Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Jessica Thompson. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Jessica , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Was there a defining moment in your professional career? A moment that changed the trajectory of your career?

The defining moment of my career came wrapped in a hospital blanket and placed in my arms with a soft, bewildering cry. When I had my first daughter, I went in with the glossy expectations many of us are handed: you get pregnant, you go to the hospital, the doctor delivers the baby, and then—cue the happy music—you go home and live out the joyful chaos of new motherhood. I thought that’s just how it went.

But that was not my story. What followed was a blur of disconnection—from my body, from my daughter, and from the version of motherhood I had imagined. I remember sitting there in the fog of postpartum and thinking, “I never want to feel this way again.” That moment cracked something open in me.

I decided to return to work part-time as a mental health therapist, mostly because I needed something familiar. But what I found was something transformative. I began specializing in supporting mothers who were navigating postpartum depression, anxiety, and birth trauma—often silently and with so much shame. It was like the universe handed me a mirror and said, “Look. This is what you went through. Now use it.”

I had no idea there was an entire field dedicated to supporting women in this chapter of life. But once I found it, there was no turning back. It felt like healing in real time—both for me and for the women I worked with. Now, my deepest passion is helping mothers reconnect to themselves, reclaim their stories, and realize they’re not lost—they’re just becoming.

Jessica , love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I’m Jessica Thompson—a perinatal mental health therapist, certified doula, and the founder of Intuitively Well Therapy and Empowered and Rising. My work sits at the intersection of motherhood, healing, and intuition. I support women and families during some of the most transformative seasons of life: pregnancy, healing after birth, early postpartum, and the long, winding path of motherhood.

I didn’t start out knowing I’d land here. I’ve been a therapist for almost a decade, but everything changed after I became a mother myself. My own postpartum experience cracked me wide open. What I thought would be the most joyful, natural transition of my life turned out to be disorienting and lonely. That unraveling is what led me to specialize in perinatal mental health—because I realized just how many women silently struggle and how few spaces exist where they can process their experiences with depth, compassion, and honesty.

Through Intuitively Well Therapy, I offer individual therapy sessions (both in-person in Sandy, UT and online across Utah). I help women across generations and seasons of life reconnect with themselves, process trauma and grief, and find meaning in their experiences. Whether you’re navigating the landscape of pregnancy-postpartum, motherhood, grief & loss, sexual health struggles, or identity shifts, my mission is to hold compassionate space for your healing. I also facilitate monthly group sessions for birth trauma, focused on processing birth stories and supporting emotional recovery.

With Empowered and Rising, I’ve stepped into the world of birth consulting and doula support. I offer one-on-one birth and postpartum planning services for families who want to approach their experience with clarity, confidence, and emotional grounding. I also train and consult with other doulas and therapists to help them integrate mental health-informed practices into their work. This branch of my work is still growing, but I envision it becoming a hub for education, retreats, virtual community, and soulful preparation for birth and beyond.

What sets me apart? I’ve lived this. I’ve sat on both sides of the couch. I’m not here to hand out cookie-cutter advice or gloss over the hard stuff. My work is deeply intuitive, collaborative, and rooted in the belief that women already hold so much inner wisdom—we just need the right support to access it. I bring humor, heart, and a creative lens into the room, and I love helping people feel more human, more whole, and more connected to who they really are.

I’m most proud of the moments when a client says, “I feel like myself again,” or “This version of me is new, but I like her.” That’s the magic. That’s the work.

Whether someone finds me for therapy, consulting, doula support, or just a voice that resonates on social media, I want them to know this: you don’t have to do it all perfectly. You don’t have to do it all alone. And becoming a mother—or healing from the experience of it—can be a doorway back to yourself.

Putting training and knowledge aside, what else do you think really matters in terms of succeeding in your field?

Honestly? Being real. Being deeply, unapologetically human. In a field like therapy or birth support, all the training in the world won’t matter if you can’t build trust—and in my experience, trust can’t grow without authenticity. People know when you’re being real, and that’s what opens the door to deeper connection and healing.

Over the years, I’ve come to accept that I won’t be the right fit for everyone—and that’s actually a good thing. The therapeutic or birth support relationship is so personal, and it matters that both people feel aligned. I often tell people it’s okay to “therapist-hop” or “doula-hop” until it feels right. That’s not failure—it’s honoring your intuition and the investment you’re making in yourself.

At the end of the day, showing up as myself—warm, honest, and imperfect—has been one of the most powerful tools in my work. When I allow myself to be real, it invites my clients to do the same. That’s where the real work begins.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

One of the biggest lessons I had to unlearn was the belief that success could only be measured by how hard I was hustling—or by the number of credentials after my name. I spent years chasing certifications, workshops, trainings… thinking if I could just learn enough, prove enough, do enough, I’d finally feel “legit.” And while I’m proud of my education and the work I’ve put into my expertise, I eventually realized I was using hustle as a substitute for self-trust.

It hit me somewhere in the messy middle of motherhood and running a business. I was exhausted, still searching for the next thing to validate me, and yet—I had clients telling me they felt seen, safe, changed. I started asking myself: What if success is less about proving and more about embodying? What if the most powerful thing I could offer wasn’t another credential, but my presence, my intuition, my lived experience?

That shift changed everything. It allowed me to show up differently—as a therapist, a doula, a mother, a wife, a businesswoman. I still value growth, of course. I’ll always be learning. But now I’m learning from a place of curiosity and confidence, not from fear that I’m not enough. And I think that’s made my work—and my life—richer and more sustainable.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.intuitivelywelltherapy.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jessica.the.therapist/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessica-thompson-700b312aa/

Image Credits
Shantelle Balle Photo, Courtney Gracie Photography, J Art Images