About Me
Lydia is trained in a variety of treatment modalities, but takes her cues from the client to determine which approach is best for their particular needs and desires. She is a certified Brain Health Coach, trained in Havening, Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT/tapping), Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT) and Eye-Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR). Other favorite modalities include Christian Counseling (Immanuel Prayer), Expressive Arts, Play and Sand Tray Therapy. She is a bi-lingual (English/Spanish-speaking) therapist, holds a Bachelor’s Degree from Bethel University in St. Paul, MN and a Master’s Degree in Clinical Social Work from Catholic University in Washington D.C.
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Lydia’s experience includes working with clients facing anxiety, depression, grief, mood disorders, women’s issues, sexual trauma, sex offender issues, common oppositional/spectrum diagnoses among children, teens, couples, single-parents and families in crisis.
As a biological, foster and adoptive mom of six, she is passionate about empowering parents as they seek to understand and meet the unique needs of each of their children. She and her husband launched and support the men’s and women’s Journey Homes -- intentional living homes in Salina. She has over 15 years of experience in direct-service working in humanitarian and international development roles, schools, prisons and juvenile detention facilities, psychiatric hospitals, orphanages, immigration services, homeless services, veteran services and anti-human trafficking organizations. It has been one of her greatest honors to walk with individuals and families as they courageously say “it starts with me” or “something needs to change" then make an appointment and use the therapeutic process to move from brokenness to healing and hope.
Lydia is trained in the following interventions and will use a variety of assessment tools, client preference and provider discernment to determine the most useful interventions for your needs:
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Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT): directly addresses traumatic symptoms using sensitivity and appropriate focus on creating an appropriate account of the trauma [a trauma narrative (TN)]. The client learns about ways in which they can rewire thought patterns, influencing and improving the way they feel, learning effective ways of managing symptoms.
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Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT): This approach provides clients with new skills to manage painful emotions and decrease conflict in relationships utilizing four main areas of focus. First, mindfulness focuses on improving an individual's ability to accept and be present in the current moment. Second, emotion regulation teaches strategies to manage intense emotions that may be creating issues in a person’s life. Third, distress tolerance aims to improve a person’s tolerance of negative emotion, rather than trying to escape from it.Fourth, interpersonal effectiveness consists of techniques that allow a person to communicate with others in a way that is assertive, maintains self-respect, and strengthens relationships.
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Internal Family Systems (IFS): Have you ever found yourself saying “part of me wants to stay home and watch a movie and part of me wants to go out on the town?” IFS is an evidenced-based model that believes that we all have parts (they are all good, but sometimes they try to help us TOO much) that have been created at different points in our lives to protect us and help us get through messy or traumatic life events. We all have a core-self that can be grounded and knows how to unburden the pain carried by the parts, heal them and help us become integrated and whole.
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Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT): is perfect for the client who wants to get to the “root of the issue” without using a lot of words. EFT or “tapping” helps one manage stress, depressive symptoms, overcome limiting beliefs and cope with the effects of trauma. By tapping specific points on the body while focusing on the emotional issues they're addressing, people often feel relief from psychological pain and stress.
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Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR): EMDR involves the processing of traumatic memories and desensitization through imaginal exposure, challenging and replacing maladaptive beliefs about the trauma using bilateral stimulation.. The information processing model suggests that this helps to process traumatic memories into long-term memory, reducing trauma-related symptoms, such as hypervigilance, as well as replacing unhelpful beliefs, related to the trauma, with healthy/useful ones.
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Sand Tray/Art/Play/Creative/Expressive Movement Therapy: In the therapy room, much can be processed, communicated and healed through means other than traditional talk therapy. The techniques above are often incorporated to help engage the child, adolescent or adult in the most relevant, meaningful and appropriate treatment method possible.
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Teen, Adult, and Family Intensives
Therapy Intensives utilize a variety of treatment modalities including EMDR (Eye-Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT/Tapping), Havening and Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy.
Each of these interventions are research-based interventions, proven to be highly effective in decreasing distress, resolving trauma and creating new neural pathways that are the foundation for lasting change.
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Half-Day Intensive
$900
5+ hour intensive program which includes a 30 minute assessment, 4 hours of intensive therapy and a
1 hour follow-up appointment and materials.
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One Day Intensive
$1600
9 hour intensive program which includes a 90 minute assessment, 6 hours of intensive therapy, a 90
minute follow-up appointment and materials.
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Two-Day Intensive
$3200
16 hour intensive program which includes a 90 minute assessment, 12 hours of intensive therapy, a
90-minute follow-up appointment and materials.
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