This month, we're diving deep into the heart of friendship with Blake Blankenbecler, LCMHC Psychotherapist and Owner of Fig Therapy. Beyond her clinical work spanning North Carolina, South Carolina, and Texas, Blake is a friendship educator who understands the critical role relationships play in our mental health and personal growth.

In a world often focused on romantic connections, Blake reminds us that friendships are our lifeline—especially during challenging times like post-election periods when we're navigating complex interpersonal landscapes. Her innovative Friendship Deck game and compassionate approach offer a fresh perspective on how we can support, connect, and heal through meaningful friendships.

Join us as we explore the art of nurturing relationships, understanding how intentional connection can be a powerful form of emotional support and personal transformation.

How can we deepen our friendships to provide meaningful support in times of stress, like post-election?

In times of stress where we feel overwhelmed, it makes sense that we can feel pulled more towards isolation and disconnection. And yet, it’s these times when we most want to pull into the seemingly safer confines of our ourselves, that we need to gently support ourselves to move towards our friendships and communities. Friendships remind you that you aren’t alone and don’t have to be alone in the stress and unknown. I like to call the friends that we feel the safest with “exhale friends” because they evoke this powerful sensation in your whole body of just having taken a big, relieving exhale just by being in their presence. I don’t know about you, but being around exhale friends on a regular basis feels like ever important medicine in today’s stressful world.

There’s a popular parenting phrase that children spell love T-I-M-E and I think that same sentiment is true in friendships as well. Carve out intentional time in your calendar for your friendships. On Sunday night’s I usually look at my week ahead and think through my commitments, what my social and emotional battery will be throughout the week and plan time with friends based on that. Meaningful support doesn’t always need to look like spending a big chunk of time together like sharing a meal, although gosh is it great when it happens. It’s also about remembering important dates, sending texts and voice notes throughout the week to check in, and just reminding your friends that you love them and you’re grateful for their friendship. Our friends are the buoys that help us stay afloat and connected to what is good and meaningful and worth continuing to fight for.

What role can friendships play in our healing journeys, and how might we nurture these relationships for mutual benefit?

I find friendships to be one of the best things that help move your healing journey forward. I really appreciate this quote by author Andrew Sullivan. He writes, “Friendship, I learned, provided a buffer in the interplay of emotions, a distance that made the risk of intimacy bearable, a space that allowed the other person to remain safely another person.” Friendships often come with lower risks than say romantic or familial relationships. They are often the places where we might feel more comfortable sharing a deeper, more vulnerable truth, beginning to play with boundary setting, or being more fully ourselves.

It’s for this and many other reasons that I created The Friendship Deck. It’s a conversation game with 62 different questions and three different levels of increasing vulnerability so you can have meaningful conversations to strengthen and nourish your friendships. There aren’t a lot of resources out there just for friends and I wanted to offer a gentle tool in the form of a game to help you and your friends have the harder conversations when say your feelings are hurt or you don’t know how to navigate when one of you is going through a big life transition and how to stay connected in it. You can learn more about The Friendship Deck and get one of your own here!