Today we’d like to introduce you to Stephanie Gardner.
Hi Stephanie, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
For the first 11 years of my career I worked in IT as a project manager and a product manager. Then I decided to go back to school at get my Master’s degree in Social Work and become a Mental Health therapist (which was my dream since I was a kid). I am so glad despite having to completely re-direct my goals that I did it because I love mental health work!
I did an internship during my grad school years at a crisis center for teens called Vantage Point and absolutely loved it! I loved working with the teen population and decided to start specializing in attachment and trauma work. After graduation I worked as an associate clinician for a private practice and in Jan 2019 decided to open my own private practice specializing in working on helping families, individuals and couples to strengthen relationships and attachments and to heal from trauma. The work we do is so unique because of then attachment piece and the lens we work through.
We are located in Pleasant Grove across from the Purple turtle restaurant and our office is called Actually Connect Counseling. With each client we work with we are focused on creating and strengthening clients and not on “cutting out” family or canceling important relationships in individuals lives.
We believe through healing and healthy boundaries we can help everyone to strengthen bonds and connections and invite others into healthy attachments and we can help people to actually connect in ways they didn’t think possible. Our team includes passionate and well trained clinicians who are dedicated to their work and their clients.
After becoming certified in EMDR through some advanced training in EMDR we decided as an office to begin specializing in EMDR and we offier attachment focused EMDR and EMDR intensives to assist clients to heal even faster than they can with traditional EMDR methods.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The road has been fairly smooth except for the steep learning curve that comes with owning a business and the regular hiccups that come with that learning curve. No one tells you when you start a business how much time and energy you will be spending regularly to keep it all going. Or how many hats you will wear from office staff to manager to trainer to hardware installation worker! At times I struggled with the overwhelming amount of work it takes and going at it alone it required me to make a lot of decisions on my own and the weight of it all could become heavy at times.
Also navigating insurance companies is always a boon and a difficulty for us as clinicians and the incredible amount of work it takes to navigate the nuances of these companies and their regulations, restrictions and policies. If people understood that aspect they would understand why some clinicians choose not to accept insurance. As it’s so much time, energy and work to bill them and work through them.
When clinicians choose to do it it can greatly bless the clients which is why we choose to, but we do wish there were easier ways to navigate that.
As you know, we’re big fans of Actually Connect Counseling. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
We are known for being experts in trauma and treating trauma and in helping people to recover from acute trauma and from attachment injuries in their past that are keeping them stuck from connecting in current relationships that they have and care about. We are also known for assisting those who have been abused emotionally and who are navigating narcissistic abuse. We also have several clinicians who treat ADHD, OCD and anxiety and do a lot of work with couples struggling to navigate ADHD, and kiddos who are struggling with ADHD behaviors or OCD thoughts.
We are most proud of our work with attachment and viewing all mental health concerns through an attachment lens that takes into account an individual, family or couples most important connections and helping to strengthen these as we assist them in moving towards greater mental health and not weakening them or cutting out connections that can be so vital for people’s lives and well-being.
We also really love helping young adults and single adults to understand their attachment patterns and to find ways to overcome hindering attachment patterns and to find ways to connect and attach with others in healthy and progressive ways and to find love in their lives.
Is there any advice you’d like to share with our readers who might just be starting out?
It’s going to take a lot of time. And a lot of work. And the only way through it, is RIGHT ON through it!
Pricing:
- We offer regular therapy sessions for $155/hr
- We offer couples sessions for $175/hr
- We offer EMDR intensives for $175/hr
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.actuallyconnect.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/actuallyconnectcounseling/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/actuallyconnect
