Mindy Pierce

LPC

About

Mindy Pierce is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) in private practice with GROW Counseling. She received her MA in Counseling Psychology from Indiana Wesleyan University and her BA from Asbury University.

Her clinical experience includes working with men’s and women’s issues; various relationship issues; pornography and infidelity; substance and process addictions; depression; anxiety; grief; PTSD; personality disorders; parenting stress; survivors of sexual, physical and emotional abuse, complex trauma, secondary trauma, commercial sexual exploitation and human trafficking; and those providing services for survivors (first responders, attorneys, therapists, and case workers). She is also trained and experienced in EMDR (eye movement desensitization reprocessing).

Mindy has led short-term teams and/or facilitated counseling seminars in Mexico, Uganda, Ukraine, and Sri Lanka. She and her husband spent 18 months living in Sri Lanka and working for a post-tsunami recovery project, where she began her involvement in anti-human trafficking work. Upon returning to the United States, she has worked in a private, residential setting and as a therapist in private practice.

A strong commitment to supporting first responders grew from experiences related to her husband’s years spent in law enforcement. Mindy possesses a deep appreciation for the unique challenges faced by those working on the front lines of law enforcement, fire and rescue, and emergency medical services – understanding the risk of secondary traumatization, addiction, burnout, isolation, and distress in personal relationships.

In 2016, after 14 years of witnessing the restorative impact of healthy, life-giving relationships and the traumatic impact of brokenness around issues related to connection, sex and intimacy, Mindy created STRONGERconnection|cards™, a conversation tool designed for proactively building relationships and preventing disconnection. You can learn more at STRONGERconnectioncards.com.

She and her husband live in the Atlanta area and have three children.

Mindy Pierce is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) in private practice with GROW Counseling. She received her MA in Counseling Psychology from Indiana Wesleyan University and her BA from Asbury University.

Her clinical experience includes working with men’s and women’s issues; various relationship issues; pornography and infidelity; substance and process addictions; depression; anxiety; grief; PTSD; personality disorders; parenting stress; survivors of sexual, physical and emotional abuse, complex trauma, secondary trauma, commercial sexual exploitation and human trafficking; and those providing services for survivors (first responders, attorneys, therapists, and case workers). She is also trained and experienced in EMDR (eye movement desensitization reprocessing).

Mindy has led short-term teams and/or facilitated counseling seminars in Mexico, Uganda, Ukraine, and Sri Lanka. She and her husband spent 18 months living in Sri Lanka and working for a post-tsunami recovery project, where she began her involvement in anti-human trafficking work. Upon returning to the United States, she has worked in a private, residential setting and as a therapist in private practice.

A strong commitment to supporting first responders grew from experiences related to her husband’s years spent in law enforcement. Mindy possesses a deep appreciation for the unique challenges faced by those working on the front lines of law enforcement, fire and rescue, and emergency medical services – understanding the risk of secondary traumatization, addiction, burnout, isolation, and distress in personal relationships.

In 2016, after 14 years of witnessing the restorative impact of healthy, life-giving relationships and the traumatic impact of brokenness around issues related to connection, sex and intimacy, Mindy created STRONGERconnection|cards™, a conversation tool designed for proactively building relationships and preventing disconnection. You can learn more at STRONGERconnectioncards.com.

She and her husband live in the Atlanta area and have three children.

Mark Jones

MFT, LPC

About

After years in another career, I chose to retrain for helping others through mental health challenges. Trauma counseling and marriage and family therapy were areas of focus for me. Life experience, good training, and expert supervision combine to enable me to be effective with a wide range of mental health concerns. My clinical experience includes working a year with men in substance addictions and their families.

How do I view mental health? We are all impacted by the systems of which we are a part (family, friends, work, neighborhood, etc.). Trauma can have a long-lasting impact on our lives. We are all spiritual beings, regardless of which faith system we endorse. Everyone's struggles make sense and are a produce of what happened to them and the choices they made.

Your mental health challenges probably impact every area of your life. Let me help you make sense of them and find ways to flourish in life. I am accepting new clients (individuals, couples, and families) for in-person and virtual sessions.

After years in another career, I chose to retrain for helping others through mental health challenges. Trauma counseling and marriage and family therapy were areas of focus for me. Life experience, good training, and expert supervision combine to enable me to be effective with a wide range of mental health concerns. My clinical experience includes working a year with men in substance addictions and their families.

