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3 therapists available in Pflugerville
I believe every new day is an opportunity to teach new skills to others who would like to grow....
About
I believe every new day is an opportunity to teach new skills to others who would like to grow.
Dwight Newell is a Licensed Professional Counselor with over 30 years of experience in the mental health field. He has worked in outpatient, inpatient, and intensive outpatient settings to offer quality mental healthcare to assist those in need. He has worked with individuals, families, and couples to assist them in learning the steps necessary to reach their greatest level of happiness. Dwight has worked with all age ranges needing to learn skills to reach higher levels of life satisfaction. Dwight has worked with parents to help them learn ways to guide their children to attain a greater level of emotional health. Dwight has worked to assist children to have healthier relationships with peers and their families. Additionally, Dwight has worked with adults of all ages to help them reach greater levels of work/life balance and happiness. Dwight has worked with persons of all ages to assist them with situations that trigger increased anxiety, depression, and decreased functioning. Dwight specializes in mood issues, anger, anxiety, depression, and behavioral issues which contribute to problems in functioning.
Dwight completed a Master of Counseling Psychology Degree at Mississippi College. During his career, he has worked with all kinds of people struggling with a variety of psychological conditions that impeded their daily functioning. Dwight has worked with military families and helped them learn ways to deal with the unique challenges they face. Dwight has worked with people from all walks of life who simply lack confidence and motivation to reach their greatest potential as a member of society, their families, and as an individual. Dwight utilizes cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), motivational interviewing, and Christian counseling to help individuals and families learn the skills necessary to grow. Dwight's experiences in numerous settings with people from all walks of life coupled with extensive experience with the counseling approaches mentioned above allow him to assist clients wherever they may be in life and assist them in reaching their goals.
Dwight has learned some things about people throughout his career to this point. The fact is that everyone needs help figuring out the next step in life sometimes. We all have difficult experiences that we have to learn to navigate. Getting experienced, thoughtful advice can assist one at a critical crossroads in life. If you are willing to put in the effort to implement new strategies that will promote mental, physical, and spiritual growth, schedule an appointment with Dwight today!
Education and training
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Rica Puazo is a Licensed Professional Counselor and a Registered Art Therapist (LPC, RAT) who holds more than 4 years of experienc...
Rica Puazo is a Licensed Professional Counselor and a Registered Art Therapist (LPC, RAT) who holds more than 4 years of experience working in residential treatment facilities and inpatient acute care with children, adolescents, young adults, college students, young professionals, adults, and geriatrics. She has experience working with individuals diagnosed with ADHD, bipolar disorder and mood disorders, schizophrenia, conduct disorders, depression, anxiety, PTSD, trauma, substance abuse, intellectual disability, autism spectrum disorder, and neurocognitive disorders such as dementia and Alzheimer’s. Rica also has experience working with families, couples, the LGBTQIA+ community, and individuals with disabilities.
She received her Master’s degree in Counseling and Art Therapy from Adler School of Professional Psychology and her Bachelor's in Psychology from Baylor University. Rica’s approach to therapy is adapting the different theories, applying appropriate intervention, and finding the right tools and support for the client’s therapeutic goals.
As an Art Therapist, Rica encourages exploring the art process to help individuals visualize inner struggles as well as encourage self-expression. Rica believes in building confidence in oneself to overcome and accept personal struggles. Work with her to start building self-confidence, happiness, and healthier relationships.
Whether you are navigating family dynamics, coping with daily life stressors, looking to improve social relationships, or anything...
Whether you are navigating family dynamics, coping with daily life stressors, looking to improve social relationships, or anything in between, the empowering environment I create will provide you space to explore and work to resolve the challenges you face.
Catherine Atkinson is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC), who has a passion for helping others achieve the best versions of themselves. She is passionate about helping adolescents, adults, and families address their unique challenges and live more fulfilled lives. Catherine specializes in anxiety, relationship issues, family dynamics, and major life transitions.
Catherine completed her Master's in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from A&M University - Central Texas. She believes that effective therapy starts with establishing a strong therapeutic relationship with clients so that they feel comfortable, free from judgment, and encouraged to find solutions to reach their goals. Catherine utilizes multiple treatment approaches including Mindfulness, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Solution-Focused Therapy, Motivational Interviewing, and Family Systems. This allows her to adapt her approach to the specific needs of her clients.
