LISW, 5 years of experience
Hello, I am Samantha Wingo but you can call me Sam. I understand the struggles of life and mental health from a professional and personal perspective. Having lived through my own challenges, I've worked hard to transform my life. Through perseverance and dedication, I obtained a Master's of Science in Social Work from Indiana Wesleyan University. I began my career working with individuals both adolescent and adults battling addiction for three years, before transitioning into mental health working through each licensure until becoming independently licensed. Throughout my career, I have had the privilege of working with a wide range of individuals, ages 13 to 65, across various mental health disorders, including ADHD, relationship issues, anxiety, and mood disorders. My work spans a variety of settings and has worked extensively with the LGBTQ+ community, ensuring an inclusive, affirming approach for all clients. More recently, my focus has been with family and relationship therapy, understanding how interconnected our mental and relational health are. I also have a special focus on supporting healthcare workers, as I know the unique challenges we face in the field and the importance of having a healthy outlet to process those stressors.
In your first and second sessions, we will work together to obtain background information and identify concerns that have been present and identify any symptoms you have been experiencing. I will obtain necessary information to make appropriate diagnoses. We will use this first session to get to know each other and discuss any pertinent information. We will then use this information to help us to develop a plan to work through and address the issues/concerns. Clients can expect to walk away from our sessions feeling heard, empowered, and equipped with actionable insights.
I have been told on numerous occasions that I standout from other providers due to consistency in being present with my clients and lead by example. I came into this field due to lived experience and a desire to make a change in the lives of the people I work with. I know life can be hard. It is hard but we can make changes to get where we would like to be and I will support you along the journey. To me its more than just what we learn in the books. The education gives you the basis but to me lived experience helps me to be more compassionate and willing to step outside the box to address issues.
We all experience difficult times in life. I take a warm but direct and empowering solution-focused approach to help you take charge of your life to address, process, and make change. I recognize that everyone's journey is different and provide a safe, non-judgmental and compassionate stance, meeting you where you are. You want to see changes and with taking a solution-focused and results driven approach we are able to identify clear practical steps to address whatever concern has you here, helping you to find the tools to move forward and feel empowered. I utilize various modalities in treatment CBT, DBT, Supportive, Couples Counseling, to address mental health concerns such as ADHD, Anxiety, Mood Disorders as well as those struggling with relationships whether that be parent/child relationships or partner relationships. If this sounds like you, reach out, I would be happy to get everything set up to start this journey of helping you to get where you would like to be.
The CBT treatment modality can be beneficial with various diagnoses. It can help to see how our thinking affects our behaviors and can create issues in life. I have 10 years of experience with utilizing this method helping others to challenge their thinking, recognize cognitive distortions, and build skills to reduce issues being experienced.
Over the last 5 years I have assisted both couples and families to work through their interrelationship struggles and resolve issues to improve skills and the relationship as a whole. It can help us to gain a better understanding of the dynamics of the relationship, creates a safe space for everyone to feel safe and comfortable to share and receive unbiased feedback, see the others perspective, and start to resolve the roadblocks that stand in the way of a happy healthy relationship.
I have over 5 years' experience with utilizing DBT. DBT can be beneficial with people who struggle to maintain emotions is a healthy manner. It can be used to help individuals to get through life challenges by helping to regulate emotions, improve tolerance for distress, be mindful of the struggles we experience and can help to manage crises situations.
I have 10 years of experience utilizing SFBT. It helps to focus more on the solution than the cause of the problem itself. It is goal oriented. I help by giving support, guidance, and structure to help the individual to find and implement a plan to address issues experienced in daily living.
I have 6 years' experience with utilizing supportive therapy. I provide a safe space and come from a nonjudgmental standpoint. This allows an individual to feel comfortable to express thoughts and emotions while also receiving feedback, guidance, encouragement and coping strategies that can be used to help the individual with current concerns or issues.