How do I view mental health? We are all impacted by the systems of which we are a part (family, friends, work, neighborhood, etc.). Trauma can have a long-lasting impact on our lives. We are all spiritual beings, regardless of which faith system we endorse. Everyone's struggles make sense and are a produce of what happened to them and the choices they made.

Your mental health challenges probably impact every area of your life. Let me help you make sense of them and find ways to flourish in life. I am accepting new clients (individuals, couples, and families) for in-person and virtual sessions.

Emily Ruggles

LPC, CRC

About

Emily specializes in working with individual adults and teens (15yo+). She has extensive experience working with young adults and college students having difficulty with anxiety, depression, life stage transitions (moving, graduation or career change), suicidal thoughts, self-esteem, relationship concerns, and dating. Having assisted collegiate student athletes as well as working with athletes at the professional level, Emily understands the unique pressures of being an athlete and the impact on mental health. She has a passion for helping her clients maximize their quality of life and perform to their greatest potential in every area of their lives.

Emily is also a Certified Rehabilitation Counselor (CRC). This certification equips Emily to assist clients with mental health concerns affected by disabilities, traumatic brain injury and chronic health conditions. It allows Emily to address both the mental and physical components of wellness, thus improving clients’ daily functioning and their overall quality of life.

Emily specializes in working with individual adults and teens (15yo+). She has extensive experience working with young adults and college students having difficulty with anxiety, depression, life stage transitions (moving, graduation or career change), suicidal thoughts, self-esteem, relationship concerns, and dating. Having assisted collegiate student athletes as well as working with athletes at the professional level, Emily understands the unique pressures of being an athlete and the impact on mental health. She has a passion for helping her clients maximize their quality of life and perform to their greatest potential in every area of their lives.

Emily is also a Certified Rehabilitation Counselor (CRC). This certification equips Emily to assist clients with mental health concerns affected by disabilities, traumatic brain injury and chronic health conditions. It allows Emily to address both the mental and physical components of wellness, thus improving clients’ daily functioning and their overall quality of life.

Jessica Lamar, Psy D, Lmhc, Lpc

LMHC

About

Throughout my career I have worked in forensic settings, community mental health, and private practice. I have experience working with serious mental health, sex addiction, trauma, betrayal, and grief. I am a licensed mental health therapist in the State of Washington. I earned a doctorate Degree in Clinical Psychology from Argosy University in 2018.

Currently, I work with adults who are facing death and non-death losses. Those who are trying to navigate the complexity of relationships and the grief process. I believe we all experience change and loss by virtue of being in this world and in relationships. Transition, loss, and the experience of grief will affect every person through various moment in life. I strive to understand each person’s unique experience with these transitions. At times, these changes and losses are unexpected and can throw us off track or render us feeling hopeless. I have a keen interest in how we construct meaning life, especially in the wake of loss and transition.
I enjoy working with people seeking ways to adapt, thrive, and create meaning within themselves, while coping with losses including death, loss of relationships, illness, and many other life transitions and/or ambiguous losses.

My primary goal in the therapeutic process is to actively assist you in reaching a better understanding of the underlying conflicts and meaning around your situation by helping you gain some objective distance around your concern in relation to your larger context. Self-awareness alone has positive effects. I believe change is possible through this kind of understanding and acceptance of oneself.

Throughout my career I have worked in forensic settings, community mental health, and private practice. I have experience working with serious mental health, sex addiction, trauma, betrayal, and grief. I am a licensed mental health therapist in the State of Washington. I earned a doctorate Degree in Clinical Psychology from Argosy University in 2018.

Currently, I work with adults who are facing death and non-death losses. Those who are trying to navigate the complexity of relationships and the grief process. I believe we all experience change and loss by virtue of being in this world and in relationships. Transition, loss, and the experience of grief will affect every person through various moment in life. I strive to understand each person’s unique experience with these transitions. At times, these changes and losses are unexpected and can throw us off track or render us feeling hopeless. I have a keen interest in how we construct meaning life, especially in the wake of loss and transition.
I enjoy working with people seeking ways to adapt, thrive, and create meaning within themselves, while coping with losses including death, loss of relationships, illness, and many other life transitions and/or ambiguous losses.

My primary goal in the therapeutic process is to actively assist you in reaching a better understanding of the underlying conflicts and meaning around your situation by helping you gain some objective distance around your concern in relation to your larger context. Self-awareness alone has positive effects. I believe change is possible through this kind of understanding and acceptance of oneself.