PMHNP Retreats · For therapists at the crossroads

Both / And.

The Therapist's Path to Prescriber.

You don't have to choose between the therapist you are and the prescriber you could become. The most powerful clinicians in the room hold both. A four-day decision retreat for therapists weighing — or navigating — the PMHNP pivot.

4 days · Thu–Sun 10–14 clinicians Decide & envision For LCSWs, LPCs, LMHCs, LMFTs
The question you keep circling

Should you become a PMHNP — and who would you be if you did?

You're a skilled therapist. You already sit in the provider's chair, already hold the depth. But the question won't leave you alone: do you undertake the long, costly pivot into prescribing — and if you do, do you lose the part of you that loves the work?

That question deserves more than a late-night spiral. It deserves a held weekend, in a room with a clinician who has made the exact crossing — and a small cohort of therapists asking the same thing.

The heart of it

The choice isn't either / or. It's both / and.

Every therapist weighing this is trapped in the same false choice. This retreat exists to dissolve it — because the integration isn't a compromise. It's the superpower.

The either / or trap
The both / and truth
Stay a therapist or become a prescriber
A prescriber who is also, still, fully a therapist
Keep my depth or gain authority
My depth is what makes my prescribing powerful
Honor my training or start over
I carry everything I've learned into a larger room
Be a healer or a medical provider
The rare clinician who holds both — patients feel it
Is this you?

Wherever you are on the question

Both/And holds two groups in one room — and they're better together. The deciders see living proof; the doers remember why they started.

The deciders

Still weighing whether to pivot at all

The "should I?" has lived in you for months, maybe years. You want honest clarity, a real framework for the decision, and permission to choose either way — without the guilt or the spiral.

The doers

Decided, now navigating the how

You've committed and you're in it — prerequisites, programs, licensing, the long road. You need direction, the integrated-clinician identity to hold onto, stamina, and a cohort who understands.

Open to licensed therapists and counselors — LCSW, LMHC, LPC, LMFT, and similar. In PMHNP school already and need finishing + integration support? A companion retreat is in the works — reach out.

The experience

Four days, four movements

Not an agenda — an arc that moves you somewhere. About half inner and decision work, half clarity and direction. The inner work is what makes a clear-eyed decision possible.

01
Thu · Land

Land

Set down the noise of the decision so the real signal can surface.

02
Fri · Excavate

Excavate & Reframe

Surface the fears and money beliefs driving the indecision — then reframe through both/and.

03
Sat · Build

Build

The decision framework, the integrated-practice vision, and your personal next-step map.

04
Sun · Commit

Integrate & Commit

Land the decision — go, not-yet, or no, all valid — and commit to what's next.

A look inside

The flow of the weekend

Inner work, real clarity, and genuine rest. Tap each day to expand. Inner Build Restore

Thursday — Land Evening arrival
Evening
Opening circle: the question underneath Inner

Name the real question you carry, hear Shay's own crossroads story, and let your nervous system land.

Friday — Excavate & Reframe Full day
Morning
Regulation practice Restore

Movement or breath, so the deep work lands in a settled body.

Late morning
What's really in the way Inner

Trauma-informed excavation of the true blocks — fear, money, identity grief — co-held by our guest trauma therapist.

Midday
The both/and reframe Inner

Dissolve the either/or trap. Your depth makes your prescribing more powerful, not less.

Lunch
White space & bodywork Restore

Protected, unscheduled. Rest, walk, or book a massage.

Afternoon
Worth, money & the cost of becoming Inner

Hold the real cost of the pivot honestly — and untangle it from the worth story underneath.

Saturday — Build Full day
Morning
Regulation practice Restore

Ground the building day.

Late morning
The decision framework Build

A clear, honest way to make the go / not-yet / no call — readiness, fit, runway, support — without anyone prescribing your answer.

Midday
Vision: the integrated practice Build

See what a prescriber-therapist practice actually looks like — and sketch your own.

Lunch
White space Restore

The "I figured it out at lunch" hour.

Afternoon
Your next-step map Build

Translate clarity into direction — the honest first moves for your chosen path.

Evening
Celebration dinner Restore

Mark the courage it took to even ask the question.

Sunday — Integrate & Commit Wrap by midday
Morning
Landing the decision Inner

Come to a decision you own — or a conscious "not yet." Every outcome is honored.

Late morning
Commitments & accountability partners Build

Lock first moves and pair up so momentum survives Monday.

Midday
Closing circle Inner

Carry it home.

Schedule is representative and held loosely — white space and rest are protected on purpose.

Your care team

Held, not just taught

This decision surfaces real grief and fear. You won't navigate it alone, and you won't navigate it unsupported.

Host & lead

Dr. Shukairo "Shay" Baker

DNP, APRN, PMHNP-BC, PMHNP-C, FNP-C, CNE, LCSW, LCAS. Dually licensed prescriber and clinical social worker — she made this exact crossing and came out holding both. The living proof in the room.

