Qualifications

• Licensed Professional Counselor (8334)
• Certified Grief Specialist
• Graduate at Gardner-Webb University with a Master’s of Arts/Education Specialist in Mental Health Counseling (2016) and a graduate of the University of South Carolina Upstate with a Bachelor’s of Science in Experiment Psychology (2012).
• Member of the Counseling Academic and Professional Honor Society International Chi Sigma Iota, and a member of the International Honor Society in Psychology Psi Chi.
• Counseling experience 6 plus years.

Counseling Background

• Counseling experience has been with individuals who have been arrested for criminal domestic violence encompassing all ages and gender, survivors of domestic violence, children, teens, adults who struggle with depression, anxiety, grief, anger issues, those diagnosed with attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder, trauma, couples, and parenting issues.
• Fundamentally, my approach to counseling is grounded in a phenomenological philosophy, in particular an experiential practice, in essence highly similar to a Rogerian approach. The understanding of one’s particular purpose and direction or guidance should and is positively oriented in some shape or fashion. The individual must rely heavily positively on various domains of life including emotionality, sociability, physicality, spirituality, and mental capability. My role as the counselor is to uncover previous pictures and one’s in which they are now painting so objectiveness and tentativeness is key in understanding an individual’s inner reality. Humans possess the  capabilities of self-awareness, morality, reasoning, natural tendencies, and most importantly the ability to love. This I understand is the capability of loving everyone as if they were yourself. Holding the client up towards positive change while caring for them with a sense of as Rogers described in 1957 as “warm acceptance, non-possessive warmth, prizing, affirmation, respect, support, and caring” is vital. I also believe that a holding environment is vital to building a counselor-client relationship. L. Brown in 1981 referred to this concept by saying, “the counselor provides a supportive, nurturing environment that enables the client to develop a structured, integrated self and a positive sense of self, which in the case of many clients did not happen as successfully as it could have in childhood.” Additionally, I focus on a  cognitive-behavioral therapeutic approach to counseling by utilizing relaxation interventions, cognitive intervention, communication skill interventions, and combined interventions to holistically meet the client’s capabilities both intellectually and behaviorally.

Use of Diagnosis

• Some health insurance companies will reimburse clients for counseling services and some will not. In addition, most will require that a diagnosis of a mental-health condition and indicate that you must have an “illness” before they will agree to reimburse you. Some conditions for which people seek counseling do not qualify for reimbursement. If a qualifying diagnosis is appropriate in your case, I will inform you of the diagnosis before we submit the diagnosis to the health insurance company. Any diagnosis made will become part of your permanent insurance records. In addition, if an insurance company requires a diagnosis, I will make sure that I take my time in developing this diagnosis, and intend to educate the client on stigma and additional societal pressures related to this particular mental illness. I do believe that an accurate diagnosis cannot be made within the first counseling session, so by making sure that I receive an in-depth understanding of the client's entire physical, spiritual, and emotional states, are greatly valued when it comes to one’s own intuitiveness and accuracy with regards to diagnosis.

Confidentiality

• All of our communication becomes part of the clinical record, which is accessible to you upon request. I will keep confidential anything you say as part of our counseling relationship, with the following exceptions: (a) you direct me in writing to disclose information to someone else, (b) it is determined you are a danger to yourself or others (including child or elder abuse), or (c) I am ordered by a court to disclose any information.

Complaints

Although clients are encouraged to discuss any concerns with me, you may file a complaint against me with the organization below should you feel I am in violation of any of these codes of ethics. I abide by the ACA Code of Ethics (http://www.counseling.org/Resources/aca-code-of-ethics.pdf).

South Carolina Board of Licensed Professional Counselors

South Carolina Dept. of Labor, Licensing and Regulation

Attn: Complaints
P.O. Box 11329
Columbia, SC 29211