I Didn’t Land Here. I Clawed My Way Up. A Therapist for High Achievers on Resilience, Reinvention, and the Real Cost of Ambition.

By Dr. Meagan Yarmey, PhD, MA, MSW, RSW

Psychotherapist | Social-Personality Psychologist | Career Mental Health Specialist

A mother and her tween son study a subway map against the backdrop of a bustling city skyline, plotting their urban adventure.

If you’ve ever done everything “right”—followed the credentials, climbed the ladder, moved cities for the dream job—and still found yourself asking, Is this really it?, you’re not alone. And you’re not crazy.

I’m a solo parent to a teenager I admire deeply—sharp, kind, curious—and together, we’ve relocated twice in pursuit of a life with more opportunity, more alignment, and more room to breathe. When my son was two, I went back to school with the support of my parents. It wasn’t easy, but it was the first big decision I made that honored both my ambition and my values. I’ve been making those kinds of decisions ever since.

We moved to the city for a promising leadership role: a job that checked all the boxes—title, skill alignment, impact. I became the inaugural Director of Wellbeing at a prestigious independent girls’ school. The work was meaningful, and I poured myself into it. But sometimes the box you work so hard to get into isn’t the one meant to hold you. Despite best intentions, the institutional fit wasn’t right. The culture wasn’t aligned. During this time, I also lost my brother—amid pandemic restrictions that kept us from being together in his final days. That grief landed hard, layered under a move, a new job, and the pressure of solo parenting in a new city. The role ended, and I was left navigating personal loss, professional upheaval, and rebuilding my practice—starting over, again.

Here’s the truth that doesn’t fit neatly on a CV:

I’ve been in the rooms where ceilings don’t crack no matter how many credentials you collect. I’m part of the first generation of women promised a seat at the table, only to find it was standing room only. And I’ve lived the subtext that high achievers often carry: If I just work harder, they’ll see me.

Here’s what saved me:

Studying Buddhist philosophy while buried in graduate statistics.

Practicing Zen Shiatsu while immersed in social cognition theory.

Rebuilding a life that honours both body and brain.

And learning that sometimes, the most radical thing you can do is rest.

My background is rooted in social psychological research, teaching psychology students at the university level and supervising new clinicians. I’ve worked in campus mental health, private practice, and high-stakes performance spaces. I’ve bent, contorted, and evolved. Not because I had to prove myself—but because life required it. Psychological flexibility isn’t just something I teach—it’s something I’ve lived.

I know the quiet disorientation that comes from professional transitions and personal upheaval. I know the emotional labor of caregiving while managing career curveballs. And I know the invisible pressure that comes from being part of the first mass generation of women in higher education, trained to believe that if we worked hard enough, we’d be recognized—only to bump up against ceilings we didn’t install.

My clinical work is about helping people come back to self-trust and self-worth, especially when they’ve been tested. I support high performers, deep feelers, and those navigating midlife shifts who are ready for change—but want a therapist who gets it.

Resilience isn’t a buzzword here. It’s a skill. And like all skills, it gets stronger with practice, support, and room to breathe.

If you’ve ever felt like you’re doing life with one foot on the gas and one hand holding everything together, I’m here to help you put both hands back on the wheel—with clarity and compassion.

Because transformation isn’t about pushing harder. It’s about finding your footing.

References:

Gollwitzer, P. M., & Oettingen, G. (2011). Planning promotes goal striving. In K. D. Vohs & R. F. Baumeister (Eds.), Handbook of Self-Regulation: Research, Theory, and Applications.

Kabat-Zinn, J. (1990). Full Catastrophe Living: Using the Wisdom of Your Body and Mind to Face Stress, Pain, and Illness.

Hayes, S. C., Strosahl, K. D., & Wilson, K. G. (1999). Acceptance and Commitment Therapy: An Experiential Approach to Behavior Change.

Travis, C., & Aronson, E. (2007). Mistakes Were Made (But Not by Me): Why We Justify Foolish Beliefs, Bad Decisions, and Hurtful Acts.

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Dr. Meagan Yarmey, PhD, MA, MSW, RSW

Social Psychologist. Psychotherapist. Educator. Solo parent. Mind–body connector. Fierce believer that resilience doesn’t mean going it alone.