INDIVIDUAL COUNSELING
A PERSONAL JOURNEY
Individual counseling, psychotherapy, or talk therapy is a collaborative process between counselor and client that aims to promote change and improve quality of life. At Johns Creek and Alpharetta Counseling, our therapists are trained to offer DBT- Dialectical Behavior Therapy, and CBT- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to work with mental illness, addiction, heal from the past, or interpersonal growth. Other mediums are used to access the emotion that words cannot reach such as art therapy, sand tray therapy, writing, relaxation techniques, music, and stress management. Individual counseling offers a space of emotional safety allowing healing to occur.
Therapy can help people confront barriers that interfere with emotional and mental well-being, and it can also increase positive feelings such as compassion, self-esteem, love, courage, and peace. Many people enjoy the therapeutic journey and they may pursue ongoing psychotherapy as a means of self-growth and self-actualization. Whether you are mourning a loss, feel lost and need direction, or are having difficulty in a relationship, a safe relationship with a counselor can help you on your journey. Our therapists at JCAC provide and hold a space for clients to feel at ease, emotionally safe, and understood. From this basis, therapeutic skills are utilized to assist clients in exploring and working through distress and increase balance in their lives.
Please read below to learn about the different services we offer for adults, and the different populations we specialize in!
NEW SERVICE: EMDR
TRAUMA COUNSELING
EMDR has become well known to be an extremely effective form of counseling for those who have experienced a trauma, or someone feeling overwhelmed with painful emotion. If you are experiencing emotional distress following a reminder or trigger of trauma, EMDR can help! Johns Creek and Alpharetta Counseling is proud to have trained counselors to offer EMDR.
What is EMDR? EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. It is a type of therapy or psychotherapy that enables people to heal from the symptoms and emotional distress that are the result of disturbing life experiences. Repeated studies show that using EMDR can accomplish in a shorter time span, what took traditional talk therapy years to accomplish.
It is widely assumed that severe emotional pain from trauma requires a long time to heal. EMDR therapy shows that the mind can heal from psychological trauma just as the body recovers from physical trauma. When you cut your hand, your body works to close the wound. If a foreign object or repeated injury irritates the wound, it festers and causes pain. Once the block is removed, healing resumes. EMDR therapy demonstrates that a similar sequence of events occurs with mental processes. The brain’s information processing system naturally moves toward mental health. If the system is blocked or imbalanced by the impact of a disturbing event, the emotional wound festers and can cause intense suffering. Once the block is removed, healing resumes (EMDR Institute, 2020).
How does EMDR work? EMDR works by re-processing how your brain perceives “danger” signals and how it responds to “overwhelming emotion.” The technical version of EMDR is that it works through using bilateral stimulation to reprocess through past painful events that have left you stuck in your life. EMDR allows you to activate your disturbing memory and process it, while you either follow the therapist’s fingers with your eyes or by you tapping on your knees or shoulders. By alternating right and left with either your eyes or your hands, both right and left hemispheres of your brain work together to reprocess the memory and store it properly in your brain.
We would love to help you using EMDR. We have counselors waiting to talk to you Mon-Fri 9am-5pm to answer any questions and see if EMDR can work for you! Please give us a call at 404-834-2363 or schedule a time for us to call you.
GRIEF AND LOSS
FINDING A WAY...
When you lose someone it is hard to know what to feel or what is normal. At Johns Creek and Alpharetta Counseling, we understand that coping with grief can be overwhelming and we are here to help you find a way through your loss. Everyone's journey with grief is different. Some feel too much, some feel nothing at all, some lose the ability to function in daily life. There is no right or wrong, there is only your experience. No one can take the pain away, however we can help you find peace and hope, so that you can create meaning in your life once again. Please call to be matched with a caring therapist.
MEN'S COUNSELING
YOU CAN ASK FOR HELP TOO
Relationships, communication, feelings of isolation, and anger often challenge us throughout our journey. These are some of the common issues that men deal with, and sometimes deal with differently then women. Societal roles and expectations can create a more complex emotional state, yet less connection to deeper emotions.
Often times, men believe that they should just put their heads down and power through life’s difficulties. How many times have you heard the phrase, “stop crying and be a man”, or “toughen up”? The truth is, you shouldn’t have to feel ashamed to ask for help too! In the long run, these emotional barriers will cause us to isolate or explode externally.
