<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/" xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/" xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" version="2.0"><channel><title><![CDATA[The Shiftless Wanderer]]></title><description><![CDATA[Expert consultation and training transforming the way we serve adolescents in our schools, agencies, non-profits, and homes.]]></description><link>https://www.theshiftlesswanderer.com/articles</link><generator>RSS for Node</generator><lastBuildDate>Sat, 31 Oct 2026 19:35:37 GMT</lastBuildDate><atom:link href="https://www.theshiftlesswanderer.com/blog-feed.xml" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml"/><item><title><![CDATA[A Name for What Had No Name: Traumatic Invalidation, a Viral Video, and Coming Home to Self]]></title><description><![CDATA[October 7, 2026—I don’t know about you, but end-of-summer-into-fall 2026 has felt extraordinarily difficult. The bad news seems to come from all quarters. It feels like too much to sit with, hold, or witness. There are some days I just want to pull the covers over my head. September was a very strange month for The Shiftless Wanderer as one of my TikTok videos went viral, and it continues to garner over 1000 views a day. In the post I spoke about traumatic invalidation and how it was at the...]]></description><link>https://www.theshiftlesswanderer.com/blog/a-name-for-what-had-no-name-traumatic-invalidation-a-viral-video-and-coming-home-to-self</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ae61160ce76ce2383f321c5</guid><pubDate>Wed, 07 Oct 2026 19:00:48 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/915eb0_80e93ddb2f7d4cb59429c16e69062778~mv2.jpeg/v1/fit/w_1000,h_951,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Dr. Robin Barre</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[How A Deeper Understanding Of Validation Supports IFS Therapists &#38; Practitioners]]></title><description><![CDATA[September 25, 2026—If your experience as an IFS therapist or practitioner has been anything like mine, you completed your Level 1 IFS training, but somehow those beautiful sessions you witnessed in the training demos didn’’t manifest in your therapy office. Unlike the trainings, sometimes sessions can feel extraordinarily messy. We enter unknown territory, encounter clients’ parts and our own parts who befuddle us or refuse to unblend. Sometimes it feels a little bit like wandering through a...]]></description><link>https://www.theshiftlesswanderer.com/blog/how-a-deeper-understanding-of-validation-supports-ifs-therapists-amp-practitioners</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ae61162c7fdfcb1744f62f5</guid><pubDate>Fri, 25 Sep 2026 14:23:03 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/915eb0_7a621028ee704d278c1a24a3679dbbf2~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_1000,h_1000,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Dr. Robin Barre</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[In the Trenches: Lessons From an Adolescent Therapist]]></title><description><![CDATA[September 9, 2026 — To be an adolescent therapist is to be willing to sit in the trenches; to be in extended uncomfortable silences; to navigate concerned, frustrated, and frustrating parents; to work with parts of us who are frightened for our teen clients and parts who are helpless in the face of our clients’ external circumstances and their pain. If you are a new therapist, even if you love teenagers, meeting them in the therapy room can be like walking into a minefield. Early in my work...]]></description><link>https://www.theshiftlesswanderer.com/blog/in-the-trenches-lessons-from-an-adolescent-therapist</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ae61165ce76ce2383f321cd</guid><pubDate>Wed, 09 Sep 2026 13:00:18 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/915eb0_be71aa60e6f34e29be0c7204d014e1b3~mv2.jpeg/v1/fit/w_1000,h_498,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Dr. Robin Barre</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[What Happened When I Deconstructed the Communication Skill of Validation]]></title><description><![CDATA[August 27th, 2026 - There are several distinct memories I have from 2020, the year everything changed. I had never thought I could do therapy online, but here we were, meeting in people’s bedrooms, bathrooms (yes! bathrooms), cars, and beyond. Because we weren’t meeting behind the closed doors of my office, clients had the opportunity to bring in their partners, kids, pets, and parents. I got an inside look at how things were in their native environments. I met with kids and their parents...]]></description><link>https://www.theshiftlesswanderer.com/blog/what-happened-when-i-deconstructed-the-communication-skill-of-validation</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ae61169ce76ce2383f321d7</guid><pubDate>Thu, 27 Aug 2026 21:12:03 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/915eb0_59e583e04dc54527978c72bcfb7be9ed~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_1000,h_1000,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Dr. Robin Barre</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[Adolescents in the Basement]]></title><description><![CDATA[August 12, 2026—Sounds like the name for a punk band, doesn’t it? Adolescents in the Basement Teens in the Cellar Youth Down Below Underground Kids Okay, I’m terrible at thinking of band names! However, I have come to realize that there is a particular phenomenon with teenagers in basements. My kids got up to all manner of things in the basement in our house as they went through Adolescence. Once, I came downstairs to my 18-year-old son’s basement bedroom, only to find a girl in his bed. I...]]