Many studies have confirmed that people who are strongly connected to their religious faith can reap significant emotional and psychological benefits.
The gift of community, the comfort that prayer provides, and the structure of ritual are very grounding and can help you get through challenging times or provide strength if you live with an ongoing mental health condition.
Being a person of faith doesn’t mean you’re immune to life’s considerable challenges, however.
Dr. Judy Vansiea specializes in faith-based counseling and combines evidence-based treatment modalities within a Christian framework to help you deal with depression, anxiety, trauma, and many other mental health challenges.
These can include diagnoses of disorders such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), bipolar disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
What’s more, Dr. Vansiea’s vast clinical and life experience means that she can help, no matter what faith you practice. As a naturalized citizen of the United States, a veteran, and a respected practitioner, she brings her own resilience, as well as varied and valuable therapeutic tools, as your practitioner.
Can I just see my pastor for my problems?
While both are important, pastoral counseling and faith-based counseling are two different things. Pastoral counseling focuses on your religious faith and offers guidance on how to move through life faithfully in all matters.
Faith-based counseling, on the other hand, is action-oriented, and treatment is designed to fuel behavioral change and transform your mindset.
In other words, faith-based counseling typically identifies goals that the patient and therapist set. Additionally, Christian counselors like Dr. Vansiea are clinically trained to diagnose and treat a wide spectrum of disorders.
The unique value of faith-based counseling
A relationship with a faith-based counselor brings you added empathy and understanding, particularly around the role that your faith plays in your daily life. Dr. Vansiea listens with an open heart, doesn’t judge, and is on your side.
Feeling comfortable in a therapeutic setting and uninhibited about sharing things with your therapist leads to the most meaningful growth.
What problems can faith-based counseling address?
Dr. Vansiea can help you live more fully if you have chronic anxiety or depression or if you’re grieving from a traumatic life event, such as the loss of a family member, divorce, or a job loss.
She assists you in getting to the root of marital problems and making decisions about your career, and offers sound guidance on parenting in an uncertain age. There are so many demands we all juggle, and getting help when you feel overwhelmed is really your healthiest option.
If you misuse alcohol, recreational drugs, or prescription medications, Dr. Vansiea can help you create an action plan for recovery, and connect you to resources and education, all within the comforting cloak of the core tenets and grounding parables of your faith.
She knows, too, that addiction can also involve food, sex, and gambling, which is why she encourages you to leave shame at the door when you visit. Dr. Vansiea’s work with you is all about letting go of shame and finding the strength together to thrive.
What does treatment look like in the faith-based context?
Just like any other experienced and enlightened practitioner, Dr. Vansiea learns all she can about your life, medical and psychological history, and your areas of concern, during your initial sessions together. From there, she crafts a treatment plan designed for you and you alone.
Your spiritual, emotional, and physical health are intertwined, and Dr. Vansiea is eager to see you through whatever problems you’re experiencing, whether they’re situational or long-term.
Her knowledge of the most advanced mental health treatment protocols, beneficial medications, and more mean that you’re in good and faithful hands when you’re treated at Coping Nurse Practitioner in Psychiatry Services, P.C.
Dr. Vansiea helps you develop strong coping strategies and approach your condition or problems with hope and faith.
Faith-based counseling may be right for you
Dr. Vansiea is eager to work with you, no matter why you might want to seek treatment. Call our office in Uniondale, New York, at 516-247-3525 to schedule an appointment, or send a message to Dr. Vansiea and the team here on our website. We are offering telehealth virtual visits also.
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