

She is warm, spiritually grounded, and generous with her time. She still believes counseling is sacred work. But somewhere along the way, JoJo began to lose herself in it.

JoJo has what younger clinicians would call “wisdom energy.” Her clients love her for her storytelling, her calm voice, and her sincere belief in their worth. She has always seen herself as a strong woman—resilient, dependable, and called by God to be of service.

She doesn’t talk much about burnout. For most of her career, she thought fatigue was just part of the job. You pour out, then refill when you can. But when a client filed an ethics complaint against her, everything shattered.

The complaint shook her to the core. JoJo suddenly questioned everything:

She withdrew emotionally and lost confidence. She described seasons when “all my strength leaked out”—when even getting up felt heavy.

She feared retirement not because of finances, but because of meaning. Who would she be without this work?

JoJo began journaling again—something she hadn’t done since her teaching days. She started writing prayers. Processing her grief. Naming her confusion.

She stopped trying to figure it all out and let herself sit in the not-knowing. Her faith didn’t “fix it.” But it held her.

One day during a long walk, she remembered a passage from Scripture:

Even Jesus withdrew to the mountains to pray.

That was her turning point.

If rest was good enough for Jesus, why did she believe she had to work through the pain in silence?