About
Twists, turns, ups, downs, good times, not so good times…
This is life.
And sometimes, we feel lost.
When that happens, we forget some of the important stuff along the way.
It takes courage to recognize and admit something needs to change or that perhaps you’ve veered off the path and feel stuck in a ditch somewhere.
“Lost” manifests in many forms. And if you get lost, you can also be found.
The great news is that you can get back on track, right where you are now.
It takes tremendous courage to seek therapy…
…call the therapist, make an appointment, fill out their paperwork, and show up for the appointment.
It doesn’t matter if this is your first time seeking therapy, or your second, or even third time.
Admitting needing help is a strength.
After all, counseling isn’t for the feeble minded.
It takes strength to work through what’s holding you back from living life to the fullest.
There are two kinds of pain: The pain of staying “stuck” where you’re at, or the pain of working “through” to get to the other side.
My goal is to help you heal sooner than later.
In case you were wondering, I’m not the type of therapist that seeks to keep you in therapy for 15 years. If I were that type of therapist, I certainly would not be doing my job.
I want to provide you with a safe place to heal.
Together, we’ll take you as deep as you want to go. I’ll be with you every step of the way as we unearth what may be holding you back or keeping you stuck.
I’ve been in counseling myself and incorporate my own individual counseling work as part of my self-care plan.
Having a therapist who does their own work is an asset.
After all, when you embark on your journey of an uncharted path, you certainly want to talk to a person who has traveled the road.
Someone who knows where the potholes are and not the person who tries to sell you a map but has never made the journey.
Hi, I’m Carla.
I’m a well-traveled traveler. Not in the geographical sense, but in life in general.
Yes, there have been successes and there have been failures, too. The difference between successful people and unsuccessful people is that successful people fail more.
To fail is divine—I have failed repeatedly, and nothing to show for it except freedom, serenity, and a surefire desire to help others heal and succeed.
Failure has become a benevolent teacher, opening my heart and mind to successes I could not imagine that brought me to where I am today.
I’m a Licensed Professional Counselor and Mental Health Service Provider (LPC/MHSP-S), Fellow in Thanatology, and faculty member in the University of Vermont’s End-of-Life Doula Professional Certificate Program. With over a decade of experience, including prior work as a hospice grief counselor, I specialize in grief, trauma, oncology-related counseling, and meaning-centered end-of-life education.
I hold advanced credentials including National Certified Counselor, Certified Clinical Trauma Professional, Certified Grief Informed Professional, Certified Grief Recovery Specialist, Board Certified TeleMental Health Provider, EMDRIA Certified EMDR Clinician, EMDRIA Consultant-in-Training, and State Approved Supervisor (Tennessee).
In addition to clinical work, speaking, and teaching, I am the co-author of Health-Medical Challenges and Grief: Group EMDR Therapy for Patients and Caregivers in EMDR Group Therapy: Emerging Principles and Protocols to Treat Trauma and Beyond (Springer Publishing). My integrative approach blends clinical science, lived experience, and spiritual companioning to support healing through life’s most tender passages.
Holding a master’s degree in mental health is basically the mental health equivalent to that of a nurse practitioner. And this is a testament to the fates that guided me to where I am today and through my college years while obtaining a B.S. in Biology and minor in Chemistry.
I followed the pre-med curriculum and worked as a biomedical research assistant doing graduate level research in psychology while an undergraduate student. However, my childhood dream was to pursue the fun of marketing and promotion. And that’s what I did.
After I graduated college in my home state of Colorado, I packed up my belongings and moved to Music City Tennessee. Not to become a “star,” but to help others become one.
I’m a veteran of both the music and book publishing fields. Prior to embarking on obtaining my masters degree in counseling, I worked in the entertainment industry, and, at one point, owned and operated a marketing and public relations company. At that time, I represented several independent, Grammy, and Dove-award-winning artists and songwriters in addition to several authors, speakers and some work with New York Times bestselling authors.
Prior to that, and a few years after moving to Nashville, I did use my undergraduate degree. Since I worked several years in biomedical research as an undergraduate student, I was hired at a Masters level and worked at Vanderbilt University as a Clinical Research Assistant in Oncology.
During that time, I performed advanced clinical procedures in processing human bone marrow and peripheral blood stem cells for transplant in oncology patients. I coordinated bone marrow transplant procedures with Vanderbilt University, Vanderbilt University’s Children’s Hospital, The Veteran’s Hospital and The National Marrow Donor Program.
It’s no coincidence that I work in the Healing Arts as a therapist.
After all, I consider it my life’s work to help heal broken hearts.
Whether your heart is broken because of a relationship breakup, death of a loved one, or circumstances that stand in the way of having what you desire, counseling can help.
I like to work on the root causes of brokenness, rather than just brief solutions to outer problems. This work teaches you how to maintain your self-awareness, how to discover and utilize your own strengths in the process, and to continue growing after therapy ends.
The process of therapy is truly about gaining hope, healing, and growth that can carry well beyond the counseling office.
I think you’ll find that I’m well qualified to serve my clients’ needs.
If you feel I may be the right fit for you, please call (615) 852-5055 to get in touch with me. I’d enjoy the opportunity to speak with you.
