How is a pastoral counselor different than a mental health therapist?
A mental health therapist is licensed by the state and regulated by various governmental boards and professional associations. Whereas, I am licensed through, and under the Code of Ethics of, the National Christian Counselors Association (NCCA). My license is renewed annually with the NCCA, and I am required to take ongoing classes through the NCCA and/or other forms of continuing education. I meet or exceed these expectations every year. You can learn about my educational background, certification, and ongoing trainings HERE.
It is strongly discouraged for a mental health counselor to have access and interaction with clients beyond the professional setting of the office. As a Pastoral Counselor, my heart is to be relational in the work that I do. So, if I happened to run into a client outside of a session, I am going to acknowledge them with a hello and, when it feels appropriate to do so, engage in brief conversation. I’m also more at liberty to counsel someone whom I have prior life, church, or community involvement with.
The DSM-5, which is a guide that contains 20 disorder chapters and nearly 300 mental illnesses, is used by a mental health therapist for diagnosing mental health conditions. I am not trained in using the DSM-5 nor do I give a clinical diagnosis of my clients.
Typically, a mental health therapist is under a code of ethics that limits them in discussing and directing the client from the perspective of their own personal faith, beliefs, or values. In the case of a counselor who is a Christian, they may discuss their Christian beliefs/values with a client who specifically asks but giving direct advice or counsel consistent with such values may not always be allowed. On the contrary, I have freedom to incorporate my personal values and Christian faith into sessions with each client. I do so through prayer and applying Scripture and Biblical principles into the conversations.
There are 150+ therapeutic methods of treatments used amongst mental health therapists. A few common methods are Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT), Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT), Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART), and Motivational Interviewing (MI). I have educated myself on and incorporated a few of these techniques in my counseling practice, including CBD, ACT, EFT, MI, and several others. However, I have not gone through a formal training/certification process due primarily to a state-licensure requirement to complete the training and/or costs that surpass my continuing education budget. If I feel a client could benefit from a treatment approach, which falls outside of my scope of training, I present this as an option to my client and refer out in those cases.
The path the Lord has called me to, including my education, training, and certification look very different from a state licensed mental health therapist. At the heart of my ministry, is the opportunity to point clients facing deep grief, overwhelming brokenness, or immense pain to Jesus. He is the giver of hope. He is more than enough to restore what has been broken, redeem whatever has been lost, and reclaim and repurpose any life.
What services do you offer?
At this time, my primary focus is counseling with women. Some specific areas of focus in my counseling practice include things such as: abandonment, addiction, anxiety, betrayal trauma, blended family challenges, covert control, divorce, domestic abuse, emotionally destructive relationships, family conflict, grief, life direction/goals, separation, & singleness issues.
If you have need for other counseling services, you can access my counseling referrals page HERE.
Do you accept insurance?
No, I am private pay. To work with insurance, you have to provide them with a state licensure number as well as diagnostic codes, which I am unable to do. I understand it is a huge sacrifice to pay out of pocket, therefore, I offer a payment range for various levels of income. Also, some clients who have a Health Savings Account have been successful at receiving reimbursement for their sessions by turning in an invoice PDF.
Why is there a card payment fee?
I use Square for processing payments. Square has a fee and, although it's not much, overtime with all the card transactions I do, it does add up. So I pass along the fee to the client. This also ensures that I am receiving the payment amount in its entirety. I offer payment by cash or check for anyone who prefers not to pay the fee.