Rachel Schmidt, BSW, PLC
Rachel Schmidt, BSW, PLC
Tired of the Climb?
Come Down to the Forest & Find Your Rhythm
Welcome to The Forest Studio, a place for women to navigate life transitions and naturally design a life that feels aligned and alive.
Through reflective art, nature, and depth-based practice, meaningful new work & chapters begin to take shape in your life.
What happens when the life you’ve built is no longer the life that feels true to you?
You may have spent much of your life working toward something - raising children, building a career, paying off a mortgage, or caring for others. There has always been responsibility, always something to hold, manage, or remember. And then, something begins to shift.
You are no longer interested in striving for external achievements or moving up in the ways you once did. Instead, you feel drawn toward quiet, stillness, and a slower way of living. A life that feels more alive, spacious, and deeply your own begins to take shape.
The beauty and flow of nature becomes the rhythm you are drawn toward - allowing what is ready to emerge to take shape.
This is the work at the heart of The Forest Studio.
About
Hello, I’m Rachel.
I work with women who sense something is shifting, who feel caught between who they once were and who they are becoming, and are beginning to listen to what is asking to change.
If you are feeling a quiet pull inward, sensing in your body that something more is waiting beyond the identities you have carefully built and the life you have competently managed, then you are standing at the edge of something new. It takes bravery to listen, and courage to step toward what is calling you.
I created The Forest Studio as a quiet, beautiful, reflective space to support women moving through this transition. I bring over 30 years of experience in social work, depth psychology coaching, and teaching to this work, along with my own lived experience. In my 50s, I have navigated the transition of an empty nest, the complexities of caring for aging parents, deep seasons of grief, and the release of a career identity I had simply outlived.
My daily life is anchored in a forest of ancient, 150-year-old trees. For over thirty years, this place has been my anchor, keeping me grounded and connected to a natural way of being, one that is seasonal, cyclical, and rooted in the natural rhythms of the living world.
From this grounded perspective, I partner with women as a supportive ally and thinking partner. Through one-to-one consulting and contemplative art courses that bring you into relationship with the natural world, you begin to listen more closely to what is calling you.
I am here to ensure you don’t have to walk this part of the path alone. Feel free to connect with me to learn more. You can also explore the Natural Life Design process below to see if it feels right for you.
Rachel Schmidt, BSW, PLC
Natural Life Design Process: How a New Rhythm Emerges
1. Coming Home
to Yourself
Who am I becoming in this next chapter?
Here, you begin to step out of the roles, expectations, and identities that have shaped your life so far, creating space to meet yourself more directly before deciding what comes next.
2. Listening to
the Quiet
Where am I now?
This is often a quieter, more reflective season, with shifting responsibilities and new questions arising. Here, you pause and listen to what your life is asking of you, between who you have been and what is beginning to emerge.
3.The
Unfolding
How do I want to live moving forward?
Rather than forcing a new direction, there is a shift toward allowing your next chapter to unfold naturally, aligning your time and energy with what matters most to you now.
4. Designing a
Natural Rhythm
What is the natural world reflecting back to me?
Using nature as a mirror, you begin to slow down and reconnect with your own timing, moving away from the pace of the world and into a way of living that feels more grounded and sustainable.
A Glimpse Inside: Land & Body Contemplative Art Courses
Recently, three of my Land & Body courses came to a close, and I’ve been reflecting on what happens in that quiet, four-month container. It is a privilege to share these expressions of the inner life—the creative artifacts of women who have learned to listen to the land and their own bodies.
This series is for women who feel a pull toward certain landscapes but don’t yet understand why. If you’ve ever stood by the sea and felt a longing you couldn’t name, or sensed a home you are still searching for, this is a space to explore that calling.
Through nature-based mindfulness, contemplative practice, and creative exploration, we tend to the relationship between place and psyche, body and belonging. This often means time in the natural world, away from daily roles, and learning to meet yourself at a more elemental level through the landscape around you.
You might find yourself writing in the wind, mapping the terrain of your inner life, or capturing the fleeting imprint of a wave. These are simple, creative practices that bypass analysis and invite a quieter intelligence to surface.
This is slow work. Deep work. And over time, you don’t just look at the land—you begin to experience yourself as part of it, rooted, and ready for what comes next.
Explore the gallery of work from women exploring land, self, and creative expression through nature-based practice.
Kind Words
What women are saying about the natural life design process & my contemplative art courses.
Lola, 58
“Working with Rachel is a rare experience. She holds space with such care, insight, and wisdom that you immediately feel seen and supported. Her guidance blends reflection, creativity, and a deep understanding of the inner life, helping you reconnect with parts of yourself that have been quiet or waiting for attention. She supported me in creating a meaningful and exciting next chapter that I am truly loving.”
Maya, 53
“I discovered a new way of being present, with myself and in nature. The reflections in Rachel's life design process opened up a sense of longing for something more meaningful in my daily life, and a curiosity about what that might look like. Rachel is an amazing ally who creates a safe and trusting space, blending her background in counselling and contemplative arts. Highly recommend this work if you too are looking for your next chapter."
Sada, 47
The Land & Body Course helped me see how life moves through landscapes and through myself - in rhythms and flows I had not noticed before. By tuning into these natural patterns, I gained a clearer sense of how to move with life instead of against it. It’s a powerful way to understand change and find balance. This was my 3rd course with Rachel."