Sue Pressman, 69th President of ACA This year, as Thanksgiving approaches, I am especially grateful for my family, friends, colleagues in the American Counseling Association, and the mentors who have supported me on my career journey. As a professional consultant who has also identified himself as a career consultant for almost 40 years, every November is something very special for…
Richard Yep, CEO of ACA T The ongoing challenges facing much of the world's population are daunting, consuming, and overwhelming. Here in the US, the ongoing battle against the coronavirus, critical discussions about racism, and unconventional national elections can drain a person's energy and spirit. Add to this an economy where so many people are unemployed and so many others…
Adrian Marquez, a retired Marine sergeant and marine raider, woke up one morning while serving in the Marine Corps and couldn't remember how to dress. He looked down at his pile of clothes and mumbled, "First pants, then shoes?" Marquez also had physical pain all over his body, including radiating pain in his arms and legs. His left arm sometimes…
Those who work with traumatized people have found that these clients need to reconnect to their own inner worlds. In these cases, clients are often frozen or, depending on the depth of the trauma and the immediate response to that trauma, have an outward, hypervigilant fight-or-flight approach to their experiences. Cases of problematic attachment are based on this type of…
The coronavirus pandemic has severely restricted social gatherings, travel plans, and in-person events for most of 2020. And that has created a confusing scenario for counselors and other mental health professionals: When almost everyone is physically isolated from some extent – and will be for the foreseeable future – how do you realize that a client may be isolated in…
Clinicians often tell Taqueena Quintana, a licensed professional counselor (LPC) in Washington, DC, that they find it difficult to work as a civilian counselor with the military. They want to know how she did it even though she has no personal military experience. Quintana was first introduced to the military as an advisor to a drug abuse agency. Some of…
When the outside world looked at Julie Bates-Maves' client "James", they saw a 60-year-old "junkie" who had wasted 20 years of his life shooting heroin. But in James' heroin community, he was a respected man – a person of authority to be trusted. James had established himself as a security professional during his two decades of addiction, says Bates-Maves, a…
Late in the morning of Tuesday, October 13th, the last day that Virginia residents could register to vote in the 2020 general election, the news began to filter itself. A disconnected fiber optic cable had destroyed the Commonwealth's voter registration portal. Officials said the cut was an accident caused by road works; Skeptics on Twitter "accidentally" had trends. The paper…
The nation is at an historic moment where the recognition and understanding of the American people for the injustices that occur every day in black and brown communities is at an all-time high, said Rep. Anthony Brown, D-Md ., One of the speakers at the American Counseling Association's Legislative Briefing on Racism, Police Reform, and Mental Health, held via Zoom…
Community food pantries are based on the generosity and goodwill of community members. Food pantries are invaluable to individuals and families who are either homeless or suffering from food shortages. As an education specialist for a large non-profit organization, I (Seneka Arrington) oversaw the day-to-day operations of our local pantry. In the background, from ceiling to floor, non-perishable food –…