Our counselors have studied the psychology of societal expectations and masculinities for years. We bring this study to our work with men on issues and challenges specific to men. No matter what you're struggling with: a life transition, divorce, trauma, loss of a partner or friend, anger, stress from work or home, etc., we can help you through this challenging time.
ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION
FINDING STABILITY
Anxiety and Depression are commonly used terms in our society. However, experiencing anxiety or depression is bigger than a bad day or daily stress. Depression can make getting through a day feel impossible. Anxiety can make tackling everyday challenges feel impossible. The good news is, there are real and tangible tools to learn how to manage and take control of depression and anxiety symptoms. The video to the right breaks down the difference between depression and sadness or "situational blues," and can give you direction in finding help.
Our counselors specialize in working with a wide variety of mental health issues including: depression, anxiety, OCD-obsessive compulsion disorder, specific phobias, borderline personality disorder, PTSD, and trauma related disorders. We have strong working relationships with excellent psychiatrists in the community. If you would like more information, please ask for a psychiatric referral when you call!
POSTPARTUM DEPRESSION
RECOGNIZING THE SYMPTOMS
Having a new baby brings a whirlwind of new experiences and emotions. After 40 weeks of waiting, you finally have your new sweet baby. Postpartum Depression occurs in 1 in 7 women, and can cause this joyful time to be full of fear, doubt, and sadness. However, many do not get help because they do not know, and doctors can miss the warning signs. Symptoms of Postpartum Depression are sadness, crying for no reason, difficulty finding joy in your baby, feeling scared to be alone with your baby, disrupted sleep (when you are able to sleep), among others. Click the link below to learn more about Postpartum Depression and it's symptoms
At Johns Creek and Alpharetta Counseling we have therapists trained to understand and help. We can give you tools, help you know what is normal and what is depression, and we can help your family understand and support you. Click the phone number above to call and get started!
ALL ARE WELCOME
COME AS YOU ARE
With the heavy political climate in our country, it is hard to know if you will be accepted. It is the goal of Johns Creek and Alpharetta Counseling to be above politics and to give a sense of welcome and acceptance for every person that walks into our door – regardless of any backgrounds or affiliations.
Our counselors are experienced and competent to work with all ethnicities and racial backgrounds, those of different faiths including those who are spiritual, religious, or not practicing. As well as mix race families, LGBTQ+ adolescents, trans teens, those exploring their identity, and faith. Our goal is to meet you where you are, and offer you a safe place to have a healing counseling experience.
The counselors at Johns Creek and Alpharetta Counseling are free of judgement and passionate about serving those within our community. We are here to help you walk through the darker valleys of life to achieve your best self. If you want to work with a counselor that has experience working with one of these populations, be sure to mention it as you are talking to the intake line.
ADDICTION COUNSELING
TAKING CONTROL
Our counselors at Johns Creek and Alpharetta Counseling have specialized training to treat and work with an array of addictions such as: gambling, eating, and sex addictions. Our counselors are able to offer couples and family services for drug and alcohol addictions in conjunction with individualized addiction care with your own addiction specialized counselor.
We strive to work with both the individual and the family to increase the understanding of addiction and how to take the necessary steps toward a healthier lifestyle. We practice a non-judgement client centered model of therapy, meeting each person where they are in their progress. We are an outpatient counseling center that can offer weekly appointments, and we are happy to take referrals from inpatient settings for ongoing collaborative care. Please call the intake line if you have an questions.
YOUNG ADULTS
NAVIGATING COLLEGE AND BEYOND
Preparing for college and going to college holds expectations of fun and independence. However, many in this stage struggle with adjusting to the freedom of young adult life. Many young adults experience:
• Depression and anxiety for the first time
• Overwhelmed feelings with making life decisions such as career choices and romantic relationships that can impact them the rest of their life
• Confusion in knowing which direction to go or which major to choose
• Stress and can stumble into using unhealthy habits as coping skills such as substances and sex
Our counselors at JCAC are trained to help you discover yourself and help you decide a healthy path. Rather than leading you a certain direction, we are trained to help you discover what direction is right for you. We can help make ‘adulting’ easier.
Call use to learn more and schedule an appointment.