Guest practitioner

A trauma therapist

Co-holds the excavation and decision work and keeps the deep moments safe. This is professional development, not therapy — with a licensed clinician present throughout.

Guest practitioner

A massage therapist

Bodywork through the restorative blocks, so the nervous-system care is physical — not just an idea.

What's included

What you'll leave with

The full four-movement arc

Three days of guided programming — Land, Excavate, Build, Integrate.

The H.O.P.E. inner-work and decision curriculum

Trauma-informed, applied to the pivot question. Used under license from The Baggage Exchange LLC.

A clear decision framework

Go, not-yet, or no — all held as valid. You leave with your answer, not someone else's.

A written vision of your integrated practice

What a prescriber-therapist practice looks like in your specific scope and setting.

A personal next-step map

Matched to your decision — the honest first moves for the path you actually choose.

Restorative practices, movement & on-site bodywork

Meals, an intimate cohort of 10–14, and a post-retreat check-in to keep momentum alive.

Where execution lives. Both/And gives you the decision and the direction. The detailed step-by-step of the pivot — prerequisites, programs, licensing, financing — lives in the PMHNP Pivot Both/And self-paced course and the live cohort, your natural next step if you choose to move forward. Not included: travel, lodging if structured as commuter, and anything personal. A full logistics email follows registration.

Your host

Dr. Shukairo "Shay" Baker

DNP, APRN, PMHNP-BC, PMHNP-C, FNP-C, CNE, LCSW, LCAS · Founder, TheraPsych™ Institute

Shay holds the exact integration this retreat is about: she is dually licensed as a psychiatric nurse practitioner and a licensed clinical social worker. She didn't abandon the therapist to become the prescriber — she became both.

She created Both/And because she stood at this crossroads herself, and she knows the weight of the question from the inside. This is the retreat she wishes had existed when she was the therapist wondering whether to make the leap.

Elevate Practice. Empower Minds. Expand Possibility.

Can't make the retreat?

PMHNP Pivot Both/And is also a course

For therapists who want the curriculum without the residential weekend — or who want to continue the work after the retreat — the same content is delivered in two course formats.

Live cohort

PMHNP Pivot Both/And · Live

A guided eight-week live cohort with weekly group calls, the both/and decision framework, and a small group of therapists working the same question. The closest non-residential version of the retreat experience.

See the live cohort →
Self-paced

PMHNP Pivot Both/And · Self-Paced

The full curriculum delivered as an on-demand course you can move through on your timeline. Six modules, a written workbook, and the decision framework you can return to at any stage of the journey.

See the self-paced course →
Reserve your seat

Stop circling the question. Come decide it — in good company.

Both/And · The Therapist's Path to Prescriber
$1,795 / clinician
Secure your seat with a deposit · payment plans available
  • Full four-day programming & the H.O.P.E. decision curriculum
  • The decision framework + your integrated-practice vision
  • A personal next-step map & on-site trauma-informed support
  • All retreat meals + an intimate 10–14 cohort
  • Post-retreat check-in + a bridge to the Pivot course if you choose go
Reserve your seat →

A non-refundable deposit holds your place; the balance can be split into a payment plan. Full terms in your registration agreement.

Good questions

Before you reserve

I haven't decided to do this at all. Is it too early to come?  

No — that's exactly who this is for. Both/And is built to help you make the decision with clarity, not to assume you already have. Leaving with a confident "not now" or "not for me" is just as valid an outcome as committing to the pivot, and just as valuable.

Will this tell me exactly how to make the pivot?  

This retreat gives you the decision and the direction — readiness, fit, the integrated-clinician vision, and your first moves. The detailed mechanics (prerequisites, program types, licensing) live in the PMHNP Pivot Both/And course (live or self-paced), which is your natural next step if you choose to move forward.

Is this therapy?  

No. It's professional development and a decision experience, not treatment. The inner work is trauma-informed and a licensed trauma therapist is present to hold it safely, but nothing here is clinical care or supervision.

I'm already in PMHNP school. Is this for me?  

Both/And centers the decision and early-pivot stage. If you're mid-program and want finishing-and-integration support, a companion retreat is in the works — reach out and we'll keep you posted.

What kind of therapist is this for?  

Licensed therapists and counselors of any stripe — LCSW, LMHC, LPC, LMFT, and similar — who are considering or navigating the PMHNP path.

What if I need to cancel?  

Your deposit secures your seat and is non-refundable, which lets us keep the cohort small and confirmed. Full cancellation and payment-plan terms are in your registration agreement.

Retreat inquiries

Two paths. One room. The room knows.

Whether you're a decider or a doer, you'll find your people here. Tell us a little about where you are on the question and we'll be in touch about fit, dates, and the next cohort.