Hello. I look forward to working with you. My own background is one of growing up on farms, having little money and ambitious dreams. I did not know what it was but I knew I wanted to go to college and get out of the tobacco fields around me. My dreams came true. I ended up being a psychologist and a teacher, spending decades working in residential treatment then in schools, the last 13 years working with preschoolers and their families to prepare them to succeed in school. As a teacher, I taught many college and university courses as well as workshops, most recently to address grief and trauma. In the early 1990's, I felt led to live and work at or near the world center of Quakers called Pendle Hill in PA. There I studied and taught Arts and Spirituality while also serving as a Psychologist in nearby schools. I came to see the importance of Co-Creativity (creating together a piece of life we truly want to live for). My specialties in the Arts have been writing, visual arts and dancing/movement from a "no wrong way" perspective. I incorporate these into the therapy process as they become beneficial. For much of my life, I have also been engaged with my own therapeutic process. Having been the client for several years, gives me the perspective of what might be important to you as we work together, never assuming I know or forgetting to ask you. In our sessions, I want to hear about you, find our starting points and from there develop action plans each session to work on the goals needed to find the life you dream of and are willing to work toward.
What can clients expect to take away from sessions with you?
In the first session, I want to introduce myself briefly but mostly I want to find out how the client frames their issues and what a solution or a re-visioned story might look like. This process is not a one-session activity but following the initial assessment tools, I would want to map out a direction with a brief introduction to the kinds of things the client might expect to happen in our sessions. In all sessions, deep listening and asking good questions, then seeking a way to frame the situation as work-able toward a better life situation is the primary goal, with sub-goals created following the assessments.
Explain to clients what areas you feel are your biggest strengths.
My greatest strength is the breadth of experiences I have had. I grew up on farms in poverty but had a dream to go to college to become a teacher and did that. Along the way, I developed another dream to be a counselor and became a psychologist, working in residential treatment then in schools for decades. I also taught many college classes related to what works in therapy. In addition to using the techniques with others, I have also participated in my own therapy for trauma much of my life. I will be coming to you as a person who has done this work and wants to accompany you in your journey. I call it "Dancing Through the Fires of Grief & Trauma with Co-Creativity." In 2024, I wrote a book with that title. I have not only done the academic work of obtaining a BA in Psychology, an MA in Sociology (Criminology), an MA in Psychology, and a PhD in Psychology but I have also taken 27 classes in Arts and Spirituality. This led to my experiences and beliefs that Co-Creativity is often a piece of the formula that makes for successful change in stories of your life that need to change. I have studied and come to believe in the power of Co-creativity (creating with the divine-as you conceptualize it-and others) as a therapeutic tool. My own specialties are what are called "no wrong way" writing, visual arts, and dancing/movement. Incorporating creativity as the client chooses is important.
Describe the client(s) you are best positioned to serve.
My dream clients are ready to do their work and look forward to working with me toward making a better life for themselves and those around them. We work together to build a better world, personally and collectively.
About Jennifer Elam
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VirtualMy treatment methods
Grief Therapy
Many of us are grieving now. The first step is to assure the client they are not alone and yet their situation is unique. Then, an understanding of the typical stages of grief is important while recognizing we all do it differently. I ask clients to tell or write a story that is important to them that is keeping them stuck in the grief. We might do art or move/dance to the story. Then we will tell or write a re-visioning of the story and how the client would like it to go. Then what is one step toward getting there. Dealing with the typical emotions that arise such as anger, bargaining, and all that goes with grief will be processed and re-processed until the acceptance can come. The use of deep listening within the client's place of spirituality is important. Cognitive processing of thoughts is an important beginning place but not the stopping place. Processing emotions with empathy and compassion is extremely important, letting the client know that many hard emotions are normal in dealing with grief. Helping the client to gain skills in all areas of heart, mind, body, and spirit/soul are part of the therapy while listening deeply and asking good questions. I am comfortable using religious language with clients or not. Co-creativity is the word I use for building a world that the client wants to live for and thrive in.
Trauma-Focused CBT
Many of us are dealing with deep trauma now. I see trauma as a story that has gotten stuck and forgotten how to dance. We need to teach it how to move again. The first step is to assure the client they are not alone and yet their situation is unique. Then, an understanding of the typical stages of grief that often goes with trauma is important while recognizing we all do it differently. Learning how dissociation works and how to befriend it is important. I ask clients to tell or write a story that is important to them that is keeping them stuck in the trauma. They read it slowly as I move. We might do art or move/dance to the story together. Then the client will be asked to tell or write a re-visioning of the story and how the client would like it to go. Then what is one step toward getting there? Dealing with the typical emotions that arise such as anger/rage and all that goes with trauma will be processed and re-processed until the story can get unfrozen and move. The use of deep listening within the client's place of spirituality is important. Cognitive processing of thoughts is an important beginning place but not the stopping place. Processing emotions with empathy and compassion is extremely important, letting the client know that many hard emotions are normal in dealing with trauma. Finding the gifts in the pain and other difficult emotions is important. Helping the client to gain skills in all areas of heart, mind, body, and spirit/soul are part of the therapy while listening deeply and asking good questions. Co-creativity is the word I use for building a world that the client wants to live for and thrive in. Important to pay attention to in working with trauma are: safety, stable relationships, creativity, and what identity is important to take on now to move toward healing. What identities are keeping the client stuck? How do we move toward the new identity?
Narrative
In narrative therapy, we will look more closely at the stories that the client is telling themselves about the situation that is problematic. Their interpretations of the stories will be explored in terms of how they construct the meaning of their lives. We will explore, see what purpose they serve, and re-write the stories that can lead to growth, well-being and healing. By re-writing the story, the client can gain a new perspective, sense of agency, and create a self-concept/identity that just serves them better. Identifying their goals and what gives them strength is important through compassionate deep listening as well as techniques described above.
Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT)
Emotions are key to building stable relationships. Patterns that may interfere with building those relationships will be explored and re-visioned. Through compassionate deep listening, the client will be encouraged to express their needs and emotions in a healthy way to foster secure emotional attachments. When "negative" emotions occur, the gifts that can be found in them will be sought. This helps to de-escalate the cycles that are not serving the clients best interests and well-being. Strong, secure emotional bonds are built to promote well-being and relationship satisfaction. Trust, understanding and closeness are fostered through the EFT techniques.
Eclectic
In the past I have taught many college level courses related to therapy and have had therapy myself. Courses have included Abnormal Psychology, Basic Psychology, Group Dynamics, Individual Therapy Techniques, Developmental Psychology, and more. In this academic work, along with my own university training in psychology as well as 27 courses in Arts and Spirituality, eclectic probably describes my methods better than any other word. I have a large toolbox of both theory and techniques to draw from in meeting clients where they are and address their needs.