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Hello, I am Twaina M. Carpenter. I am a retired veteran who served in the U.S. Air Force for 20 years. I have enjoyed working with people in Customer Service areas since starting work at the tender age of 15 years old. My approach to counseling is to actively listen in order to connect with each person on a personal level to get to know them and create a safe space for them to share their dis-ease. Then we, as a team, work on healing those wounds created from past experiences.
My approach
I approach psychotherapy from a person-centered, supportive role, where I utilize great active listening skills first. From there, I mentor, guide, and help my consumer by assisting in being a change agent, helping to change thoughts and perceptions that create those judgments in life, whether judging others, situations, or self. The top modalities that I use are Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), and Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing (EMDR).
My focus
I believe the care that I provide my consumer comes across as being very genuine; therefore, my consumer feels safe in sharing things they may have kept bottled up inside and never shared with anyone, even those that are closest to them. Yet, the comfort and the safe place I provide my consumer makes for a place and space for them to open up and start working on letting things go (once and for all) and finally feeling it is okay to move forward.
My communication style
My communication style during therapy is straightforward, honest, open, empathic, and sympathetic (when needed); I have great compassion for those seeking my assistance. I like using real-life examples. Active listening is a gift that I utilize well when sitting with my consumer. I am open in saying I am not here to give you ADVICE, and I am here to lead and guide you to making the best choice for yourself. I am here to help you have more grace and compassion for yourself. I am here to help you, the consumer, move forward. The use of active listening and asking those probing questions, in turn, assist the consumer in thinking and pondering on the reality of any situation and how to process it and move forward.
My journey to mental healthcare
My journey to becoming a therapist started while I was serving in the United States Air Force, where I filled in on occasions as an interim First Sergeant working for different Commanders at different locations. This position allowed me the opportunity to care for the active duty and their family members of all ranks, cultural differences, and races, allowing me to care for others outside of my immediate family members to assist with their military concerns and general life concerns. I enjoyed seeing others have a sense of breakthrough in their lives, which caused me to seek out what my next career would be after retirement from the military. I decided to take on the challenge of helping others full-time to learn more about themselves (things they have been taught in life (good and bad), their life experiences) and how these experiences have shaped them to be the person they are, yet learn how they can change to be the person they desire to be.
My goals for you
I work with and alongside the consumer to establish their goals. I inquire with the consumer as to what they are seeking to gain from their counseling experience and what their specific goals are. I will provide my recommendations on goals and how we can incorporate both sets of goals and what that looks like by way of success for the consumer. Successful care and progress are evident when the dis-ease of the consumer has declined significantly, and they are able to manage their response to the disease better (whether it be a person, a situation, a life event, etc.). Also, successful care and progress are evident when the consumer can say they have reached a minimum of 85% (on the 0-100% scale, with 100% being the highest and best); however, 100% being the ultimate goal, of feeling and doing better for themself.
My first session with you
First sessions, we (the consumer and myself) spend time discussing the presenting problem(s), history of medical concerns, family information, past experiences, and how they tie into the present-day dis-ease. We spend time establishing what the consumer is seeking in their counseling experience. Also, we will discuss how I, as their counselor, can help them to do and be better. I also like to share a little bit of myself and how I help to create a safe environment for them in order to let go and move forward.
