New Directions Professional Counseling and Family Services, LLC

01/25/2024

01/10/2024

Part time and full time private offices available in shared suite. WiFi and utilities included.

01/10/2024

Office space for rent.

10/12/2023

We have two furnished offices and one unfurnished office available for part time or full time occupancy. Our suite is drive up ground level located near historic downtown Lilburn, with easy access from 85 or Lawrenceville Hwy. Perfect for Gwinnett County commuter clientele! Kitchenette, group room access and High speed wifi is also included.

We are a group of independent private practitioners with an array of experience and would love to welcome new tenants to our space. The space is also ideal for massage therapists or other holistic practitioners. If interested, please contact me directly at aprilmojica@newdirectionspc.net.

08/16/2023

New Directions is excited to announce a NEW Support Group for Fathers!
Parenting is full of challenges and joys. Navigating the ebbs and flows can be both difficult and rewarding. This group will afford fathers a safe and supportive space to process the developmental and relational tensions that often surface during the various stages of child developement. Fathers will gain new insights to resolve issues within the relationship with their own children, as they interact with other parents.
Visit us at https://newdirectionspc.net/group-therapy/ for more information.

www.newdirectionspc.net

02/09/2023

Many of my friends and clients have confusion about "level of care" options, especially for their teens or loved ones in need of mental health support. I really appreciate how this article summarizes the differences between outpatient, inpatient and residential care as well as the settings in which they take place. I hope this helps with informing anyone needing to make difficult choices for themselves or a loved one.

Not all teens are alike and they may require different types of mental health treatment.

03/24/2022

As technology moves at a faster pace than we ever anticipated, we're noticing both positive and negative impacts on our mental health as a result. This article references some of the impacts we haven't considered yet, particularly on our young women from som**hing as seemingly innocent as selfie filters...

Research on filters and mental health reveals that the further our selfies get from how we really look, the worse we feel about ourselves.

03/09/2022

This is a little long but if you didn’t know, you need to…..

Did you know that addiction is classified in the DSM-5, recognized as medical condition by the AMA? It’s a mental illness that lives in the brain stem: the same brain stem that serves a critical role in regulating certain involuntary actions of the body, including heartbeat and breathing. Addicts feel that they need their drug of choice (DOC) the same way they feel they need to breathe.

Did you know that our society treats addiction as a moral issue and pawns it off on law enforcement to “control”? The average stay in jail being 365 days or less. Where addicts are left to detox alone ?

Did you know the detox process can be violent and result in death if not monitored by medical professionals?

Did you know the addict is many times released, and at that time, their serotonin levels are at their lowest, leading to a high crime rate and a higher chance in relapse. It’s a pun to say that this is criminal but that’s exactly what this really is ....criminal.

It takes an average of 14-16 months of sobriety for an addict’s brain to balance serotonin levels to that of a neuro-typical brain. Did you know that?

Did you know that most insurances will not typically pay for any more than 30 days of treatment for substance abuse disorders and for many instances you’re lucky to get even 14 days! Please get mad about that. I’m begging you ...get mad about that.

Did you know that 136 people die everyday from opioid overdose? That’s one person every 10.58 minutes. By the time you’re done reading and processing this post, someone will have died from an opioid overdose.
Someone’s child.
Someone’s spouse.
Someone’s parent.
Someone’s brother/sister.
Someone’s friend.
Someone’s aunt/uncle.

Let that sink in.

Did you know that the two biggest factors that “make” an addict are
(1) Genetic Predisposition and (2) Childhood trauma. There’s not that “one hit” or that “one decision” that will make an addict. You never really know who is or is not an addict before they ever even pick up. It’s NOT a moral problem. I repeat, addiction is NOT A MORAL PROBLEM.

Just for a minute let’s take this in a little bit of a different direction.

Did you know that the BRCA gene for breast cancer has a 5-10% genetic predisposition rate? People every day undergo testing and life changing surgeries to avoid it.

Addiction genetic predisposition is over 50%. O V E R 5 0 %. Let that sink in.
You still think addiction is a moral problem? A parenting problem? There’s no “addictionography machine” to test for it, no surgery to remove it either.

If there’s one thing an addict would say….it’s that they’re still in there. (I know because I’ve asked.) The person that you knew and loved is still in there.

They are not their disease.

THEY ARE NOT THEIR DISEASE.

Addiction is a disease. Much like diabetes. It has to be monitored everyday. For the rest of their lives. And it’s HARD. It takes support and unrelenting diligence. Like cancer in that it can always reoccur.

The blaming needs to stop. We need to do better. The paradigm needs to change.
Insurance benefits needs to change. Public awareness needs to change.

Period.

The next time you hear someone say “ they have a choice “ or you hear others refer to addicts as “ a junkie“ start by educating them because that really is how this works.

You can make a difference you can change things. It starts with educating yourself and then spreading that knowledge one person at a time. Please join me in this. End the stigma!

Copied and pasted. Please do the same...
Be a part of the change! 💜💜

****Message me if you or a loved one are struggling with substances. Anything. Alcohol, pills, m**h, he**in. I don't care. No judgment here! I was one of those faces of addiction, but I'm also the face of recovery.****



12/14/2021

Good reminders for taking care of your mental health during the holidays!

We all feel stressed from time to time during the holiday season – there is pressure to attend social events, give gifts, travel and more that can take a toll on one’s mental health. In fact, a poll conducted by

10/17/2021

We are excited to welcome Kedy Jean-Louis, LCSW to the New Directions Team!

01/02/2021

Freedom can be found in our mind’s ability to simply “be” or even expand. It’s okay to cherish our solitude from time to time.

11/24/2020

Happy Thanksgiving 🍁

11/14/2020

Feeling stressed? Check out these simple and effective strategies for reducing stress today!
https://www.verywellmind.com/tips-to-reduce-stress-3145195 #:~:text=%20Fast-Acting%20Stress-Relief%20Strategies%20That%20Work%20Well%20at,with%20your%20creative%20side%20may%20have...%20More%20

Learn about highly effective stress-relief strategies, plus get tips on incorporating stress-relieving habits into your daily life.

07/06/2020

I had the opportunity to attend a training with this author last year. He makes some amazing points here!

COVID-19 has shaken us to the core. Our world has changed dramatically in a short space of time. My hope is

05/06/2020

Attention all who may be interested . My colleague Mandy Morris has teamed up with Atlanta area musicians to discuss an array of mental health topics for FREE. See info below...

Myself, AdELA MUSIC and Enyinna Ogbaa have teamed up to create a 6 week course on mental health. It’s free. It will include videos from Adela and I, assessments, and live video chats weekly with the group. This is a free 6 week course. Please join us and sign up here: https://www.myexecutiveroom.com/adela&mandy