Meet the client where they are at and support them moving forward

In what ways does your personality influence your approach to therapy?

I am an honest forthcoming clinician.  I create a safe environment with no judgement.

What do you think is the biggest barrier today for people seeking care?

FL LCSW

NJ LCSW

Young Adults (18-24)

Adults (25-65)

Seniors (65+)

Capella University, Doctorate of Social Work

Monmouth University, MSW, Rutgers University BA Liberal Studies

Brookdale College AAS Marketing

Grief is a reaction to an emotionally significant loss and often comes with symptoms of depression or anxiety. These symptoms can remain intense and last for a long time after a loss, making it difficult to move forward with a healthy lifestyle.

Loss/Grief

Self-esteem is the degree to which a person feels confident, valuable, and worthy of respect. Feeling low self-esteem can influence overall well-being and be linked to anxiety and/or depression.

Self-Esteem

Concerns that impact school performance or academic life. Can include perfectionism, bullying, financial stress, academic transitions, test anxiety, balancing school with other responsibilities, discrimination, or harassment.

Academic challenges

ADHD (Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder) causes a hard time focusing attention and controlling restless or impulsive behavior. People with ADHD might have emotional outbursts, be forgetful, and/or find it difficult to stay organized.

ADHD

Abuse includes any significant mistreatment along the lines of psychical, emotional, sexual, verbal, and neglect. Survivors of abuse may experience negative thoughts and feelings, flashbacks, distrust of others, social withdrawal, self-harm, and increased likelihood of developing mental health and substance abuse issues.

Abuse/Survivors of abuse

Aging brings on unique challenges like cognitive issues, dementia, Alzheimers, facing one’s own mortality, retirement, physical health concerns, grieving and loss, overcoming past regret, spirituality/religion, finances, one’s legacy, and life meaning.

Aging related concerns

It's normal to experience anger at times, but for some, it becomes so frequent, intense, or difficult to control that it negatively affects their life. Anger management is a structured therapeutic approach toward reducing one’s anger to a point where more appropriate coping and/or conflict management skills are used. Beliefs and thoughts leading toward anger outbursts are explored while healthy coping and interpersonal skills are put into practice.

Anger management

Children that experience parents and/or guardians that are avoidant, ambivalent, or resistant from an early age, may develop attachment issues. This can manifest as difficulty forming or maintaining friendships, romantic relationships and empathetic bonds throughout life, as well as other issues.

Attachment issues

Characterized by alternating symptoms of depression and mania. During more extreme episodes, depression may lead to the point of suicidal ideation and attempts while extreme bouts of mania are marked by impulsive behavior, lack of sleep, elevated esteem, and even psychosis.

Bipolar disorder

Due to continued exposure to images of “normal” or “desired” body types, people can develop a range of positive or negative emotions about their appearance causing anxiety, depression, or eating disorders.

Body image issues

Involves a person sacrificing their needs to meet the needs of others. Their thoughts and actions center on a significant other, spouse, friend, or relative. Becomes an issue when relationships are unbalanced and unhealthy.

Codependency

Source of communication challenges in circumstances and relationships that can have a negative impact on mental health. Misunderstandings and misinterpretations often lead to arguments in personal, platonic, or professional relationships.

Communication issues

Involves physical, sexual, or emotional abuse within the context of a family or relationship. Can happen to any gender, age, ethnicity, etc. and is often related to power dynamics and an abuse of power.

Domestic violence

Familial relationships can be the source of stress and emotional pain, even in the healthiest of situations. Painful interactions can range from irritation to resentment and lead to feelings of guilt, disappointment, and anger.

Family issues

Process of defining one’s own beliefs and sense of self. Evolves over time and can become a source of stress and pain, especially if the concept of self goes against social, cultural, or familial norms.

Identity development

A diverse range of sexual orientations and gender identities present unique challenges in relation to coming out to family members, confusion with identity, stigma, discrimination, and oppression.

LGBTQIA related issues

Process designed to equip people with tools, motivation, and inspiration necessary to make positive change and maximize personal and professional potential. Life coaches are generally helpful during life transitions or for goal setting and completion.

Life coaching

Mood disorder is a broad term used to include the different types of depressive and bipolar disorders, all of which affect mood. With a mood disorder, your moods may range from extremely low to extremely high or irritable.

