Curiosity. Courage. Creativity.

Collaboration. Connection. Calm.

Concentration. Confidence. Clarity.

Get to know me a little...

Hi! My name is Teriz Michael.

I am a child of God who is a licensed clinical social worker, professional artist, and certified art educator in NJ.

I believe in Immanuel -- "God with us". This simple truth reflects my belief that because God is with us then purpose, hope, love, integrity, creativity, healing, and thriving are possible.

For twenty years, I have helped peers, colleagues, community leaders, clients, parents, and students develop and achieve their goals with creativity and compassion.

I love to learn, ask questions, serve, and grow! I have a relationship-oriented focus and am fascinated by the intricate connections between creative expression, human behavior, spirituality, cognition, community, and growth.

My gift for art led me to discover my love for teaching, and teaching led me to pursue my passion for mental health. God designed a unique path for me that allowed me to discover and glean many skills and blessings along the journey.

I focus on relationship, community, and creativity to live an abundant life.

To learn more about my professional journey, please visit:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/terizmichael/

Below is an explanation of what is psychotherapy, counseling, coaching, and consulting to help you determine the best fit for yourself.

Therapy

Psychotherapy addresses recurring challenges due to cognitive, relational, and emotional patterns while examining their deeply root issues. Therapy includes self-exploration, emotional processing, and cognitive restructuring. The process begins with a thorough clinical assessment, or biopsychosocial, to identify impairments or disorders and assign diagnosis. Once the assessment is complete, the therapist creates a collaborative treatment plan with the client to treat presenting and underlying issues - treatment can take months to years to complete. I use a psychodynamic treatment approach while also integrating expressive arts, CBT, DBT, ACT, and gestalt therapeutic approaches. My educational background allows me to custom tailor treatment based on your learning style and personality. I specialize in treating young adults and adults to respond to and heal from mental health issues, relationship issues, and challenges related to life transitions. Sessions are dynamic, start with prayer, integrate formal psychotherapy and Biblical principles, and include in-between-sessions work completed by clients to preserve the continuity of the work we do in session. Therapy is a high yielding fruitful investment that requires full engagement from both the client and the therapist.

My therapy clients present with issues of:

ADHD, anger, anxiety, boundaries, burnout, codependency, complacency, despair, despondency, depression, intrusive thoughts, life transitions, loss, low self-esteem, obsessive tendencies, attachment issues, emptiness, enmeshment, fear, delusions, broken relations, low motivation, people-pleasing, negative thinking, shame, trauma, and loneliness.

For more info, please visit my pages at PT or The Center for Christian Counseling and Relationship Development:

https://www.psychologytoday.com/profile/1460714

https://cccrd.org/team/teriz-michael

Christian Counseling

The Bible is bold and accurate in describing the human condition and generous in offering nourishment and medicine to the soul, body, and spirit. Christian counseling uses the Bible as the reference and framework to address a specific area of concern, tension, or dysfunction. How is counseling different than therapy? Counseling is short-term, surface to mid-level depth, and provides practical guidance and education to help with problem-solving. Counseling is goal-oriented and solution-focused and once the issue is addressed, counseling ends. It does NOT include clinical assessment, diagnosis, utilization of evidence-based psychotherapeutic modalities, or treatment plans.

Christian Counseling includes prayer and ministering to the person using the word of God under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete, who is the source of wisdom, truth, comfort, and counsel.

Sessions include reading Scripture with a focus on the Father's love, the redemptive work of Jesus Christ, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit for life applications and to facilitate inner healing.

My Christian counseling clients are:

People who are 18 and older who identify as teachable and curious to explore their relationship with God. Clients come with questions, doubts, and spiritual goals.

Coaching

As a coach, I use a collaborative, integrated, and holistic approach that honors the soul, body, and spirit of the person's triune nature. Coaching focuses on result-oriented and measurable goals to address specific obstacles in the present or future. Coaching is generally for optimizing current healthy functioning, is short-term, and moves towards a defined goal.

How are coaching and therapy different? Coaching deals with present and future goals, accountability, and motivation. Unlike therapy, it does NOT explore the "what, how, or why" of the past and does not include assessment, diagnosis, psychotherapeutic treatments, or referrals.

How are coaching and counseling different? Counseling focuses on internal issues related to heart posture and inner healing guided by the Word of God and the Holy Spirit. Coaching focuses on external specific and measurable issues related to performance optimization.

Your vision, barriers, and goals are met with cultural sensitivity, curiosity, empathy, honesty and active listening skills. These skills contribute to my strengths as a responsive, creative, and compassionate coach. You can expect insightful feedback including recognition of your gifts and strongest skills while challenging to move you beyond your comfort zone.

My coaching clients are:

People who desire to enhance their performance or productivity by developing increased intrinsic motivation, inspiration, focus, confidence, self-validation, courage, connection, and creativity.

Creativity and growth are stifled by isolation, and optimization is stimulated by intentional dialogue that facilitates honest introspection, nuanced shifts, and smart goal setting.

Artists, Actors, Writers, Musicians, and Dancers seeking to overcome blocks, develop or refine their artistic voice, or reinvent themselves

Educators in pursuit of developing a meaningful and stimulating curriculum that engages the hearts and minds of students and fosters creativity

Students desiring to develop their portfolio or forge a path into creative professions

Parents of gifted and/or neurodiverse children exploring ways to support their children's creative and artistic talents

Leaders wanting to use the arts for community building, use creative methods for analysis and problem-solving, or increase productivity by designing spaces conducive to inspiration, motivation, and creativity

Professionals (especially in mental health and healthcare) longing to access their innate creativity for the purpose of self-care, stress management, to combat compassion fatigue or a deeper sense of fulfillment

Consultation

Consultations are designed to be single sessions for individuals, parents, or groups to help them discern the best course of action or develop or participate in training to address a specific area of concern or deficiency.

For example:

Educators seek consultation on classroom organization, curriculum development, lesson planning, student and community engagement, effective assessment, social emotional learning, and creative classroom management.

Parents seek consultation regarding parent-child tensions or their young adult children who fail to launch.

Healthcare professionals seek consultation regarding developing and providing trauma-informed care in their practice.

My Consulting clients are:

Educators, therapists , parents, or healthcare providers.

Please call or text with questions or inquiries:

732-993-8454

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