The Work Begins Before We Meet

The process of working together does not begin in the session.

It begins the moment you reach out.

The time between first contact and meeting is not just practical.

It is relational.

It is the first place where patterns begin to show themselves.

Some people move through this stage with ease.

Others find it frustrating, unclear, or charged with emotion.

What I have come to notice is this:

People often experience me in line with what they expect to experience.

If there is an expectation of ease, the process tends to feel straightforward.

If there is an expectation of obstacles, the process can feel difficult, or distant.

I do not consciously change how I am.

And yet, the experience can feel very different.

This is also where boundaries come into play —

not as something restrictive,

but as something that allows the space to feel safe and grounded.

For me, this stage is not separate from the work.

It is the beginning of it.

It is an opportunity to notice:

How do you approach something new?

Where do you lean in, and where do you hold back?

What do you expect to happen?

There is no right or wrong way to move through this.

Only an invitation to become aware of it.