Heather Kaminski
Online & In-Person
Therapist
Shenandoah, Texas
License 89313
https://elliementalhealth.com/locations/the-woodlands-tx/?gclid=eaiaiqobchmi8_be8rci_wivwc3uar0xiwiteaayasaaegkli_d_bweAbout Heather
Hi there, I'm Heather Kaminski, I am a Licensed Professional Counselor Associate and a Certified Trauma Professional. I am trained in EMDR, ACT, DBT, Grief Counseling, Religious Trauma, and hold a certification in NLP.
Office Location
Costs and Insurance
$80 - 120 per session
Sliding Scale
Out of Pocket
Aetna
Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS)
Cigna
Oscar
UnitedHealthcare (UHC / UBH)
How do you work with clients with anxiety?
What most people don't realize is that anxiety is a tool used by the nervous system to keep you safe. The problem is that the little instinctual part of the brain that works as your alarm system has become over sensitive and is telling you there is danger when there is none. Your body is working as it should, it's just working too hard! I help my clients find ways to communicate with that instinctual part of themselves, reassuring that part that it no longer needs to be on high alert, and thus gaining more control over their level of anxiety. There are several modalities and techniques that can be helpful in this process, it's a matter of finding those that work for you.
Why did you become a therapist, and what motivates you to continue?
Many years ago I used to specialize in teaching children with behavior disorders and found that often their behaviors were ways they had found to survive the traumas they had suffered so early in their lives. I believe we can all play a role in making the world a better place, I chose this work hoping to make a difference in my little corner of it.
For people that are hesitant to try therapy, what do you wish you could tell them?
It is sad that there is still such a stigma against receiving services for mental health. Little by little I think that is changing though. Clients often share with me that therapy is not what they expected. Mostly I want people to know that it can be such a relief to have someone to share your story with. Even if you do have a loving network of friends and family, you may feel they don't completely understand you, or you may feel the burden you carry is too heavy to share with the people you love. In a therapeutic relationship you always have someone nonjudgemental in your corner who is there to help you gain a different perspective, and ultimately to help you build a wagon for those burdens or even to support you in figuring out how to put those burdens down all together.
How does eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) work and how can it help?
The brain is really an amazing tool. EMDR stands for eye movement, desensitization, reprocessing. Basically, we do not process traumatic memories the way we process every day memories. Traumatic memories sort of get "stuck" and loop over and over again like an app running in the background of your phone using up all your battery power. Our bodies and our brains do not understand that these memories happened in the past, because they were never put into long term memory storage. Thus our nervous systems are. on constant high alert, and our brains keep pumping out all those chemicals to the body to prepare it to either run away, fight, or freeze.
By accessing both sides of the brain (like when your eyes move back and forth when you are dreaming), while you are awake and guided by a therapist, memories are accessed, and given the time in the present moment to be fully processed and put into long term memory storage where they belong. When the brain understands this, it takes away the power of these memories and no longer prepares our bodies and our nervous systems to a flight, fight, freeze response.
How do you work with clients with trauma and PTSD?
Establishing an environment of safety and security is of primary importance in working with clients experiencing trauma and PTSD. This includes building a therapeutic relationship built on trust and authenticity. Like anxiety, working with clients struggling with trauma and PTSD means understanding that the nervous system is working to keep you safe, but it's become over sensitive and sees danger everywhere. There are many techniques that can be utilized to help calm the nervous system. I am also trained in EMDR which is a highly recognized and scientifically supported therapy for trauma and PTSD.
What should people thinking about working with you, know about you?
I think whether we realize it or not, we all have a metaphor for life and that it influences our perception of life. Just take a moment to fill in the blank "Life is a __________", if you said "battlefield", for example, that will have an effect on how you approach life situations, and your experience of life in general. You may find yourself fighting every one and every thing. My metaphor for life is that it is a spiral. When you live long enough, you begin to notice the same situations coming up over and over again. It may be different people, different circumstances, but the issues are somehow the same at their core. The key is to be able to realize that this is more than a repetitive circle, you learned things last time, that give you a different perspective than the last time. Thus you have moved up a step in the spiral. The question no becomes "What did I do last time, and how am I going to approach it differently this time?"
How does mindfulness-based therapy (MBCT) work and how can it help?
Therapy based in mindfulness is very helpful for those who are recovering from depression, anxiety, trauma and PTSD. Mindfulness is about bringing your attention into the present moment. The brain and the body don't realize that your thoughts are just that, thoughts. When we are living in the past or worrying about the future, our brains respond by emitting all the chemicals associated with those events which we are thinking about, thus we often go into flight, fight and freeze responses (Ie trauma / anxiety / depression). MBCT practices helps to bring your "self" into the present moment and reminding those parts of the brain in charge of your safety that you are indeed safe in the present moment and don't need to produce those chemicals which are emitted for self protection.
How does trauma focused therapy work and how can it help?
We have all experienced trauma in our lives, what most of us don't realize is how much old traumas influence our behavior and emotional reactions in the present. When we experience traumas, big or small, we develop ways to help us cope with them, and then we find at some point perhaps we no longer need those ways of coping. As a child for example, you may have found that using anger as a shield protects you from emotional pain, but now as an adult, reacting with anger keeps you from developing deep, authentic, and lasting relationships. The trauma perspective helps you to move from a mode of "reacting" to "responding". Reacting is about being triggered, where as "responding" is about recognizing your emotions, yet creating space and the freedom to choose. Ultimately, responding is about empowerment.
Interested in talking?
(936) 228-6624Office Location
Costs and Insurance
$80 - 120 per session
Sliding Scale
Out of Pocket
Aetna
Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS)
Cigna
Oscar
UnitedHealthcare (UHC / UBH)
Specialties
Anxiety
Depression
Grief
Spiritual or Religious
Stress
Trauma and PTSD
Approaches
Acceptance and Commitment (ACT)
Dialectical Behavior (DBT)
EMDR
Eclectic
Integrative