Today we’d like to introduce you to Casey Lee.
Hi Casey, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I started Rooted Hearts Counseling LLC in 2018. My desire to start my own private practice was so I can focus on my passion: co-creating relationships that heal and grow. But how do I communicate my heart and focus to people wanting help? I created my website https://www.rootedheartscounseling.com to express my vision for relationships.
The way I wrote my website speaks to the sufferings and desires of those who are stuck but long for something more. I want to communicate that I see you, that what you are going through makes sense, and you are not alone. My website is my way to acknowledge and validate those longing for a safer, closer, and more secure relationship with the person they love.
I personally know how big of a risk it takes to openly address something/someone that matters to you most. It takes a lot of vulnerability and courage to reach out for therapy. So I have invested a lot of time, emotional energy, and finances to receive the best training, supervision, and personal help so my clients can get the best therapy possible.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Starting my own business from scratch was very stressful. On one hand, I felt the pressure to have clients so I can provide for my family. On the other hand, I had to wear many different hats as I was the website designer, the marketing person, the administrator, and the office manager. All of this was on top of being a therapist.
I was not proficient in some of these areas and I had to spend a lot of time learning these roles. It felt overwhelming at times. I had to learn to embrace that I was “in the process” of creating a private practice and it wasn’t going to be everything I wanted it to be immediately. I’m someone that strives to be excellent and can be a perfectionist so this “always in process” feeling was hard.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I specialize in working with couples who are dissatisfied and distressed because they are stuck and want to feel appreciated and loved, accepted and secure. I am a certified Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy (EFT) therapist. The focus isn’t on learning techniques about how to improve communication or conflict resolution but rather on addressing the heart of how we get stuck in our relationships.
We all long for emotional security and safety with the person that is most important to us. When we don’t feel secure or safe we react in self-protective ways that cause the other to not feel secure or safe and then they react in self-protective ways as well. This creates a cycle that most couples get stuck in.
I help couples slow down and notice the specific pattern or cycle they are in. I provide a warm, empathic, accepting, and welcoming environment so couples feel safe and heard. When we feel safe and heard we can feel and share the hurts, fears, and longings we have in the relationship and we can respond to our partners with empathy.
What I’m most proud of are the thousands of couples I worked with. I recognize the amazing courage it takes to open up with me and each other to work on their relationship. It is one of the most vulnerable things someone can do and I see how much their relationship matters to them for them to take that risk with me and each other.
Is there anyone you’d like to thank or give credit to?
My biggest inspiration to be a therapist is from Jesus of the Bible. He is compassionate, kind, and tender to those suffering yet strong and fierce against those who used their powers to oppress.
He sees those who feel invisible, He hears those who feel voiceless, He weeps with those grieving, defends the marginalized, provides a sense of belonging for the outcast, embraces those who feel ashamed, brings light to darkness, liberates those who felt imprisoned, draws close to the broken-hearted.
His wisdom and perspective brought clarity and hope. He embodies the main principle of what it means to have a secure relationship: He is emotionally available, responsive, and engaged.
My wife deserves the biggest credit for supporting me through the journey of starting my own business and becoming an effective therapist. She supported and believed in me when it was very scary at the beginning because of the financial risks and uncertainties that came with starting a private practice from scratch.
She is an emotional source of comfort and reassurance as I constantly work to become a more effective therapist. The journey of growth as a therapist is very emotional because I take my work very seriously. When things are working well I feel great and when things aren’t I am hard on myself. She has been a safe person I can turn to and be vulnerable with.
In addition, there are other EFT colleagues and supervisors I consult with to keep growing and learning from. Lastly, my clients teach me a lot about the risk they take to allow themselves to show up in the session with me.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.rootedheartscounseling.com
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Rootedheartscounselingllc
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQpOFJ3_8VPXg2kYvnqbvzA/playlists
Image Credits
Lydia McCaulley Photography
