Hi. I received an MA in Psychology in 2007 from the University of West Georgia. I use a client-centered, humanistic approach focusing on aspects of Mindfulness, Existentialism, and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. I have experience working with anxiety, depression, and trauma-related diagnoses as well as other life experiences. Like anyone I'm sure reading this, my learning and healing journey has been full of the unexpected. These changes have come in a variety of forms. Some I have savored, leaving me filled with a sense of wonder. Others have left me picking up the broken pieces, wondering in what possible form I might ever come back together in. I have been lucky, I think, to have the lens of Psychology to help me along the way. Along the way I will offer this lens to you.

What can clients expect to take away from sessions with you?

At times I will simply listen and reflect because understanding you and your experience is a goal for me. When needed, we will incorporate into our work together an understanding of what feelings are and what their primary function is, how they evolved and what authority we have concerning them. We will learn together, through an understanding of your life, in what way belief about ourselves and our place in the world oftentimes will set the stage for our emotional experience. A fun example: If I believed everyone in the grocery store was going to applaud when I entered (and they didn't), I would feel confused. Is the problem feeling confused, or the belief? In what way can the confusion inform me?

What treatment methods and tools do you utilize?

In the above-mentioned way, and others, we will wrestle with life together. The goal is to orient ourselves to our surroundings clearly and realistically. Psychology gives us some wonderful tools to do this with. Mindfulness is a helpful tool that teaches us many things. We can learn how to soothe our emotional experience if needed and make better quality decisions. Through practice we can, in a sense, rewire our brains to not attach to intrusive thoughts. CBT can help us learn in a practical way how our thoughts, feelings, and actions are intertwined. Humanism and existentialism can help us oftentimes perceive the depth, wonder, and fierceness involved in living one of these lives. These are the standards that I will carry into our meetings together.

Explain to clients what areas you feel are your biggest strengths.

In 2002, before my formal education in Psychology, I traveled with two close friends to southern France where for a very brief time I stayed at Plum Village, a little Buddhist monastery. In all honesty, I was too young to fully appreciate the experience, and many (if not all) lessons at the time were completely lost on me. But, unbeknownst to me, mindful seeds were planted. I had no idea at the time of the impact it was going to have on my life. Over the years it has been a joy to watch mindfulness work its way into the vernacular of psychology and counseling. Mindfulness is my forte. It is the centerpiece of the work we will do together. Not in an obvious way. But in a way that will at times give us direction. In the same way oars give direction to a boat.

About Jeffrey Overdorff