></description><link>https://www.theshiftlesswanderer.com/blog/adolescents-in-the-basement</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ae6116cce76ce2383f321e0</guid><pubDate>Wed, 12 Aug 2026 14:00:34 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/915eb0_b5ff7bc9707c45e5a3e3e33a7cec89ed~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_1000,h_1000,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Dr. Robin Barre</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[Something For The Inner Adolescent: A Book for the Conversations We Were Never Taught to Have]]></title><description><![CDATA[August 5th, 2026 —I’ve looked high and low—on Amazon, used bookstores, and thrift stores; I’ve asked around, and I have not found the book that I wished I had, one I wanted to have on hand for my clients. So I decided to write it myself, and once I decided to do so, the ideas came fast and furious. The book I wanted had to have: A solid description of the essential nature of Adolescence; An introduction to the concepts of Internal Family Systems; Creative journaling prompts—so creative that I...]]></description><link>https://www.theshiftlesswanderer.com/blog/something-for-the-inner-adolescent-a-book-for-the-conversations-we-were-never-taught-to-have</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ae61171ce76ce2383f321f1</guid><pubDate>Wed, 05 Aug 2026 13:00:34 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/915eb0_418d0a330fe64236a7d606da8f9c2a20~mv2.jpeg/v1/fit/w_1000,h_1000,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Dr. Robin Barre</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[Consultation Is About Becoming: IFS Group Consultation with The Shiftless Wanderer]]></title><description><![CDATA[July 22nd, 2026 —There comes a point in every therapist's journey when reading another book or taking another training isn't enough. You’re a professional now! You’ve read the books and done the trainings! It’s time now to sit with other professionals as colleagues and offer your expertise while benefitting from the wisdom of your peers. Being a therapist is a lonely profession. The work is done in an office alone or online. Just you and your client. You can’t talk about your clients with...]]></description><link>https://www.theshiftlesswanderer.com/blog/consultation-is-about-becoming-ifs-group-consultation-with-the-shiftless-wanderer</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ae6116fbc871e640182d79f</guid><pubDate>Wed, 22 Jul 2026 13:00:45 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/915eb0_9d9397715f3a4dd7854083f7f4002feb~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_1000,h_1000,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Dr. Robin Barre</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[Staying in Relationship: IFS Parts, Self Energy, and Parenting Adolescents]]></title><description><![CDATA[July 15th, 2026 - I recently started offering Parent Coaching services. I love this work! As you probably know, adolescents are my first love. To be in service to the scaffolding, ushering, and companioning of teenagers into healthy adulthood also means I find myself in service to those who do the sacred work of parenting them. Yes, I used the word sacred intentionally. Parenting teens is a profound act of stewardship. It requires sacrifice—a word which means to offer an act or gift in...]]></description><link>https://www.theshiftlesswanderer.com/blog/staying-in-relationship-ifs-parts-self-energy-and-parenting-adolescents</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ae610d0ce76ce2383f32084</guid><pubDate>Wed, 15 Jul 2026 13:00:11 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/915eb0_da9c634ae87e42f7abcc08f77b187dd1~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_1000,h_1000,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Dr. Robin Barre</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[Entitlement or Adolescence? Why We Need to Stop Confusing the Two]]></title><description><![CDATA[July 8th, 2026 One of the most frequent complaints and concerns I hear from parents, teachers, and those involved in raising up teenagers is that their child is going to grow up to be one of those adults who thinks the world owes them something. As I'm writing this, I'm out walking through my little town—a town I genuinely love. And yet every day I watch adults, and teenagers I’m sure, fly through neighborhood streets in oversized trucks or loud little sports cars as though they're the only...]]></description><link>https://www.theshiftlesswanderer.com/blog/entitlement-or-adolescence-why-we-need-to-stop-confusing-the-two</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ae61124ce76ce2383f32134</guid><pubDate>Wed, 08 Jul 2026 13:00:53 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/915eb0_bd0fef92d32442ebaa8117b127a3f18d~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_1000,h_1000,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Dr. Robin Barre</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[Internal Family Systems Therapy, The 4 Tools of The Shiftless Wanderer, &#38; Adolescents]]></title><description><![CDATA[June 24, 2026—One of the foundational assumptions of Internal Family Systems (IFS) is that every person contains a multiplicity of parts. We are not a singular, fixed "I." We are made up of many different aspects of ourselves—parts that carry hopes, fears, wounds, desires, beliefs, and strategies for navigating the world. Beneath and beyond these parts is what IFS calls Self: the calm, compassionate, curious, courageous essence that exists within every human being. For many adults, this idea...]]