Hi again, and welcome.

I hope your week's off to a good start. December can feel heavy - shorter days, family dynamics, the pressure to feel festive when you might just feel tired. This week's issue includes local mental health support, caregiving resources, and a reminder about health insurance deadlines. If any of that resonates, I hope you find something here that helps.

Dana Carretta-Stein became a therapist because she wanted to help people, but the deeper truth was that she had spent most of her life being the caretaker for everyone around her. Through her own healing and years of experience, Dana says, “I learned the lesson that every seasoned therapist eventually hits: you cannot save people. Your job is to teach them how to save themselves.”

Early in her career she found EMDR therapy (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing), a trauma-informed approach that helps the brain process past experiences so the body isn’t stuck in old patterns. Discovering EMDR changed the way she understood healing. Instead of asking “what’s wrong with someone,” she began looking at what they lived through and how their nervous system learned to survive.

That shift led her to build Peaceful Living, a group practice focused on genuine connection, trauma-informed work, and nervous-system-level healing, with a team who shows up as humans first and clinicians second.

Many clients at Peaceful Living aren’t new to therapy. They’ve gained insight, but they’re still stuck in the same emotional loops. They’re managing anxiety, perfectionism, people-pleasing, or relationship stress, and want something deeper than talking in circles. They want to feel different in their bodies - calmer, more grounded, and more empowered.

The team also supports children and teens, athletes, individuals with eating-disorder and body-image concerns, working parents, couples, and people navigating grief. What they all share is a desire for real, lasting change rather than quick fixes.

The first one to three visits make up the Evaluation Phase. These early sessions explore why someone is coming, what’s getting in the way, and what they want to feel different. Clients also get a sense of the therapist - Dana often compares it to going on a few dates before deciding whether it’s the right match.

By the end of this phase, clients leave with a clear connection and a personalized treatment plan. Depending on their needs, this may include EMDR, CBT, regulation skills, or other trauma-informed approaches.

Peaceful Living’s approach is rooted in the belief that most symptoms aren’t flaws, they’re survival strategies the nervous system learned during overwhelming or stressful experiences. The team focuses on helping clients understand their patterns with compassion, not judgment, and supports realistic changes that stick.

Peaceful Living explains emotional patterns in a way that makes people feel understood rather than blamed. They look at the whole picture including history, stress, relationships, and nervous system, and help people make sense of why they feel the way they do.

Their work is practical, compassionate, and truly aligned with how people heal. For many, that’s the piece that finally helps things shift.

Ready to book? Call (914) 222-3983 or click below.

Farida Studio in White Plains, voted "Best Facial in Westchester" three years running (2023-2025), recently expanded to include full salon services alongside their signature skincare treatments.
👉 https://faridastudio.com

December is SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) Awareness Month. About 5% of adults experience seasonal depression as daylight shrinks. Light therapy helps - sitting near a 10,000-lux light box for 20-30 minutes each morning can reduce symptoms by resetting your circadian rhythm. At-home light boxes run $30-100 and work as well as clinical settings. Morning sunlight exposure (even on cloudy days) also helps. If winter feels heavier this year, the 988 crisis line offers 24/7 mental health support.
👉 https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/seasonal-affective-disorder
👉 https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/seasonal-affective-disorder/diagnosis-treatment/drc-20364651

New York State's health insurance open enrollment runs through December 15, 2025. The Westchester County Health Department offers free one-on-one help if you're self-employed, between jobs, or feeling overwhelmed by the options.
👉 Open enrollment: https://nystateofhealth.ny.gov
👉 Local help: https://health.westchestergov.com/healthplans?highlight=WyJvcGVuIiwiZW5yb2xsbWVudCJd

The holidays amplify everything - including the reality of aging parents who need more help than they used to. It's hard on everyone. Your parents may feel the loss of independence. You may feel stretched between generations, guilty about what you can't do, exhausted by what you're already doing.

What helps both of you:

Local resource: Westchester County's Office for the Aging offers caregiver support groups and respite care information at seniorcitizens.westchestergov.com. The national caregiver helpline (1-800-677-1116) connects you to local services and support.

Heard about a new wellness event, class, or favorite place?
Reply or Share a Local Find - I’d love to include it in a future issue.

For detailed submissions:

A note for readers:
Any business mentioned in this newsletter is included because I’ve researched it and feel comfortable recommending it. If something is ever sponsored, it will be clearly labeled.

💚 Thanks for reading Westchester Local Wellness. If you enjoyed this issue, please forward it to a neighbor who’d love discovering new local wellness spots.

Till next time,
Margaret