Master’s in Counseling Student Intern Mattie Raza

Written By Sybil Smith

Child, Adolescent and Adult Therapy Intern

Our student interns are counselors in training, from graduate education programs in the Appalachia area. They are under the direct supervision of our clinical directors Sybil and JJ, and our clinical supervisors, Kiley, Kelsey, Connie, Molly, Kayla and Cristin. They are working toward their graduate degrees in counseling. Part of their education is practical experience in an internship setting. Our center hosts up to 3 interns each semester, offering a rich learning experience for them and an easily accessible source for mental health treatment for our community.

To schedule with them, contact our main office at 423.408.8041 or support@journeycentercounseling or fill out our new client inquiry form and mark that you want to work with one of our interns.

Treatment focus: Anxiety, Depression, Self discovery, life transitions

Trainings: NCEED, Eating Disorders: Diagnosis, Interventions, &
Screenings CEC by Jean Doak PhD.

Life is one big experience and not all of those experiences are easily dealt with or processed. In my opinion, we heal, we hurt, and ultimately grow through relationships with others and our experiences in those relationships and systems. Be it family, friends, or society, each of us is individually and uniquely impacted by our surroundings and therapy can be a safe place to explore this. As a therapist I feel honored to be a witness to a client’s process of self-exploration & vulnerability. The client is the expert on their lives, and I am here to support them on their journey.

I have experience working with clients who have had substance use disorders, experienced domestic violence, anxiety, depression, life transitions, and who are a part of the LGBTQ+ community. I enjoy working with those in transitionary periods, starting in adolescence all the way through end of life, and anywhere in between. As they say, the only thing that stays the same is everything will change. In session, I like to incorporate somatic(body) processing, emotionally focused/attachment theory, and internal family systems therapy with a relational-cultural focus. I will also use play and art therapy techniques, as humans we all communicate through play and creativity.

Favorite Quote: "Like the changing seasons, nature is in constant flux, where
birth, growth, decay, and rebirth coexist in beautiful disarray. Tangled vines, firmly wrapped around tree trunks, represent life’s tenacity, always reaching for sunlight and survival."

- Mess in Perspective, Blog

Recommended Resources:

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Jasmine Herndon, MS