Hello, my name is LaShonda. I am a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist from a very small town in Georgia. However,I have lived in California since 2004. Prior to moving here I have lived in Washington state for 4 years. I joined the military at the dapper age of 18 and served my country for 13 years. I received a bachelor's in Legal Studies prior to leaving the military in 2012. After careful deliberation I decided that I no longer wanted to pursue a career in law and that I was more fascinated with human behavior. I then started a dual master's program in Counseling Psychology and Marriage and Family Therapy in San Diego, California. I received my masters in 2015 and decided to take a step further and obtain my PhD in marriage and family therapy, with an emphasis on military families. I am currently a PhD candidate a Northcentral university where I am within the process of completing research on military relationships. I am a certified clinical trauma professional, trained in Sex-trafficking, Post traumatic stress, CBT, DBT as well as clinical family trauma.
What can clients expect to take away from sessions with you?
In our first session, we will start with getting to know one another, goal setting, assessment, and expectations.
What treatment methods and tools do you utilize?
Dialectical Behavior Therapy Clinical trauma Solution focused brief therapy Family therapy Couples therapy Cognitive behavior therapy
Explain to clients what areas you feel are your biggest strengths.
I have over 20 years experience with the military and veteran population. I feel that’s my greatest strength however, my training has been versatile. I am a trained military marriage counselor. I have experience in military sexual trauma and transition support. I am s also a Veteran. My experience outside of military lies in substance use and I am currently receiving my substance use counselor certification. I have many years of experience working with children both military and civilian. I have crisis intervention and case management skills. I have experience with psychosis and personality treatment and disorders. I have also conducted court appointed coparenting, couples therapy, children’s support groups and family therapy. Overall I feel I am well rounded.