Caryn Woodard, MA

Resident in Marriage and Family Therapy

M.A. Pastoral Counseling

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My name is Caryn Woodard and I’m your appointed Pastoral Counselor and you are one step closer to your personal self-discovery. This journey will be a time of discovery, truth and reconciliation. As your counselor, my goal is to help you uncover your true potential and lead a life that is worth celebrating. As a solution-focused Christian Counselor, it would be a pleasure to walk alongside you on your journey in discovering your renewed self.

My educational background consists of receiving my Bachelor of Science in Psychology with a concentration in Christian Counseling and a Masters in Pastoral Counseling with a concentration in Marriage and Family from Liberty University. I am a trained facilitator of Prepare-Enrich (a program for premarital counseling and education along with marriage enrichment).

While we can’t change difficult situations of the past, we can work together to better understand and resolve those challenges in your life. My goal is helping my clients move beyond their difficult emotions and life experiences to discover the peace and happiness that only God provides. It will be a pleasure to take this journey with you as we develop a strategy to achieving your goals.

When I am not in the office, I enjoy spending time with my family, exploring new
meal recipes with my husband, watching TCM and leading a small mental health
group at my church.

“I can do all this through Him who give me strength” (Philippians 4:13, NIV).

CREDENTIALS
Education & Professional Skills

Education

  • Liberty University
    • Masters in Pastoral Counseling
      • Concentration in Marriage and Family
    • Bachelor of Science in Psychology
      • Concentration in Christian Counseling

Professional License

  • Resident in Marriage and Family therapy

Specialized Couples Training

  • Gottman Method
  • Emotion Focused Therapy
  • Christian Counseling

Professional Training

  • EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing)
  • Certified Grief Counselor

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)

In order to reduce the symptoms of trauma, I use a technique called Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR). When we experience a traumatic event, the left side of our brain, which is the logical and rational side, shuts down and becomes cut off from the right side of our brain. The right side of our brain, which holds our emotions, feelings and body sensations (i.e. headache, backache, stomachache, etc.) becomes overly stimulated and holds onto the sensations that we experienced during the trauma. For this reason, you may start to feel physically sick when you think of a traumatic event, because the memory affects us physically and emotionally.  EMDR simultaneously stimulates the left and right sides of the brain by using bilateral stimulation techniques (i.e. eye movements, tapping, drumming, etc.) so the left side of the brain can help rationalize and process the event for the right side of the brain. The result can be a dramatic decrease in flashbacks, nightmares, irritability, anxiety, hyper vigilance, etc. If you are interested in learning more about the science behind EMDR or some of the results of this technique, please see the articles and video below.

What is EMDR?
http://www.emdr.com/what-is-emdr

What is the actual EMDR session like?
https://emdria.site-ym.com/general/custom.asp?page=120

How EMDR works: A Video
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