You. Here. Today.

Credit

Author

Nancy L. Johnston, LPC, LSATP, MAC, NCC Related seminars and products

---

Nancy L. Johnston, MS, LPC, LSATP, MAC, NCC, is in private practice in Virginia. With 49 years of clinical experience, Nancy is master addiction counselor and an American Mental Health Counselors Association (AMCHA) diplomate in substance abuse and co-occurring disorders. A sought-after speaker and trainer, Nancy has been a faculty member the Psychotherapy Networker Symposium, The Ferentz Institute, numerous other professional conferences including Cape Cod Symposium on Addictive Disorders, the American Mental Health Counselors Association’s Annual Conference, the Virginia Counselors Association’s Annual Conference, and Specialty Docket Training for the Virginia Supreme Court.

Her work was recently featured in a New York Times article on enmeshment in relationships. In addition to teaching clinical professionals, Nancy offers online self-recovery workshops and delights in designing and facilitating Codependence Camp biannually at a retreat center in Virginia. Nancy has authored four books on codependency, including You. Here. Today.: 200 Readings for Growth from Codependency to Self-Recovery (2026); The Clinician’s Codependency Treatment Workbook (2024); Disentangle: When You've Lost Your Self in Someone Else 2nd Edition (2020); and My Life as a Border Collie: Freedom from Codependency (2012). When she is not teaching or writing, Nancy enjoys extended time with family and friends, gardening, collaging, writing haiku, dancing, walking in the woods, and sitting by the river near her country home. To learn more about Nancy and her work, please visit www.nancyljohnston.com.

Speaker Disclosures:
Financial: Nancy Johnston receives compensation as a designer and facilitator of workshops and retreats. She receives royalties as a published author. Nancy Johnston receives a speaking honorarium and recording royalties from Psychotherapy Networker and PESI, Inc. She has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible organizations.
Non-financial: Nancy Johnston is a member of the American Mental Health Counselors' Association, the Virginia Counselors' Association, the National Association of Alcohol and Drug Abuse Counselors, and the Virginia Association of Addiction Professionals.

Additional Info

“If you’re used to over-giving, over-fixing, and losing yourself in the process, this book will feel like a breath of fresh air. Nancy Johnston offers practical, compassionate reflections that gently bring the focus back where it belongs: on you. Small, daily shifts can create real change, and this book shows you how.” 

—Terri Cole, psychotherapist, author, and podcast host

“A wonderful and important resource that gives the reader a wise and compassionate road map for enhancing self-discovery and self-recovery through nonjudgmental curiosity, awareness, intentionality, and self-compassion. This rich toolkit includes somatic resourcing, a parts perspective, movement, reframing trauma-based cognitions, redefining boundaries, connecting to emotions, incorporating spirituality, increasing confidence and competence, and gentle questions at the end of each chapter that encourage greater insight and the ability to reclaim an authentic sense of self. There is a beautiful balance between providing psychoeducation to depathologize the codependent sequelae of early attachment trauma, acknowledging inherent resilience and strengths, and advocating for an internal focus on self, the need for behavioral changes, and the daily practice of self-care. The author’s kindness shines through, and her voice is a comforting companion that will no doubt help countless people on their healing journeys.”

—Lisa Ferentz, LCSW-C, DAPA, author of Letting Go of Self-Destructive Behaviors: A Workbook of Hope and Healing

“These very engaging and beautifully written readings have profound implications for all of our lives, specifically for the maintenance of healthy and happy relationships. This book contains insightful daily reminders to stay attuned with yourself and to practice self-compassion.”

—Noel Bell, UKCP accredited psychotherapist

“Finally, a brand-new book of daily readings for recovery from codependency! And how welcome it is! Since recovery work of any kind is a daily choice, this book meets us here, today. Even though it informs and inspires, its greatest asset is that the reader is taken to a deeper level of recovery. Each reading invites us on an inward journey to the self: to notice, consider, and connect with our selves. The author ends each reading with a thought to dwell on or a question to ponder. It is a journey of both discovery and recovery. With this book, Nancy Johnston delivers a wonderful combination of education, brilliant metaphors (such as the circles on the cover), information, and corrective thinking. The book exudes kindness, compassion, gentleness, patience—all attributes helpful to recovery, especially when directed to our Selves. Today is a good day to begin the readings!”

—Margaret L. Cress, MA, LMFT, co-facilitator of Codependence Camp and trainer on boundaries and codependency

“You. Here. Today. is a marvelous book with a unique format that enhances and reinforces the content. Take it slow, be mindful, and let yourself marinate in self-awareness. In a gentle and guided way, Nancy Johnston helps readers notice their impulses and desires while encouraging them to act on their own needs. It could be read one page a day, and readers may actually find it more beneficial to do so. Educating, giving perspective, and questioning is balanced with her easy-to-follow prompts for the reader to gain a greater sense of self. Anyone who finds themselves lost in relationships could find themselves with this book.”

—Benjamin Houchen, MA, LCMHC, clinical supervisor and psychotherapist

“I love this book of daily readings! It is for anyone who focuses on others at the expense of themselves. Nancy Johnston uses clear, concise language explaining what codependency is and how to recognize codependent patterns in us, and she provides helpful how-to strategies to create a better life balance between focus on self and others. As a counselor, I find this book an excellent companion to therapy, as it provides daily reminders to, in Nancy’s words, ‘sustain your gains and keep growing.’”

