Justin Johnson MA, LMFTA
Individual, Couple, and Family Therapist
YOU ARE THE EXPERT OF YOUR OWN LIFE
Hello! I’m Justin Johnson, but you can call me “JJ” if you choose. I am a Licensed Mariage and Family Therapy Associate at A Walk To Freedom Counseling. I have experience working with all different types or forms of relationships regarding individuals, couples & families. I incorporate humor into my therapy while I gain a better understanding of what your lived experience has been, how it could be different, and how being a great therapist means that I should be working my way out of a job as you would no longer “need” me there.
My idea of humor: Therapy is best when you can connect with your clients. I use humor to do just that. Humor is a way for me to collaborate with you, with your goals, and your expectations of how therapy will help you. I believe that humor manages to promote resilience for clients and fosters a sense of hope and optimism. If you are on the fence with who to trust as your therapist, humor me and let us see how we can work together.
Experiential activities in the therapy room: It is common for people to come into therapy because they have exhausted other options and are unsure how to make things better in their lives. I understand that and acknowledge the frustration, disappointment, and potential shame it may feel to ask for an outside opinion on how to make your life/lives better. I implement different experiential (learn by doing) strategies for clients to better understand the jargon that therapists use when speaking with their clients. People learn in different ways and using these experiential activities can help create an opportunity for safe exploration and self-understanding when the topics you come into therapy with may be difficult or sensitive.
Marriage and Family Therapy: What does this even mean? It means that I have a vast understanding of how to work with individuals, couples and even families. My education has taught me that even if I am seeing a client only as an individual (one on one session), our conversations will cover different areas of your life such as your family of origin, romantic relationships, those closest to you, work/life balance and so much more. Marriage and Family Therapists (MFT’s) call it understanding a client’s “system” and once that is understood, we implement systems approaches to best serve our clients. One size does not fit all in therapy. Each person’s experiences, needs, and preferences are unique. I understand this and will create a treatment plan alongside you to best fit your system and what is best for you.
About me: As previously mentioned, I am a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist Associate, and I am currently working on my full licensure as a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT). I received my master’s degree in Denver Colorado at Regis University where I started earning my stripes as a mental health clinician. How I describe therapy is that it can be effective, but that does not mean that therapy will be an “easy ride”. Good therapy is like making good barbeque… its bound to get messy. With that in mind, I may challenge you or push you to consider different perspectives. Most importantly, we are a team and if something is not going the way you expected in therapy, please, I implore you to let me know so that we can work on it together and understand the disconnect that may have occurred.