Allisha Bonneaux
My name is Allisha Bonneaux. I consider it an honor to work with individuals that are ready to manage their thinking and mange their personal business. I believe everyone should have a safe and healing pace to work through life's difficulties and gain new perspectives and personal strengths. I believe in considering our nervous system and how it performs at it's root level to be one of the pillars necessary to creating the base of an emotionally sturdy and steadfast individual. Our thinking and behavior have great implications for the neuroscience in which we bathe of brain. Using CBT techniques and EMDR, I am encouraged to see clients explore new thoughts and new behaviors, in a comfortable pace for success. I teach my clients tools and techniques, and provide them with the latest in research to ensure that when they are in a difficult situation that they have resources that have been practiced to utilize in the moment.
I believe everyone should have a safe and healing pace to work through life's difficulties and gain new perspectives and personal strengths.
First session
First sessions are always the scariest, because we are stepping into an adventure with a stranger. I think that the first session is often easier on the client if they do not feel like they are carrying the information load. I think the first session is a great time and place for the client to get a feel for counseling with me. I will probably do some teaching around a matter that has been suggested as an area of need. We will do some checking in to see how much experience a client has with an intervention concept. We might talk about fight, flight, freeze, fawn and how that is adaptive, until it is not. We might talk about communication styles and learn about a few trends or positions people take due their own experiences, rewards or punishers. We might talk about neurotransmitters and how they work in our nervous system.
Strengths
I love learning and I love teaching. I think most people do. I am careful with individuals that have had school trauma, as I have been a special education teacher and counselor. But I believe everyone is interested in learning more about themselves and their loved ones. More than having my own aha-moments, I love the privileged of witnessing this with another's growth. I am generally an energized optimist, that leans with a curiosity to stoicism. My camping motto may sound like, "Be prepared, not scared". Let's get ready for Life, Let's get ready for Living fully.
Ideal clients
My dream client is someone that is interested in growing their future, interested in movement and taking steps to achieve new heights. My dream client is someone interested in making new or different choices in a moderate range of comfort to reach new and meaningful goals. It is a privilege to work with clients that are curious about their own behaviors and are open to new routines and protocols to enhance their lives. Many of my clients present with anxiety, depression, AHDH or Autism Spectrum Disorders. We work together to find insight in their behaviors, and nervous system to create personal growth and a fulfilling life with clarity.
Treatment methods
Cognitive Behavioral (CBT)
Cognitive Behavioral Approaches are an umbrella of techniques and tools that can be taught and aid in enhancing our ability to be flexible and deliberate thinkers. I like to teach skill sets and use metaphors to anchor these tools in our thinking, so that they are more accessible during times of stress. I teach Transactional Analysis to encourage people to be able to step back and become proactive, less reactive, as they move forward in their lives.
EMDR
For those interested in learning the science behind the practice of EMDR and other techniques, I find it a privilege to share. EMDR is also effective for those less interested in the how and more interested in the help. EMDR can seem elusive or esoteric, but after seeing the success of my clients and knowing that it is empirically based in research, it is exciting to see lives transformed by this practice. Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing is widely accepted as the Gold Standard for trauma treatment, but is also extremely beneficial for other stresses and triggers. It is often a favorite with individuals a bit weary of sharing all of the details of events, as this is not required to quieten the mind and bring comfort where there was distress.
Faith-based therapy
I consider myself a very spiritually curious individual. I consider myself a Christian and teach and practice from this perspective when it is valued by the client. I believe there are lessons to be learned by many of our world's spiritual leaders. I also have walked with many through an existential crisis and encourage more questioning, not less. I find that we can all find support and comfort through our best forms of mediation and prayer, once we quieten the wresting. I encourage others to walk their path to enlightenment.
Polyvagal Therapy
Once again, I LOVE the science. I know that it is not everyone's cup of tea, but if you know that I am regularly engaged in studying mental health science, than my practices will be based in this evidence to give the best outcomes for clients. Polyvagal Theory is grounded in knowing about how our nervous system responds to stress. The vegus nerve is the longest nerve in our body that runs from head to tail and hits every major organ in our body. WE we go into Fight, Flight, Freeze, Fawn our nervous system responds quickly to be adaptive for us. It is when these reactions become maladaptive that we become frustrated and need interventions to help teach our body and brain other options. PolyVagal techniques work with calming the body and challenging our thinking to get the best responses when we are under stress and anxiety.
Imago Relationship Theory
The term imago is Latin for "image," and within the context of IRT, it refers to an "unconscious image of familiar love." Imago Relationship Therapy was developed by Harville Hendrix, PhD and Helen LaKelly Hunt, PhD The concept of Imago as an image of familiar love suggests that your early relationships teach you something about love and about yourself. Through these early experiences, you develop a sense of an identity related to love, such as what love is and what you need to do in order to experience love from others and feel safe. By participating in Imago therapy by yourself, you can learn about some of your old wounds or emotional raw spots that might be impacting your relationships.
Location
Virtual sessions