—Kristin Shafer, LPC

“You. Here. Today. offers life lessons in bite-sized pieces that feel approachable, grounding, and deeply compassionate. It gently guides you back to yourself, encouraging you to begin to turn inward rather than stay focused on everyone else. In doing so, you may begin to find the love, respect, and trust for yourself that you so deserve.”

—Courtney Wink, LCSW, clinical director and therapist

“Nancy Johnston has done it again! You. Here. Today. is a book of readings that allows the reader to reflect on codependency in digestible bits. It can be read in full, but I appreciated reading one page a day and used that reading as a guide for my self-reflection. Nancy cuts right to the heart of each reading topic in a clear and relatable way. The questions she poses at the end of the reading is a wonderful way to identify one’s own codependent patterns. This is a book that I will read over and over, and get something new from it each time.”

—Keeley Grimm, DNP, AGNP-C

“You. Here. Today. is a very reflective book, giving ample opportunity for the exploration, digestion, and application of the complexities entwined in self-recovery. Clearly, recovery from codependency is not simply a quick fix. It is a journey of self-discovery—one that is greatly assisted by the sound principles outlined by the author.”

—Pam Wood, PT, DPT

“More than a book about codependency, You. Here. Today. feels like a gentle companion for anyone who has spent too much of life caring for others while losing touch with themselves. Nancy L. Johnston writes with extraordinary warmth and clarity, offering brief daily reflections that are deeply compassionate, practical, and quietly transformative. It’s the kind of book you leave by your bedside and return to again and again, finding new wisdom each time you open it.”

—Caitlin McAvoy, BA, performer, movement educator, and multidisciplinary artist  

“You. Here. Today. is an accessible and delightful primer on how to interrupt codependent thought patterns. A reader can dive in, read any numbered entry, and close the book feeling wiser, calmer, and better prepared to re-engage with the world. Each entry makes one feel not just seen, but known and elegantly attended to in a way that makes clear Nancy Johnston’s expertise in codependence and mindful practices. Through each entry, You. Here. Today. attends to so many parts of ourselves and awakens us to not only why we suffer but how we can ease that suffering. In this sense, the book is a true balm to the soul. It is best kept within easy reach—such as on one’s nightstand or in an office drawer—for those of us who need consistent and gentle reminding of the way forward in codependent self-recovery.”

—Dr. Mary Beth Pennington, mother, wife, daughter, and master lecturer in English at Old Dominion University

“Nancy Johnston’s newest book, You. Here. Today., is a treasure trove of readings that illuminate a path from codependency and other-centeredness into a life grounded in the promises of the Serenity Prayer. This book offers daily entries that can be read individually or sequentially, and what drives the learning process home are the pointed reflections at the end of each daily entry. The readings are remarkably clear, and they provide straightforward and practical suggestions for forging a path of self-awareness for anyone ready to journey within to discover and connect with the strength and wisdom that is in each of us. Johnston does not sugarcoat the effort it takes to deepen self-awareness and to make changes in reactive patterns that have become second nature. That said, she breaks steps down into bite-sized chunks and offers real, hands-on ways to tackle the complexities of behaviors molded over a lifetime but that no longer serve. Johnston offers an exciting and lucid path to any seeker of self-recovery.”

—Phyllis Parker, MPA, author, lecturer, retired high school teacher, parent, grandparent, and person in self-recovery

“As a current graduate student, I found You. Here. Today. to be a book for anyone who has lost themselves in patterns of self-abandonment. It offers a path back to ourselves, guiding us to plant and tend to the garden within, as Johnston describes it. One of my favorite quotes is from Martha Stewart: ‘If you want to be happy for a year, get married. If you want to be happy for a decade, get a dog. And if you want to be happy for the rest of your life, make a garden.’ We should all treat ourselves like gardens and build more gardens!”

—Lauren Layne, BA, graduate student in the MEd in Counselor Education Program in the School of Education and Human Development at the University of Virginia

“I love this book because it repeatedly brings me back to what I need to do to take care of myself and tend my garden within. I believe that even a beginner on this journey would be able to use this book to look into themselves and their daily situation. And I would recommend it to several people in my life!”

—Joelyn, BA, MEd, retired elementary school teacher, partner, parent, grandparent, and individual in self-recovery

“I highly recommend You. Here. Today. to anyone, especially to health care professionals. This book of readings is a wonderful framework for building skills to find a realistic balance of supporting yourself while supporting others. You. Here. Today. has supported me in both my personal and professional life. It has helped me find a better balance of care of myself and care of others so I can be healthy and enjoy my life.”

—JB, physical therapist, partner, parent, and person in self-recovery

“For someone who has spent years learning how not to lose myself in others, Nancy Johnston’s most recent book is strong medicine. Those addictions which lose money or make me feel physically ill haven’t been a problem, but my codependency thrives when I feel good because of doing good or being good. These daily readings keep my focus strong on being myself and enjoying my own company. Each one offers new insights and builds readers’ strength to step forward into healthier patterns and behaviors, and best of all, happier relationships—with others and with ourselves.”

—Amanda, BA, MT, retired teacher, parent, partner, host of artists’ residency, and person in self-recovery