Some of you may be been wondering where I got the name Pearl Psychological, and because I’m excited to tell you, I will make it my first blog post.
A long while ago, a now ex-partner of mine gifted me a beautiful set of pearls that came with a necklace, bracelet, and earrings. I wore them all the time. People commented on them often and called me classy and elegant. They became part of my everyday fashion, which was definitely not the norm at that time. Then along came my white Jeep Sport Cherokee. I wanted to find a name for my brand new vehicle and a few of my long time friends gave me the option of pearl. I fell in love with it as it signified so much more than just a name for me, so from then on, my Jeep’s name was Pearl.
It has always been a dream of mine to start my own private practice, so fast forward to today, I have now accomplished that goal and called my business Pearl Psychological.
Once I started re-exploring the meaning behind pearl, I fell in love with it all over again and it fit for me for so many reasons.
First and foremost, the ultimate symbol of a pearl is wisdom. This speaks true to my heart because I have spent a lot (and I mean a lot) of time on my education, taking extra courses, programs, trainings, and increasing my knowledge over many years. My love for learning is something that makes me wiser and more competent and confident in my life and my career as a registered provisional psychologist (for now).
As I continued to dive deeper into the symbolism of pearls, a few other keywords popped up.
Pearls also symbolize loyalty; the quality of a strong feeling of support or allegiance and integrity; the quality of being honest and having strong morals and principles. Pearls symbolize purity; a state of being pure; free from anything that contaminates. They also represent serenity, the quality or state of being serene calm and peaceful, while being able to convey a sense of safety and strengthen valuable relationships.
All of these qualities signify and represent qualities of who I am as a person, a friend, a confidant, and foremost as a therapist.
In my practice, I can promise that I will bring each of these qualities while working with clients, partners, and the community.
Pearl Psychological values:
Wisdom • Loyalty • Integrity • Purity • Serenity
Secondary to the qualities of a pearl, the interesting fact that when a mollusk (a diverse group of animals that include clams, oysters, etc.) gets irritated by a bit of food, a grain of sand, or bacteria, that it eventually over time, deposits minerals and proteins over the irritant forming a pearl. I created a symbolic story relating the above to clients that are often struggling with more than one irritant in their life, come into therapy, learn coping mechanisms and strategies to form new ways of thinking, feeling, and behaving. This in turn shapes and molds clients into the unique being that they are today. No one pearl is the same, and this is also relatable to humans, no one human is the same. Every person has the capacity to shine like a iridescent pearl, with many layers of grittiness from their history and past. I hope this imagery inspired you to see that there is hope in becoming, growing, and shaping a new, better you.
Fulfilling my hopes and dreams,
One day at a time.
Vanessa <3 xo
