Hello NPTC Interns,

Wow…. WE DID IT!!! Three months of internship are complete. We’re a quarter of the way there! I know it can feel like we’re just doing what we’re supposed to be doing, but I wanted to take this time to congratulate all of you and remind you that what we do is not easy. You’ve made it so far in your education, and you deserve to be here! We can do this!

As I reflect on my own personal experience with internship and NPTC, I am compelled to share some self-affirmations and coping strategies I have implemented to get me through the tough days (there have been several and there will be many more).

As we move further away from the reality of being a student, I have found it helpful to remind myself that I am only on the clock for 8 hours a day and 40 hours a week. Ethically, I believe that I have a responsibility to use the time outside of work to rest, relax, and connect with the things that help me enjoy the life I live. For me, my areas of enjoyment are playing video games, watching sports, listening to music, and walking down a trail near my apartment. I hope this section of the newsletter prompts you to identify your sources of joy.

I also have been very fortunate to connect with my cohort here at Burrell. We have used each other for support on the clock, whether it was consultation or reaching out to a friend. We have also leaned on each other for support off the clock by trying out new restaurants, playing card games together, and just seeing the town. A difficult aspect of our job is it is not very well understood by those who are not in the field: therefore, I believe it is important to find people who support you within the field. I hope that you all find the time to prioritize connecting with your peers and working as a team to learn and grow as much as possible on internship!

Emmie, Sarah, and I also have plans to foster connection among all cohorts soon. You can all expect to see an intern Discord, surveys to gauge how everyone is doing throughout the internship year, virtual game nights, and possibly even in-person get-togethers.

If you ever have any ideas for activities and opportunities for connection with us NPTC interns, please contact me, Emmie, or Sarah. We look forward to getting to know you all more throughout the internship year!

Hi NPTC Interns –

As we come to the end of the first quarter of our internship year, I’ve been thinking a lot about this unique space we occupy — no longer students, but not yet fully licensed psychologists. It’s a liminal place, both thrilling and a bit disorienting at times. We’re trusted with real responsibility, real clients, and real impact, yet we’re still very much in training — growing, shaping, and learning with each session, each assessment, and each supervision.

There’s a particular kind of balance we’re trying to strike: holding onto the humility of a learner while stepping into the confidence of a professional. Some days, that balance feels seamless; other days, it feels like walking a tightrope. But maybe that’s exactly where the growth happens — in that space between comfort and uncertainty.

I’ve noticed that as I settle into my role, my clinical voice is beginning to take shape. We’re all in the process of discovering what feels authentic in the therapy room — how we connect, how we conceptualize, and how we show up for our clients. It’s an exciting process — one that’s not about “arriving” but about unfolding.

Carl Rogers once said, “The good life is a process, not a state of being. It is a direction, not a destination.” That sentiment feels especially true now. Each case, supervision, and peer consultation adds another brushstroke to the clinician we’re becoming.

So here’s to embracing the in-between — to trusting that even when we feel uncertain, we’re moving in the right direction. We’re not just learning how to be psychologists; we’re becoming them, moment by moment. And I am so excited to be on this journey with all of you — to learn alongside this group as we each find our voice, grow our confidence, and shape our professional identities together in the months ahead.

As I write this post, I am astonished that we are already a quarter of the way through our internship year! The past three months have involved a flurry of activity and learning. It seems like our orientation took place long ago and simultaneously like we all met in Indianapolis just last week. I hope that you all have kept in touch through didactics, in-person events, the Discord group chat, etc. 

This has been my first experience working in a community mental health setting, specifically. However, much of my heart and passion lies in rural communities due to spending my childhood and parts of my early career in rural areas. So, I am thrilled to be helping promote accessible mental health services for folks in rural Indiana. Despite some “growing pains” making sense of documentation requirements and timelines unique to the CMHC setting, I have appreciated the opportunity to develop my familiarity and clinical skills within this system and, more importantly, the clients who seek our services. Nevertheless, I am doubtful that I will both learn and remember the innumerable acronyms present in the CMHC setting! 

