About Stacy
I have been a social worker for 25+ years. After earning my BSW from Hope College, I began my career working in a relational ministry with teens. I learned the value of meeting students in the place they were at, at the right moment. I also learned a great deal about building trust in professional relationships.
After completing my MSW degree from Western Michigan University, I worked as a therapist at Bethany Christian Services. I also have extensive experience in end of life issues and bereavement counseling. My passion is clinical work, engaging in a counseling relationship with clients who are seeking change for themselves. I have the honor of being in private practice for the last 9 years. I am a licensed social worker in Michigan and a member of the Academy of Certified Social Workers. I am a certified EMDR therapist. I have experience and training working with adolescents, adults, children, couples and families.
My areas of expertise include grief and loss, EMDR, complex trauma, anxiety, depression, stress management, faith-based issues, special needs and medical issues, sexual abuse and women’s issues.
I believe counseling is one of the best choices we can make for ourselves. Sometimes it can be difficult to take care of ourselves this way. I will do my best to meet you where you are, to listen and provide support and offer new information. We will approach your goals for counseling together. I work from a strengths based approach and have a variety of perspectives to offer. Through counseling I believe you can be kinder to yourself, learn new skills and lead a richer life.
Depression and Anxiety
Many in our society are struggling with hopelessness, depression and anxiety. My goal in counseling is to provide a safe place to process emotions, offer support and skills related to managing and decreasing the symptoms of these difficult issues. Through a variety of healthy coping skills, processing and adopting added positive thought patterns, many find increased joy, self care and life satisfaction.
Trauma and EMDR
“The past affects the present even without our being aware of it.”
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In our society today, it is rare to find someone untouched by some sort of traumatic event or even multiple. The terms “little t and BIG T” are unfortunately, all too familiar to adults and children. In the last 2 years, I have undergone extensive training, learning and supervision in order to become certified in EMDR therapy and incorporate this important modality into my practice. I am currently training to also become a consultant in EMDR in order to provide support and training to those pursuing EMDR training as well.
“EMDR therapy targets the unprocessed memories that contain the negative emotions, sensations and beliefs. By activating the brain’s information processing system, the old memories can then be “digested.” Meaning what is useful is learned, what’s useless is discarded, and the memory is now stored in a way that is no longer damaging.”
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Other complex issues such as spirituality, medical complexity and sexual abuse
Each of us feels the pressure of life’s stress, questioning our foundations or deals with chronic emotional or physical pain at some point in our lives; or we need a new compass to navigate a change in a new phase of life. Asking for help in these situations is a mark of wisdom. It is vulnerable to share some of the hardest thoughts and struggles. I strive to provide a space of unconditional positive regard, gentle processing, assistance with self-esteem building, identifying personal barriers and clarification of life values. For many this can include spirituality, past trauma, disability or chronic pain or a variety of other difficulties. Anais Nin said, “And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.”
Grief and Loss; Complicated Bereavement
“You will grieve forever. You will not ‘get over’ the loss of a loved one; you will learn to live with it”. Elisabeth Kubler-Ross says that you will heal and rebuild yourself around the loss, but you will never be the same. One of the founding beliefs for me as a helping professional is that grief IS NOT just loss due to death. Grief and complicated bereavement also relate to many areas we all withstand: job loss, identity changes, familial changes, health and ability changes. I strive to help clients become more able to acknowledge and get comfortable with NOT being comfortable. I believe it is then, that we can process the most difficult things in our lives and ultimately thrive, even after enduring hard things.