Mood disorders

Narcissism entails an excessive interest in and over-inflated image of self. It is characterized by selfishness, sense of entitlement, and need for praise. Oftentimes ingrained in one’s personality (i.e., narcissistic personality disorder), narcissism generally develops as a coping mechanism to protect oneself from various insecurities and past traumas.

Narcissism

Parenting issues involve those associated with the child-rearing process. These may include safety, discipline, nutrition, finances, childcare, school, household rules, chores, daily routines, social activities, and relationships with extended family members. Because child-rearing practices vary by culture, cultural norms must be considered.

Parenting issues

Distress stems from a subjective perception of something being unwanted, undesirable, or detrimental to your wellbeing. Excessive stress significantly impairs mental and physical health and is associated with many diseases and conditions.

Stress

Weight loss and management involves a holistic approach toward changing one’s thinking and behaving toward a healthier lifestyle. The process is a gradual change in which one undergoes a psychological evaluation, works on mental health, learns healthier eating habits, makes significant lifestyle changes that go beyond eating, engages in consistent physical activity, and avoids things detrimental to this process. The plan is intentional and ongoing.

Weight loss & management

Women’s health is regarded as the holistic being and experience of being female. This extends beyond consideration for illness and other complex conditions but to general considerations of physical, cognitive, social, emotional, and spiritual well-being. Issues may include female oppression, socialized gender role, female reproductive issues, motherhood, body image, divorce, and substance use.

Women's issues

Families

English

LCSW

Psychotherapy focused on the interaction between thought and behavior. Examines negative thought patterns with the goal of changing responses to negative stimuli. Often used to treat depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

Mindfulness Practices

Form of positive psychotherapy focusing on internal strengths rather than shortcomings. The goal is to help someone build upon their best qualities and adjust to a more resilient mindset through the exploration of pre-existing strength.

Strength Based Therapy

Approach that views people as objective experts on their own experiences, giving them the distance to make meaning out of their life. Therapist leads and empowers them to adjust and balance thought patterns and behaviors.

Narrative Therapy

Focuses on improving current circumstances by making better choices, avoiding discussion of the past. Based on belief that people can’t control how they feel, but only how they think and act.

Reality Therapy

Addresses emotional and mental health of kids, adolescents, and adults who struggle to overcome destructive effects brought on by trauma, which is especially devastating to youth with post-traumatic stress disorder resulting from abuse or grief.

Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavior Therapy

Family Session

Individual Session

Anxiety can mean nervousness, worry, or self-doubt. Anxiety disorder is a mental health disorder that entails excessive, repeated bouts of worry, anxiety, and/or fear.

Anxiety

Panic attacks are acute conditions in which one experiences an intense bout of anxiety out of seemingly nowhere. This oftentimes stems from a perceived rather than actual threat. Symptoms may include heart palpitations, sweating, trembling, and shortness of breath. Panic disorder involves regular frequency of panic attacks (two or more) with a fear of experiencing more in the future.

Panic attacks & panic disorder

PTSD is a condition that is precipitated by a perceived terrifying event. This event need not occur directly to the person but may happen vicariously—having seen something terrible happen to another person. The condition may last months or years while symptoms include ruminating thoughts, flashbacks, nightmares, intense anxiety when triggered, and potential substance abuse in attempt to cope.

Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

Trauma is the result of experiencing a perceived, extremely distressful event. Although the stress threshold for each person differs, meaning that each person considers and experiences trauma differently, it is an event that tops one’s threshold. It exceeds one’s ability to cope or emotionally process. Symptoms may include shock, anxiety, confusion, hopelessness, feeling disconnected, mood swings, nightmares, and intrusive thoughts.

Trauma

Veterans’ issues involve any issues associated with veterans and/or their family members (military families). Veterans oftentimes present with issues that are unique to the human experience. PTSD, suicide, and substance use prevalence are high with this population as a result of immense stress and trauma. Other issues may include adjustment to civilian life, re-integrating with family, medical care, mental health treatment, employment, and finances.

Dr. Laura Lee JonesLCSW

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In what ways does your personality influence your approach to therapy?

What do you think is the biggest barrier today for people seeking care?

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