On the more personal side, I experienced relatively few challenges in my move and adjustment from small town Michigan to small town Indiana. I find myself missing some familiar regional stores and gas stations that haven’t quite made it 60 or so miles south from my most recent Michigan home. I have also noticed that cities and roads here do not seem to adhere to a grid as often as I would have expected, which can create some minor inconveniences when combined with my directional and attentional challenges. Until now, I have always been able to orient myself somewhat by knowing that Lake Michigan was to the west. Without my Great Lakes acting as landmarks, I have become much more grateful for GPSs and maps these past few months. In all seriousness though, I have enjoyed getting to know the people and areas near my site in Syracuse, IN and across a few of Indiana’s northern counties. 

As I joke with many clients, I am very nosy. So, as I wrap up this post, I would like to extend my invitation to you to share your experiences with adjusting to a new area and/or type of work as well! I also hope that you will not hesitate to communicate any concerns, items of note, and successes with Lindsey Maldonado Sevilla and I (your Great Lakes Region co-chief interns) during the rest of our internship year.

Hello Fellow NPTC Interns,

I can’t believe we’re already a couple of months into internship! I wanted to use this space to share some good news from our region, celebrate one another’s successes, and reflect on the importance of self-advocacy and self-care as we move through this busy year.

🎉 Good News & Victories
Our cohort has had a lot to celebrate recently!

• I defended and passed my dissertation in September, and my family and I are also excited to share that we’re expecting our second child in May 2025!
• Cait successfully defended her dissertation on September 20th, 2025, and published her article “Student Age and Racial Disparities in Teachers’ Discipline Evaluations.”
• Iloria was awarded the IPF Student Research Grant to support her research on postpartum childbirth trauma management among Black mothers.
• Haley published her first first-author publication in the International Journal of Group Psychotherapy, titled “Dead and Hard of Hearing Clients in Mixed-Ability Psychotherapy Groups: Therapist Perspectives and Practical Insights.” 

These are just a few of the exciting updates so far. I’m sure more good news will be shared soon!

💻 First Cohort Hangout
Because our region is so spread out, we decided to host our first hangout via Zoom—and it was wonderful to connect! We shared updates about our internship experiences, discussed postdoctoral plans, and offered one another encouragement and perspective. It felt refreshing to have open conversations about our goals and challenges. We plan to continue holding these virtual hangouts throughout the year, so stay tuned for the next one!

💙 A Reflection on Self-Advocacy & Self-Care
A few years ago, I told my husband that I disliked the saying, “Put your own oxygen mask on first.” It felt selfish to me. I’ve always been someone who wants to help others first. He gently explained that if you don’t secure your own mask, you may not be able to help anyone else at all. That simple conversation changed how I think about self-care and advocacy.

In our roles, we’re often excellent at advocating for our clients, but not always for ourselves. Preparing to welcome a baby during internship has given me many opportunities to practice speaking up for my needs, both personally and professionally. I hope this serves as a reminder for all of us: taking care of ourselves allows us to show up more fully for others.

Let’s continue celebrating one another’s victories, staying connected, and remembering to “put our own masks on first.”

Fellow Interns, 

 I want to start by expressing how PROUD I am of everyone for getting this far into internship. As we easily get wrapped up into the day to day of internship I want you all to take a moment to be proud of yourselves and realize how far you have come on your own journey! I know each and every one of you is out there touching the lives of those in your communities and managing any challenges that come your way.  

If Dr. Bauman has taught the CHCW interns anything so well, it is to engage in gratitude and express it often. Therefore, I want to express gratitude towards each of you for your willingness to engage in didactics, your kindness to your fellow interns, and your readiness to take on whatever comes your way at each of your clinics. I challenge each of you to keep thinking of moments of gratitude for family, friends, supervisors, patients, providers, or anyone you interact with at all and continue to spread that because we all like to know that what we do doesn’t go unnoticed.  

 As the holidays approach and the days are shorter, it’s my hope that you are all engaging in activities that refill your cup and bring you joy. I will be looking forward to us reconnecting in person after a few months apart! I think it would be so fun to share any pictures in the next newsletter! So feel free to share any pictures you would like to share with me or any of the other chief interns to have in our next newsletter (which will be in a few months) or it will just be pictures of my dogs!  

 We are so close to being psychologists!