Danaria Johnson

LPC, LCMHC

As a living kidney donor and someone who has personally navigated anxiety, I bring both professional expertise and lived experience into the therapy room. Kidney donation profoundly shaped my understanding of vulnerability, resilience, and the complex emotional layers that can accompany medical experiences and major life decisions. It deepened my empathy for individuals living with chronic health concerns and for those facing uncertainty about their bodies and futures. My own experience with anxiety has also strengthened my work. It allows me to approach clients with genuine compassion rather than detached clinical observation. I understand how pervasive and convincing anxious thoughts can feel, and I hold space for that experience without minimizing it. At the same time, being a seasoned therapist gives me the tools to help clients move beyond simply managing anxiety toward understanding its roots and reshaping their relationship with it. These experiences have made me more grounded, more attuned, and more relational in my work. I believe therapy is most powerful when it is both clinically sound and deeply human. My lived experiences remind me daily that healing is not about perfection, it is about courage, connection, and growth.