- Is your relationship hurting, but your partner is unable or unwilling to attend therapy?
- Frustrated by dating struggles, such as patterns of attraction to unavailable people or worries about if someone will leave once they know the “real” you?
- Often find yourself feeling disconnected or misunderstood by the important people in your life?
- Difficulty in relationships with parents, family, or friends, or noticing that troubling experiences from childhood won’t stop interfering with your adult life?
We all experience times when it feels like we’re going through the motions of life alone rather than really living and connecting. Sometimes life knocks us down with unexpected changes or losses and we need the support of loving others to get through, but just can’t figure out how to feel less stressed and alone.
Specialties
- Relationship Concerns
- Loneliness, Disconnection & Loss
- Anxiety, Mood Swings & Stress
- History of Relational Trauma
- LGBTQIA Identity
- Immigration Experiences
HeartLink Counseling can help you rekindle hope and connection in your life. With an emphasis on compassion and non-judgment, we utilize mindfulness, behavioral, and experiential strategies toward helping our clients live more fully present in each moment and take life-enhancing actions in their approach to self and relationships.
We believe we each have the ability to create a life worth living and offer guidance in the pursuit of creating a more meaningful life. Our warm approach combined with specific coping and self-compassion strategies make us excellent guides in tapping your inner wisdom to generate peace, presence, joy, and connection.
The wound is the place where the light enters you. ~Rumi
What is Mindfulness & DBT?
According to teacher and author Bodhipaksa, “Mindfulness is the gentle effort to be continuously present with experience.” Simply put, mindfulness is the experience of being fully present to the present moment. Mindfulness is about awareness and participation in life rather than ruminating about the past or worrying about the future. And it can generate powerful effects in terms of joy, gratitude, and peace.
Developed by Dr. Marsha Linehan, Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) is a mindfulness-based approach designed to help individuals who struggle with intense emotions and multiple problems. In the individual and group contexts, DBT teaches clients more adaptive ways to think and act when life throws them curve balls, and how to find both momentum for change and acceptance about themselves and their lives to create a life worth living.
Amanda has completed over 100 hours of advanced training in DBT with experts in the field, including Dr. Michael Maslar and Dr. Shari Manning. She has also led DBT groups for adolescents, adults, and parents. She currently offers 1:1 DBT skills coaching.
Maria has completed the Foundation Course of Cognitively-Based Compassion Training (CBCT) at Emory University as well as “The Power of Awareness” with renowned mindfulness practitioners Jack Kornfield and Tara Brach.