Introducing Your Village Journey

Hello from Your Village Journey! We are so glad you are here and we would like to warmly welcome you to our community.

Dr. Jenn & Dr. Jess decided to start YVJ as part of our own journeys and growth. We are fortunate to have satisfying and sustainable careers – we not only love what we do as clinical psychologists, but truly believe in the power of psychology and its ability to help people and make a difference. Through our work in healthcare systems, our leadership in psychology organizations, and our engagement in our communities, we have seen firsthand how much unmet need there is, how challenging it can be to find good help, and how much potential there is for psychology to do more. 

The two of us are busy working parents who are well aware of the struggles facing individuals and families in today’s world. Overscheduled calendars, hectic days, the juggling act of the personal and the professional, and a seemingly endless flow of communication and demand in all directions. And while help and support are out there – they are definitely not always easy to find, affordable or accessible to all, or realistic with other demands. 

We both come from creative backgrounds and enjoy artistic expression. While our careers have been fruitful, we realized they were also lacking in creativity and fun and that this aspect of ourselves had stagnated. While chatting one day and talking about all of these things in different capacities, we realized that we were both wanting to do more, feeling compelled to help more people, and missing the more creative aspects of our selves… 

And so, the seeds for YVJ were planted. What if we could use psychology to do more, on a bigger scale, to reach more people? What if we could take what we know and package it in fun and creative ways to make psychology easy to understand and more enjoyable? What if we could write blogs and stories that are quick and engaging but also packed with psychological science, tips, and skills?

So here we are – with Your Village Journey as our place to do just that. We loved the concept of a village as we truly believe that it does “take a village” to succeed, thrive, and find contentment in life. It was also important to us to frame the village as a living and changing thing – while it can be tempting to view it as stagnant or fixed – we as people are not. We learn, we grow, we change, and it is important that our networks and communities grow and change with us. Hence the journey – it is about finding and growing your village but also continuing to develop it over time. 

The mission of YVJ is to share the power of psychology in fun and creative ways so that anyone who wants access to this information can have it, and can use to improve their own lives. We do this by:

• Sharing psychological principles and techniques in fun and creative ways
• Teaching skills that promote healthier living and improved relationships
• Providing parents and educators with tools to help foster mental wellness and resilience in their children (stay tuned for an exciting kids book series we are working on!)
• Creating a community that provides science-backed information and resources 

Our hope is that YVJ becomes a part of your journey and helps you to nurture and grow your own village. After all, who wouldn’t benefit from more information and support? Here’s to having some fun and laughs along the way. 

Joy in the Journey, 

Jenn & Jess 

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