Meet The Therapist: Courtney Miranda, LMHC
Courtney is an expressive arts therapist and mental health counselor who earned her Masters degree in Expressive Arts Therapies and Clinical Mental Health Counseling from Lesley University in 2015. She began her clinical career at Children’s Friend and Family Services working with children, adolescents, and adults, providing individual, family, group, and couple’s counseling in an outpatient and community-health based setting. In this clinical setting, she provided a multi-disciplinary approach of combining holistic, intermodal, creative modalities, with CBT, DBT, narrative, mindfulness, strength-based and person-centered care. She specializes in supporting and providing care for an array of presenting problems/concerns: mental health related issues, trauma-informed care/response, women’s/girl’s issues, depression, anxiety, family systems, cultural competency, grief/loss, self-identity development, self-exploration/growth, communication issues, life stressors, and phase of life problems.
In addition, she is dedicated to focusing on rapport and trust building, working collaboratively with each person to create a therapeutic approach that fits one’s needs. She loves incorporating visual arts, music, dance/movement, mindfulness, drama/play, humor, and writing to facilitate creative growth, exploration, transformation, empowerment, and change. Courtney is also an adjunct faculty at Lesley University and Endicott College.
Question: How did you get into this field?
“The arts have been a constant means of expression for me since as long as I can remember. I always knew I wanted to help people and utilize the arts in any way I can since it's helped me personally so immensely. I remember the moment when I knew I I was going to be an Expressive Arts Therapist. I was sitting in my favorite bookshop with my mother contemplating life and completely at a crossroads with what I wanted to do with it. As I sipped my tea, we perused through the psychology isle when a book fell off the shelf. The title read "Art Heals" by Shaun McNiff. I quickly googled the school Lesley University and the rest is history.”
Question: How do you incorporate the arts into your counseling practice?
“The arts and counseling for me go hand in hand. How I use it depends on the needs of my clients. I tend to be very moment to moment, trusting the process as I learned at my time at Lesley! This could mean using the arts as an aid in communication, a way to build trust, or a way to sort through a difficult moment or event. There are even moments where I find time to play and laugh through the arts. One of my favorite techniques is to integrate each art modality within the session. This could look like starting with a guided meditation, followed by drawing or clay, then processing the image or colors through movement or writing. The possibilities are endless in facilitating creativity.”
Question: What ways do you enjoy an 'artful life'?
“For me living an artful life means knowing when saying no to something it means saying yes to something else. To always make room for my loved ones and self care practices, as work will always be there. To make sure to always create my own art, write and play my own music (I love my ukulele and singing constantly!), and move, move, move. Whether that's taking a dance class, authentic movement, yoga, anything where I am moving. When I need times of stillness, you can find me snuggling with my dog reading a good book, playing board games, or watching my favorite shows. I also love food. I love to eat food, bake it and cook it. Oh, and I adore adventures, traveling, road trips, you name it. There's always something I want to explore, learn, create, and visit. My favorite day is those when as I get ready to sleep I find myself smiling from the inside out with a sense of content.”