LPCC, 19 years of experience
Hello, my name is Jessica. I have been working in the field of mental health care since October 2006, when I got my first job as an Activities Therapist on a Behavioral Medicine Center. I was 23-years-old. I knew then, that this was my calling, and began my journey into becoming an actual mental health counselor. I have worked in various roles in different settings, including inpatient psychiatric units and hospital, long-term care facilities, rehabilitation facilities, and outpatient clinics. Over the past five years, as well, I have become accustomed to providing services via telehealth.
During the first session, typically there is a lot of paper work, policies, expectations, general guidelines must be reviewed and discussed, and we will go over what informed consent. We will also review Duty to Warn, privacy and confidentiality (HIPAA), limits to confidentiality, and mandated reporting. Also, we will complete a Bio-Psychosocial assessment, which is basically where I ask the individual their life's history, experiences, family and support system, hobbies, achievements, career details, academic details, childhood experiences, and goals. This is typically completed in this much detail just in the beginning, and is updated annually, or as needed. This will be where we begin to learn each other's communication styles, circumstances of current situations, and even sense of humor. We will do this together.
My uniqueness, I have been told in the past, is my ability to encourage individual's to examine their self-perception, self-care, and boosting self-esteem in an effort to facilitate the desired changes in one's life. People often forget their own worth in the hustle and bustle of the daily grind. This can lead to getting stuck in distorted thinking patterns, emotions, and behaviors, making it even more difficult to implement change. The focus on and encouraging an individual to focus on and care for oneself can be a novel idea, and reconnecting with this aspect of yourself can surprisingly make a huge difference going forward.
I have experience providing mental health counseling to children and adults experiencing issues with depression, panic, anxiety, trauma, military history, fluctuating mood, obsessive-compulsive anxiety, attention deficit / hyperactivity concerns, vocational and occupational stressors, developmental difficulties, communication and interpersonal functioning, hallucinations and delusional thoughts, behavioral acting out, gender / identity, financial stressors, legal concerns, and substance use disorders / addiction. I have also worked with the geriatric populations, and addressing specific issues experienced that are specific to this age group. I've noticed that you get out of it what you put into it. So in other words, progress, healing, and having the strength to make necessary changes can be a collaboration, but highly depends on the individual and their own personal perception/willingness. Change can be scary, but mental health counseling can help to alleviate that feeling of potential apprehension.
CBT focuses on the connection between thoughts, feelings, and behaviors; and how our thoughts influence and shape our feelings, and then our resulting reaction to these feelings. By focusing on this connection, we can work to find the source of these negative and maladaptive thinking patterns that lead to corresponding emotions and actions. By working to change these irrational thoughts into more rational ones, we can encourage less stress in daily life, improved quality of life and relationships, and better communication, as well as more adaptive thought patterns.
When you see this word, please don't immediately think of the mainstream perception portrayed typically in social media. But, what you can think of, is Feminist Theory, old school if you will, which focuses on EMPOWERMENT FOR CHANGE. Change can be scary and intimidating. Here, we will focus on positive self-care activities, hobbies, seeking interests, and what makes you feel content and happy. Feminist Theory also encourages an individual to focus on identifying and utilizing their strengths to work towards goals and aspirations.
Solution Focused methods can be used in the short-term, with the more immediate and pressing concerns and issues, in an effort to alleviate the presenting stressors. This can be helpful for identifying issues and potential solutions.