></description><link>https://www.theshiftlesswanderer.com/blog/internal-family-systems-therapy-the-4-tools-of-the-shiftless-wanderer-adolescents</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ae610f7f66bd5e828296a2d</guid><pubDate>Thu, 25 Jun 2026 12:31:34 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/915eb0_135c0e101ddd498e8116a112f6fa6764~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_1000,h_1000,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Dr. Robin Barre</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[From Intervention to Connection: 6 Practices for Effective Adolescent Support]]></title><description><![CDATA[June 11, 2026—Most adolescent service programs already include many of the criteria associated with positive youth development. According to youth development research, effective programs foster connectedness, communication, collaboration, constructive activities, and opportunities for success in academic and social settings. These are important foundations. Yet despite decades of investment in youth programs, schools, behavioral health services, and community initiatives, adolescent mental...]]></description><link>https://www.theshiftlesswanderer.com/blog/from-intervention-to-connection-6-practices-for-effective-adolescent-support</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ae6111bddc33b715a33d49c</guid><pubDate>Thu, 11 Jun 2026 13:00:21 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/915eb0_1c6df2b9faea4118bf4c8b518120922f~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_1000,h_1000,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Dr. Robin Barre</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[Accountability Without Shame: Why Teenagers Need Room to Become Themselves]]></title><description><![CDATA[May 20, 2026—I’m sure you’ve experienced it at some point—you’re a parent who is simply trying to get your kid to clean their room, and they snap back at you like you’ve sentenced them to hell on earth. You’re a teacher firmly and respectfully attempting to hold that one student accountable who consistently disrupts class. He’s funny, sure, but disruptive, nevertheless. His sullenness radiates like a nuclear thundercloud. You’re the manager of the local grocery store and redirect one of your...]]></description><link>https://www.theshiftlesswanderer.com/blog/accountability-without-shame-why-teenagers-need-room-to-become-themselves</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ae61158c7fdfcb1744f62d6</guid><pubDate>Wed, 20 May 2026 16:00:54 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/915eb0_f7b97a878c5b4a9bb587880e9ab455d7~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_1000,h_1000,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Dr. Robin Barre</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[Hope Merchanting]]></title><description><![CDATA[It comes with the territory of being a human service provider, like a therapist or a teacher or parent or grandparent – people come to us in states of despair and hopelessness. Once you’ve listened to a few of these stories, it’s hard not to fall into those places ourselves. One of the gifts that the Internal Family Systems paradigm brings, not just to therapists and practitioners but to everyone, is a map that shows us a way through the dark places. Sal—A Story I started seeing Salvador when...]]></description><link>https://www.theshiftlesswanderer.com/blog/hope-merchanting</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ae6110c9098f9dec697fa0e</guid><pubDate>Wed, 06 May 2026 14:00:02 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/915eb0_b1518182b2e34a71a9e0831e888ff62a~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_1000,h_1000,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Dr. Robin Barre</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[When ‘Challenging Behavior’ Is Communication: A Different Lens for Youth Service Staff]]></title><description><![CDATA[April 22, 2026— Lee-am was almost 13 years old when he started having significant behavior problems. He had always struggled in school and at home. By the time he was fifteen, he had multiple diagnoses, including ADHD, conduct disorder, and oppositional defiance disorder. The 40+ page report from the assessing psychiatrist noted many of Lee-am’s behaviors, presentation, and symptoms leading to the diagnoses. When Lee-am was 16, he was admitted to a long-term therapeutic detention center....]]></description><link>https://www.theshiftlesswanderer.com/blog/when-challenging-behavior-is-communication-a-different-lens-for-youth-service-staff</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ae610b5ddc33b715a33d3d0</guid><pubDate>Wed, 22 Apr 2026 15:00:13 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/915eb0_9db4cf9e4f534ce5b71b179165b77353~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_1000,h_1000,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Dr. Robin Barre</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[What Other Work Is There Than This?]]></title><description><![CDATA[April 8, 2026 – A rhetorical question I often ask clients is — What other work is there to do but this—to explore how to be fully human on this planet today? In my opinion, that is why we are here. The rest of it is simply trappings. The question is an easy sentiment coming from someone who sits in circles of privilege. I do not face the troubles that so many do—fear of deportation, life in war zones, hunger, being unhomed. Yet, after sitting with clients who have lived through horror and...]]