Integrating Spirituality into Mental Health Practice

Many clients enter mental health treatment not only with their own mental health concerns and challenges but also their own spiritual beliefs and practices.  Concurrently, many therapists are interested in better ways to integrate their clients’ spiritual beliefs in the clinical work while clarifying or being mindful of their own spiritual beliefs.  This workshop will offer therapists ideas about how to balance those two areas in a way that increases support and hope for clients while expanding their well-being.  Using a combination of didactic material, group discussion, and experiential exercises, Dr. Armstrong will provide participants with a deeper appreciation for the role of spirituality in their clients’ lives, as well as in their professional and personal lives.

Two contact hours will be available for this training. Free to all current Pro Bono Counseling Network Volunteer Therapists or other therapists who practice in Durham, Orange, Person or Chatham counties and would like to become a Pro Bono Counseling Network Therapist. For more information on joining and becoming a volunteer therapist, contact Shelley Danser, the program coordinator: Shelley.D@fhrecovery.org.

Tonya Armstrong, Ph.D., M.T.S., Licensed Psychologist & Minister

Dr. Tonya D. Armstrong is the founder and CEO of The Armstrong Center for Hope (www.armstrongcfh.com), an interdisciplinary group practice cultivating psychological and spiritual wellness for all ages.  Dr. Armstrong is a graduate of Yale University, where she double-majored in psychology and music.  From UNC-Chapel Hill, she earned master’s and doctoral degrees in clinical psychology with a focus on child, adolescent, and family issues, and subsequently earned a master’s degree in Theological Studies (magna cum laude) from Duke Divinity School.  She then joined the faculty at Duke Divinity School where for five years she taught courses in pastoral care and provided leadership to the student, pediatric, and grief and bereavement initiatives of the Duke Institute on Care at the End of Life.  Since 2000, Dr. Armstrong has served as the Minister of Congregational Care and Counseling at Union Baptist Church (www.myubc.org) in Durham, where she directs a staff of licensed mental health professionals, laypersons extensively trained to provide emotional and spiritual support (Stephen Ministers), and grief support group facilitators.  Additionally, she serves as the Dean of the Counseling Studies Department at the Apex School of Theology (www.apexsot.edu) in Durham.  Dr. Armstrong has published in the areas of spirituality, African-American mental health, end-of-life care, and grief, and focuses clinically on interventions that optimize mental health and wellness for children, adolescents, adults, and their families.

Freedom House Recovery Center's Pro Bono Counseling Network (PBCN)

Are you interested in improving access to mental health care for families and individuals in our community who have few other resources? It may sound like a challenge but it’s actually quite simple . . . by joining a network of clinicians working together to make our system of mental health care more equitable, your efforts can have a big impact. The goal of this project is to recruit mental health professionals that work in Durham, Orange, Person and Chatham counties in NC to join a network of clinicians to provide counseling to one client per year who is motivated to receive mental health counseling (not in crisis or SPMI) but cannot afford treatment due to being uninsured (not eligible for Medicaid) or underinsured (high deductible/unaffordable copay) for 8 free sessions. You may have already been doing some pro bono work for years and now we are simply asking you to join a network of clinicians who are committed to making a difference in our community together. Your volunteer efforts with the Pro Bono Counseling Network will be documented and data related to both the need and outcomes will be captured. This data will be used to influence public policy and community resources. Please contact Shelley Danser if you are interested in learning more about the program: Shelley.D@fhrecovery.org. The PBCN Education Series offers 6 trainings per year on various clinical topics that are FREE to PBCN volunteer therapists.