Today we’d like to introduce you to Keresse Thompson.
Hi Keresse, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
I didn’t take the traditional path into the world of mental health.
From 2006 to 2010, I served in the United States Marine Corps, an experience that shaped my resilience, discipline, and deepened my understanding of human behavior under pressure. After leaving the military, I entered an entirely new battlefield: single motherhood. Raising my daughter on my own became the catalyst for a personal transformation that would eventually lead me into the field of mental health.
Determined to create a better life, for both of us…..I put myself through graduate school while navigating the complexities of healing my own trauma. I earned my master’s degree in Clinical Social Work and became a licensed therapist, focusing on trauma, emotional regulation, and nervous system work. But I also knew that the traditional therapy room wasn’t the only place people needed healing.
In 2021, I launched my podcast, Diary of an Empath, as a space to explore the intersection of psychology, spirituality, and emotional healing in a way that’s raw, accessible, and deeply human. Since then, the show has grown into an award-winning platform, nominated for the International Women’s Podcast Awards, currently a nominee for the People’s Choice Podcast Awards, and winner of the American Writing Awards 2025 Podcast of the Year.
Today, I blend my lived experience, clinical expertise, and intuitive insight to help people reconnect with themselves, rewrite their inner narratives, and embrace the parts of them that were never broken—just misunderstood.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Not even close, and honestly, I wouldn’t want it any other way.
I’ve walked through a lot to get where I am: I’ve been a single mom, survived divorce and toxic relationships, and done the hard, ongoing work of healing my own trauma while trying to hold space for others to do the same. There were years where I was in survival mode, balancing graduate school, raising my daughter on my own, and working full-time just to keep things afloat. At times, my healing felt like it was happening in the background while I kept everyone else functioning.
Starting my podcast, building a private practice, and running a business was deeply rewarding, but also exhausting. I’ve had to learn (and re-learn) boundaries, burnout recovery, and what it means to take care of myself before everything else collapses.
One of the biggest turning points for me was leaving my job with the federal government after 15 years. It was scary, but it was also the best decision I’ve ever made. Choosing to work for myself gave me the freedom to live in alignment with my purpose, and the opportunity to reach people far beyond the therapy room.
Every struggle has shaped how I show up: with empathy, with edge, and with an unshakeable belief that you can rewrite your story no matter how it started.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I’m a licensed therapist, podcast host, and mental health educator specializing in trauma, emotional regulation, and nervous system healing. My work blends traditional clinical training with intuitive insight and real-world experience from the military to motherhood, to my own personal healing journey.
I work with clients who are navigating anxiety, unresolved trauma, emotional burnout, and relationship wounds, helping them not just “cope,” but truly reconnect with themselves. My approach is grounded, honest, and deeply empathetic. I believe that healing doesn’t mean fixing what’s broken: it means understanding and integrating the parts of ourselves we were taught to reject.
I’m also the creator and host of Diary of an Empath, an award-winning podcast that explores mental health, spirituality, and personal growth through raw, unfiltered conversations. The podcast has become a space for people to feel seen, supported, and challenged to think differently about their healing. It was recently nominated for the People’s Choice Podcast Awards, previously nominated for the International Women’s Podcast Awards, and won Podcast of the Year from the American Writing Awards in 2025.
What I’m most proud of is creating a platform: both in therapy and online that helps people realize they’re not alone. That their feelings make sense. That they can change their lives without betraying who they really are.
What sets me apart is that I bring all of me into the work: The Marine veteran, the single mom, the therapist, the intuitive, the survivor, the real human being who knows what it feels like to rebuild from the ground up. I don’t believe in clinical detachment…..I believe in human connection!
That’s the heart of everything I do.
Who else deserves credit in your story?
So many people have played a role in my journey, and I truly believe we don’t do anything meaningful alone.
First and foremost, my daughter has been my greatest teacher. She’s the reason I chose healing over survival, growth over chaos. Becoming a mother gave me the drive to do better, be better, and show her what it looks like to rewrite your story with intention.
I’m also incredibly grateful for my close friends—Fiona, Brandy and Melina—who have stood by me through some of my hardest seasons. Their love, loyalty, and emotional support reminded me I didn’t have to carry everything alone. They’ve been my cheerleaders, truth-tellers, and safe space when I needed to fall apart and rebuild.
There are also people I’m no longer connected to, friendships or relationships that have ended, but they still played a significant role in my evolution. Even if they aren’t in my life today, I honor the way they shaped who I am and what I’ve learned.
And I would be remiss if I didn’t mention my trauma. As strange as it sounds, I want to thank it. The betrayals, the toxic relationships, the heartbreaks, the pain, they gave me grit. They forced me to face myself, and ultimately, they gave me my purpose. Resilience isn’t something I was born with…it’s something I earned.
In terms of inspiration, one person I deeply admire is Steven Bartlett. His vulnerability, emotional intelligence, and ability to create meaningful conversations on such a large platform has inspired how I show up with my own voice, both as a therapist and a podcast host.
I’ve also learned so much from the clients I’ve had the privilege to sit with. Their courage, their truth, their willingness to do the work, it keeps me grounded and reminds me why I chose this path in the first place.
None of this happens in a vacuum. Every breakthrough I’ve had was built on the shoulders of those who poured into me..through love, pain, lessons, or presence. I’m grateful for all of it.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.therapeutichealingbyreese.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_keresse_
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TherapeuticHealingByReese/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCH64ulqmZqvL-lSOM_5Kzbg
- Other: https://tr.ee/FHWfNi6lr9
