In this episode of The Intentional Clinician, Paul Krauss, MA LPC, talks with Dr. Shawn Hondorp, a board-certified clinical health psychologist, coach, community builder, and host of The Innovative Therapist Podcast. Shawn describes how she got into this work. She trained in clinical psychology, spent years in medical and academic settings working with binge eating, weight concerns, and behavioral health, and then gradually built her own path. That path became a practice, a podcast, retreats, and community spaces for therapists and helpers.
Paul and Shawn spend much of the conversation on creativity and play, and how they have shaped Shawn as a clinician, leader, mother, and person. Shawn talks about "following the creative breadcrumbs": noticing what makes her feel curious, alive, and authentically herself, and taking the next small step even when she can't see where it leads. She reflects on how she never could have imagined where those steps would take her. They led her into podcasting, retreat hosting, community building, and back to dance and performance after a nearly 20-year break.
The episode also looks at a connection that might seem surprising at first. Shawn's clinical focus on body trust, disordered eating, and binge eating can look very different from her work helping people build lives and careers that feel alive. She explains how closely the two are linked. Both ask us to listen to ourselves, unlearn protective patterns like perfectionism, overworking, people-pleasing, and dieting, and lead with self-trust and curiosity instead of control. Shawn shares how she keeps coming back to the basics: nourishing food, movement, and connection. Clinicians, helpers, and anyone feeling depleted will hear a warm, practical invitation to build a life and career that nourishes them and the people around them.
Dr. Shawn Hondorp, PhD, ABPP, is a board-certified clinical health psychologist, coach, retreat facilitator, community builder, and host of The Innovative Therapist Podcast. She earned a B.S. in Psychology from Michigan State University and an M.S. and Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from Drexel University. Her work draws on Internal Family Systems (IFS), in which she has Level 1 training, and on body trust principles. In her private practice in Grand Rapids, Michigan, she helps adults struggling with people-pleasing, perfectionism, emotional or binge eating, chronic dieting, and disconnection from their bodies build lasting change rooted in self-trust. Her practice includes in person therapy, telehealth, and walk-and-talk sessions in local parks.
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Paul Krauss MA LPC is a Co-founder of Health for Life Counseling Grand Rapids, home of The Trauma-Informed Counseling Center of Grand Rapids. Paul is also a Private Practice Psychotherapist, an Approved EMDRIA Consultant , host of the Intentional Clinician podcast, Behavioral Health Consultant, Clinical Trainer, Counseling Supervisor, and Meditation Teacher. Paul is now offering consulting for a few individuals and organizations. Paul is the creator of the National Violence Prevention Hotline as well as the Intentional Clinician Training Program for Counselors. Paul has been quoted in the Washington Post, NBC News, Wired Magazine, Psychology Today, and Counseling Today. Questions? Call the office at 616-200-4433.
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Original Music:
”Alright” from the album Mystic by PAWL (Spotify)
"Dewy" Horizon by Resavoir & Matt Gold (Spotify)
