Hello everyone! My name is Erika Johnson, and I am a Masters Level Intern working towards my degree in Social Work with a Clinical Concentration. I hold a Bachelors degree in Social Work with a Minor in Child and Family Studies. I resided in Knoxville, TN during my undergraduate program where I was able to gain experience working with children and families. My hometown is Murfreesboro, TN, and a few of my hobbies include reading, playing with my dogs, and beadwork. I am part Native American, so beadwork is something I love to do to stay connected with my culture.
I enjoy working with children and families experiencing a variety of issues including anxiety, depression, relationship conflicts, and other life stressors. I have experience working with children in both a school setting and an after-school program. In a counseling setting, I love using different modalities in my work with clients dependent on the needs of the client. One of my favorite modalities when working with children is play therapy in many forms including working with dolls, sand tray, art, music, and bibliotherapy. Other modalities that I find to be greatly beneficial include cognitive behavioral therapy and solution-focused therapy. When working with families, I place emphasis on the family systems theory as I view every family as a dynamic system of interconnected relationships. I look at each family member and the dynamics between one another to best understand how the family system works as a whole to influence one another. By look at the family as a system, we can work together to achieve your family goals that best suits the needs of each member.
Therapeutic Modalities
CBT Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is based on the principle that thoughts, emotions, and behavior are directly related. Thoughts affect your feelings, your feelings affect your behavior, and your behavior affects your thoughts. By understanding this cycle, we can adjust our internalized thoughts and feelings as well as the behaviors we exhibit. CBT is commonly used for treating depression and anxiety.
Solutions-focused Therapy Solutions-focused therapy focuses on finding solutions to problems through a mix of Q&A about the past, present, and future and coaching led by the clinician.
Play Therapy Play therapy is often used with children and adults as an alternative form of communication and (re)processing. During the session, the client is engaged in symbolic play.
Trauma-Informed Care TIC is vital for any interaction with clients. It is understanding that we all experience different levels of trauma and do our best to not re-traumatize clients. Trauma Informed Oregon explains it well by stating that, “Trauma informed care (TIC) recognizes that traumatic experiences terrify, overwhelm, and violate the individual. Trauma informed care is a commitment not to repeat these experiences and, in whatever way possible, to restore a sense of safety, power, and self-worth.
Specializations
-Anxiety
-Depression
-Self Esteem
-Trauma
-Grief/Loss
-Play Therapy
Education & Training
-Bachelor of Social Work, University of Tennessee Knoxville
-Minor in Child & Family Studies, University of Tennessee Knoxville
-Childhood Grief Training: Interventions for Working with Bereaved Children & Adolescents
-Child Abuse Mandated Report Training, Tennessee
-Building Strong Brains: Tennessee ACES Training
-Telehealth Training, Liberty University