I graduated from St. Edwards with a MA in Counseling 2014. I received my LCDC license in 2015. I became a fully licensed LPC in 2017 My regard for my clients is always unconditional and it is always positive. I truly want to help those who are having problems with feelings of depression, sadness, helplessness, and guilt, or any disorders that can cause complications in life. I want to help those who have problems with coping strategies like addiction, ghosting, and passionless communication. The things that disconnect a person from himself or herself. More than ever, we have a duty to take ownership and redefine ourselves. Sometimes this requires much work, reflection, pain, courage, and sometimes maybe even a rebirth. I believe I can provide help with these things. I would like to be a part of your journey toward your potential. I can provide a safe place where you can learn about emotional intelligence, about how to communicate in a healthy way, and how to create safe spaces. I believe that in order to build self-awareness, we must be metacognitive, which means we need to have active control over our cognitive processes. We learn how to think about our thinking, and know about our knowing. We can learn how to be aware of our awareness, and explore our wiring and making a motion to rewire, if needed. I believe that we must learn to be vulnerable. Practicing vulnerability isn't about doing something for others. You are building a better, stronger you. I also believe that it is important in therapy that the client begin to look inward of themselves. Self awareness begins with looking inward. This is where the transformation takes place. It's about evolving, expanding, and living closer to your truth and potential.
What can clients expect to take away from sessions with you?
I would like my clients to know that it is okay to be nervous during our first session together. You may wonder what you are going to say, what you have to say, and whether you have to talk about your trauma, if experienced. What I tell my clients is that although I have seen probably a thousand clients, I too, still get nervous during first sessions, just as they, so there is nothing to be afraid of or ashamed of. My clients will not be required to open up any more than they feel comfortable doing so. Although the first session will require quite a bit of questioning, it will be done in a manner in which the client will decide how much he or she, they or them, want to share. In my experience, I believe I do have a good ability to make the client comfortable, perhaps through my sense of humor, or by my relaxed appearance. I do not wear a white coat and stethoscope. I am just as my clients are, a human being who deserves to be treated with respect and kindness, and warmth. If there is some trauma that a client is dealing with but worries that if they don't talk about it in the first session, it won't be discussed in the future, this is incorrect. I meet my clients where they are at, and once we build a sense of trust and strong therapeutic relationship, then we can start discussing some of the pain and suffering that perhaps has never been spoken about. Basically, in the first session I will lead the discussion, but I will also be listening. And sometimes I've found that most of what a client needs is someone who listens. I will listen. And I will seek to understand.
Explain to clients what areas you feel are your biggest strengths.
I believe my greatest strength as a provider is that I have also been in the other chair. I have had struggles in my life that are at times very similar to what they are going through. And though I can't say that all my problems became fixed when I became a therapist, what I have learned by being on both sides of the therapeutic relationship has definitely changed my life for the better. When I meet a client for the first time, I feel honored that they have come to see me and are willing to share some of their life story with me. I hold on to that very deeply. I always hope that if my client is feeling any pain, they will allow me to hold onto some of that pain for them, for the time being, until they are strong enough to hold it all again themselves.
About Carl Funk
Serves ages
Licensed in
Accepts
Address
11782 Jollyville Road, Austin, TX 78759, Suite 215BAppointments
Virtual & in-personMy treatment methods
Person-centered (Rogerian)
Person-centered therapy, also sometimes known as Client-Centered Therapy, employs a non-authoritative approach that allows clients to take more of a lead in sessions such that, in the process, they discover their own solutions. When i work with my clients i want them to know that we will both work together as a team when establishing treatment plan goals, though I will take the lead when necessary. But I believe it is important that the client take an active part in their recovery. The approach originated in the work of American psychologist Carl Rogers, who believed that every person is unique and, therefore, everyone’s view of his or her own world, and their ability to manage it, should be trusted. Rogers was a proponent of self-actualization, or the idea that each of us has the power to find the best solutions for ourselves and the ability to make appropriate changes in our lives. During person-centered therapy, a therapist acts as a compassionate facilitator, listening without judgment and acknowledging the client’s experience without shifting the conversation in another direction. The therapist is there to encourage and support the client without interrupting or interfering with their process of self-discovery, as they uncover what hurts and what is needed to repair it.
Cognitive Behavioral (CBT)
I also employ quite a bit of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, which is a form of psychotherapy that focuses on modifying dysfunctional emotions, behaviors, and thoughts by challenging and ultimately replacing negative or irrational beliefs that can be getting in the way of client's functioning.
Psychodynamic
I will also employ some techniques from Psychodynamic Psychotherapy, of which the basis states deriving insights from childhood can give patients insights about their current problems. THis insight can ultimately help them achieve a higher quality of life.