When I was trying to come up with a name for my psychology practice, I knew that I wanted the name to stand out, tell a story, and communicate my values. I quickly learned that capturing all of these elements in a single word was a tall order. I had been looking for words everywhere when I stumbled upon a small subplot about the character Nephelle and the Nephelle Philosophy in a Sarah J. Maas fantasy series. 

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The Nephelle Philosophy originates with the story of Nephelle who was a small faery of the Seraphim people. She had a disfigured wing but yearned to join the Seraphim legion's fighting ranks. However, she failed the try outs when she was unable to physically keep up with her peers. Despite the rejection, she remained determined to be an invaluable part of that legion and became a cartographer instead.

Later, during a particularly brutal and pivotal battle, a heroine in the story by the name of Miryam stayed in a perilous situation so that she could see that all of her people had reached safety. However, Miryam became gravely injured with only Nephelle realizing that her friend was missing. Nephelle rushed to Miryam's aid without hesitation. She snatched Miryam up just in time and flew low through tight twists and turns that no larger warrior could fit through to get them both to safety against all odds.

 

Based on Nephelle's heroic feat, the Nephelle Philosophy holds that our greatest weakness can become our greatest strength and that the most unlikely person can alter the course of history. Nephelle was the epitome of several characteristics I admire - courage, strength, determination, persistence, care, intelligence, ferocity, and loyalty. By borrowing her name, I could achieve what I had initially hoped when selecting a practice name - a name that stood out, told a story, and communicated my values.