We all go through challenges in life. Catherine is confident that she would be able to empower and support you on your path to gain new perspectives and techniques that will allow you to tackle whatever challenges you may be facing. If you are ready to do the work, schedule an appointment with her today!
You deserve dedicated time with a mental health professional — it can be life-changing.
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Dwight: My go-to approach for helping people with PTSD/trauma therapy is control theory. I find the best benefit in control theory because it teaches clients to only focus on choices that are within their control, which helps them move forward from past traumas.
Matthew: My go-to approach for helping people in PTSD/trauma therapy is EMDR. I find the best benefit in EMDR because it is evidence-based and there has been significant research done to support the idea that it can help individuals find relief from traumatic experiences. This approach gives individuals the space to process and desensitize painful emotions, while also allowing them to naturally find new ways of thinking that are more healthy and adaptive.
Dwight: I teach the following tools in PTSD/trauma therapy: Identifying current choices they make and how they either promote or prevent emotional growth to help the client move forward from a traumatic event.
Matthew: EMDR is different from a lot of other tool-based forms of therapy. My go-to approach for therapy is tool-based and focuses on consciously shifting one's thoughts and emotional state. EMDR is a little different. It is more free-flowing and can lack some of the structure of therapies such as cognitive behavioral therapy or dialectical behavioral therapy. When engaging in EMDR, there are still parameters, but they are a lot wider. In addition, the change in emotion and thinking occurs organically and isn't something that is taught or trained. There is a slight mystique to EMDR that demonstrates that the mind can naturally heal itself given the right environment and opportunity.
Dwight: I know a client is making meaningful progress in PTSD/trauma therapy when they focus more on present choices than their past choices.
Matthew: I know a client is making meaningful progress in trauma therapy when their scores improve. I engage in measurement-based care, and EMDR has its own built-in measurement. At the end of every session, we will check the SUDS, or subjective units of disturbance. There is likely to be a natural decrease in this score, and processing will continue until the score reaches neutral or a 0/10.
Dwight: Clients can supplement their time in PTSD/trauma therapy by working on increasing mindfulness training.
Matthew: Clients can supplement their time in PTSD/trauma therapy by writing down memories, thoughts, and dreams related to the trauma that may come up after each session. This material can then be addressed in the next session. In addition, there are several visualization tools taught to help clients regulate their emotions and maintain boundaries around the traumatic experience so that it doesn't overwhelm their daily lives. These can and should be practiced as well.
Dwight: To prepare for their first PTSD/trauma therapy session, someone can write a summary of their past trauma and ways it affected their functioning to share with the clinician and help them avoid having to retell their story of trauma.
Matthew: To prepare for your first PTSD/trauma therapy session, you can make sure you have somewhere private where you can focus and hopefully not be disturbed. In addition, do your research on types of therapy. There are as many modalities of therapy as flavors of ice cream. You don't want one bad experience to ruin the entire experience. Make sure you find an approach and a professional you trust to assist you and a space where you have room to express yourself and work to achieve your goals.
At Thriveworks, Trauma/PTSD therapy involves dedicated efforts to address and navigate through past and/or recent traumatic events. Therapists specializing in trauma create a secure environment to process and heal from these experiences, aiming to reduce trauma-related symptoms and enhance overall quality of life.
Our Thriveworks providers use Trauma/PTSD therapy treatments like eye movement desensitization and reprocessing EMDR, CBT, and exposure therapy with the goal of helping clients process the traumatic events they have experienced so that they can to start feeling safe and secure again.
The symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can vary but often include:
The best way to overcome PTSD triggers is to seek the assistance of a professional therapist, such as those at Thriveworks, who can help you to understand and treat your PTSD triggers.
In most cases, a therapist who specializes in Trauma/PTSD therapy is the best type of mental health professional to address the symptoms of PTSD.
PTSD/trauma therapy at Thriveworks is conducted both in person and online by video. We encourage you to choose the option that works best for you.
If a client is working through a single traumatic event that occurred as an adult, trauma or PTSD therapy may only take a few months, but in general, it can take a year or more to effectively treat trauma symptoms and PTSD. The duration of treatment is highly dependent on the client and the severity of their symptoms.
The success rate of therapy for PTSD depends entirely on the individual’s symptoms, commitment to attending sessions, and personal abilities.
Includes individual, couples, child/ teen, & family therapy
Includes reducing symptoms with medication & management
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