Teledrawing Listening Service

Collaborative. I provide a brief grounding to make sure that each caller feels prepared to share without needing to bring anything in advance. From that point, callers have the time and space to unfurl as they experience uninterrupted listening to see what surfaces.

In my practice as a listener, I bring a warmth, openness, and general curiosity for what can be shared in the container of the call that we create together.

I have always been curious about how others make meaning of themselves and the world through stories, rambles, and the things not said, too. While my personal creative practice turns that curiosity inward, this project offers an exchange to share that curiosity together.

My lived experiences and social identities are: white, queer, gender nonconforming, and neurodivergent. I manage chronic illness and pain. I am the millennial child of an immigrant.

You may not know where to begin when we start the call, and that's okay. I encourage callers to embrace the space around their thoughts and let them surface organically.

I’ve listened with care about everyday stressors, a favorite book, the joys and challenges of relationships, the deep unresolved why’s. All of this makes us human. From the sacred to the mundane, listening can happen at any level.

This time can be a place for grief to land softly and be received with honor.

And, you could always choose to say nothing at all. As we share the quiet, I will be listening and drawing alongside you.

Not totally silent. You’ll hear me softly signal conversational cues that I’m present and engaged with what you are sharing.

This may feel one-sided for those generally used to a more balanced dialogue. This may even feel slightly uncomfortable for those of us that are used to being the listeners. Surrendering ideas of how conventional conversations should flow, or how much space one should take up in a dialogue, can be part of the catharsis. In the container we build, granting yourself the permission to take up this time to be heard is key. We start from this place in our grounding of the call.

I communicate clear boundaries, so you will not need to wonder if something is inappropriate or is making me uncomfortable.

That is up to you! You’ll decide which cameras are on and off, including the Live Drawing cam, the camera on me, and the camera on you.

You can opt to keep the live drawing camera rolling during the Zoom meeting, or not. If you choose to not and want to keep it a surprise, I’m happy to do the big reveal at the end of the call, or for it to remain a mystery until it arrives in the mail! Your choice.

The drawings are 8×8" on high-quality paper and in colored pencil.

Check out the collection so far in the Drawing Artifact Archive @heysmoothoperator

I honor each caller's privacy. What is shared in the session stays in the session, with the exception of what I am legally bound to report as a mandatory reporter.

The drawings that are created for each session will be scanned and digitally archived as a series. No identifiable information from the calls or callers will be retained or shared.

Teledrawing Sessions are a space for reflection, presence, and creative response, not a substitute for therapy or mental health care. I'm not a licensed counselor, and this isn't a form of treatment.

If you're moving through something that needs more support than a conversation and a drawing can hold, please reach out to a licensed therapist or, if you're in crisis, a crisis line.

As a mandatory reporter, I am required to report any reasonable cause to suspect harm towards self or others.

Yes! There are gift certificates available for 1 session, either at the full-tier rate or the mid-tier rate on the sliding scale.