About
Amanda Morse
Licensed Professional Counselor, LPC, NCC, CEDS
Specialties
- Trauma and PTSD
- Eating Disorders
- Women's Issues
Hello and welcome
I understand that beginning therapy can be incredibly overwhelming and I am here to walk alongside you. I have been in the field for almost two decades which is sometimes hard to believe! I am a licensed professional counselor and certified eating disorders specialist. I also have specialized training in working with trauma, PTSD, and dissociation. I am trained in the use of EMDR through EMDRIA and have received specialized training in Structural Dissociation Theory. Throughout my career, I have enjoyed working in a number of settings including intensive residential treatment, inpatient, partial hospitalization and now running my own private practice. I am passionate about helping others achieve more fulfilling and authentic lives by accepting themselves for who they truly are. To tap into your innate wisdom and reach your full potential. Simply put, I love what I do.
I received my undergraduate degree in Psychology and Master’s degree in Professional Counseling, both from Georgia State University. I am a Licensed Professional Counselor, a Certified Eating Disorders Specialist through IAEDP, and also certified through the National Board for Certified Counselors.
My clients tell me they appreciate my transparency, authenticity and humor. The "me" you get in session, is the "me" you get in life. This is extremely important to me; if I ask my clients to be real, I need to be willing to do the same.
I'm not in the office every day because I believe work-life balance is key. In my free time, I enjoy being with my husband, 2 kiddos, and pup Rosie and spending time outside as much as possible.
My Story
I consider myself lucky to have known what I wanted to do at a fairly young age. I wanted to help people. It was just a matter of figuring out in what capacity. Early in my career, I worked in psychiatric hospitals and residential treatment programs. These experiences afforded me the opportunity to work with many different mental health issues at high levels of acuity which was so beneficial for my career. This training helped me to feel confident handling almost any issues clients bring into the office.
The picture of what I would become passionate about came into focus while working on a women’s unit specializing in eating disorders and trauma. The clients I had the privilege to work with varied greatly in age and life circumstances but had several things in common. They were intelligent, high-achieving, perfectionistic, and complex. While their stories varied greatly, they all sought comfort by using food in one way or another. Acuity was high and the work was hard. I was hooked. I eventually went on to open my own practice working specifically with eating disorders, trauma, mood disorders, and more. I also pursued the distinguished title of Certified Eating Disorders Specialist.
While the majority of clients I worked with over the years went on to complete treatment, return to work, school, etc, there was the handful that I felt I could not get to the finish line. The clientele I was working with were highly complex and needed something more. I really began to recognize the limitations of traditional, top-down, cognitive methods learned in school and was ready for something more. I had heard rave reviews from colleagues about Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, (EMDR), a research-based modality first created for treating PTSD. The entire training had me at the edge of my seat, soaking up every word from my incredible teacher and now mentor. A colleague of mine called it a “game-changer” and that was an understatement. The further immersed I became in using EMDR, another observation could not be ignored.
Dissociation.
In the first demonstration I saw on structural dissociation, my eyes were like saucers and I felt like I could not breathe. This is it. If EMDR was the cake, structural was the icing. Literally, everything I had learned over almost two decades was flipped on its head. I had to overhaul my entire practice because what I had seen and learned changed everything. This is now the lens through which I work with all clients. That unhealed material from the past wreaks havoc on our present.