Ms. Anabel Perez

Registered Mental Health Counselor Intern|Clinically Supervised

I work with what's right in front of us. That means that I am not a prober or someone who will make you talk about things that aren't in the forefront of your issues right now. Whatever comes up in therapy for you, thats the path we take and we let the path unfold naturally and effortlessly. I have found that this way of going about your* therapy session is what allows us to hit milestones and go inward at a comfortable pace. There will be times where I may as a challenging question that may allow for you to consider something from another perspective. Because I care about you, I will challenge you, I will be honest, and I will hold you accountable.

What I love about working as a counselor is that my clients teach me as much as I teach them. I learn through watching them grow. Therapy is not all one sided. No, I dont make the therapy about myself but, when I go home and I think about my clients, I notice how much they teach me. Our experiences are not all too different. We all experience anxiety, sadness, stress, relationship issues with family or partners or friends. My personal experience with pain and suffering, growing up exposed to violence, and other issues, has really shaped the way I see others. It has shaped and transformed how I sit with my clients in their suffering. My personal experiences have allowed me to access another level of compassion for others' suffering that reflects well in my relationship with my clients. Before I started a career in counseling, I was a caregiver for over 12 years. I absolutely love caring for others. I worked in nursing homes, hospitals, inside patient homes, and I travelled to any part of the state. Caring for others at that capacity humbled me and I was able to see people as more than bodies but stories. It was all in preparation for now and I am so honored to be in this position as your counselor.

In the first session I will tell you a little about myself, make myself personable. We will talk about what brings you to therapy of course. I will also ask some basic history questions and then I will allow time for you to tell me your life story in your own words- this paints a general picture for me about who you are and where you come from, what life experiences have had to happen in order for you to be here now. We will discuss what your goals are for therapy, if any, and how we can best reach those goals. In the end of the session I will ask if you would like to meet again and we will discuss scheduling moving forward.