></description><link>https://www.theshiftlesswanderer.com/blog/what-other-work-is-there-to-be-done-than-this</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ae61080f66bd5e828296932</guid><pubDate>Wed, 08 Apr 2026 15:00:00 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/915eb0_a52069ac55aa4ad4a12d8a368d76e812~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_1000,h_1000,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Dr. Robin Barre</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[Talking Politics With Teens: Don’t Avoid It. Do It Better.]]></title><description><![CDATA[18th March 2026 — I’ll be the first to admit that I can be biased and critical of those who disagree with me politically. Without a personal relationship, it’s easy for my parts to slip into an “us versus them” mentality. When that happens, people get othered. A chasm appears between me and the other person—one that feels impossible to cross and miraculous to heal from the perspective of my protector parts. My Idealist and Social Justice Warrior parts show up fast when I’m politically...]]></description><link>https://www.theshiftlesswanderer.com/blog/talking-politics-with-teens-dont-avoid-it-do-it-better</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ae6105ff66bd5e8282968f2</guid><pubDate>Wed, 18 Mar 2026 17:00:28 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/915eb0_f953b2689ad04406beaddcdfb5c6fe00~mv2.jpeg/v1/fit/w_1000,h_1000,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Dr. Robin Barre</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[The Second Arrival—When A Family Goes Through Adolescence:]]></title><description><![CDATA[March 4, 2026: The arrival of a newborn shakes up a family significantly. We know this, and we know it’s normal. In spite of the shakeup, there is delight, hope, joy. We track each milestone into toddlerhood, exclaim with pride, wonder, and sometimes sadness at how quickly the child grows. It is a celebration and even when it’s difficult, many of us can look back at those few short years as one of our most precious times as a family. When that child comes into their adolescent years,...]]></description><link>https://www.theshiftlesswanderer.com/blog/the-second-arrival-when-a-family-goes-through-adolescence</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ae6105b9098f9dec697f89d</guid><pubDate>Wed, 04 Mar 2026 15:00:02 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/915eb0_090d461e64d0490c82b873c79a6bd7f8~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_1000,h_1000,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Dr. Robin Barre</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[Three Things About Adolescents/Adolescence To (Maybe) Make Your Life Easier]]></title><description><![CDATA[February 18, 2026 – I have dedicated my academic and professional life to understanding and advocating for adolescence. To be honest, I have dedicated a great deal of my personal life as well to these strange creatures that walk among us. Why? Part of it was that I both hated and loved my own adolescent years. I was so aware during that time that something important was happening. I never would have put that into words, but I wrote many words about the experience, trying to capture this thing...]]></description><link>https://www.theshiftlesswanderer.com/blog/three-things-about-adolescents-to-maybe-make-life-easier</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ae610adddc33b715a33d3c0</guid><pubDate>Wed, 18 Feb 2026 19:00:31 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/915eb0_31856de9a1c24b29928f7c051b687882~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_1000,h_1000,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Dr. Robin Barre</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[Have You or Someone You Know Been Traumatically Invalidated?]]></title><description><![CDATA[The childhood taunting rhyme—Sticks and stones may break my bones but words can never hurt me—may have been well-intended to help toughen children’s skin in the face of playground name-calling, teasing, and just plain meanness. However, there could be no words more false, and, if taken as truth, more damaging. Words spoken and unspoken can break hearts, a sense of self, and sometimes even a life. Have you had clients who come into therapy claiming they’ve had no traumatic events happen in...]]></description><link>https://www.theshiftlesswanderer.com/blog/have-you-or-someone-you-know-been-traumatically-invalidated</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ae61110ce76ce2383f32102</guid><pubDate>Wed, 04 Feb 2026 07:53:36 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/915eb0_aead37604a754cce9362039d2b0a75dc~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_1000,h_1000,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Dr. Robin Barre</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[What’s The Big Deal About Internal Family Systems?]]></title><description><![CDATA[January 21, 2026 — I found my way to being a therapist in a meandering way, much like many of my other pivotal life choices. I actually had set out to save the world after 9/11 happened in 2001. Though I wasn’t sure what it was I would do that was going to save it. I first considered going back to school to get my masters in creative writing with a specialization in poetry. But I couldn’t see my way to being a legendary poet that was going to change the world, much less save it. So I kept...]]></description><link>https://www.theshiftlesswanderer.com/blog/whats-the-big-deal-about-internal-family-systems</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ae6105d9098f9dec697f8a0</guid><pubDate>Wed, 21 Jan 2026 15:00:00 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/915eb0_189ba4b8cfeb4f35867901e40cdbea85~mv2.jpeg/v1/fit/w_1000,h_1000,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Dr. Robin Barre</dc:creator></item></channel></rss>