Dustin York

What is your main goal when working with a client?

My first goal is building a relationship and rapport with each client. It is important for me to understand your worldview, strengths, and goals. With this foundation we can work together on a plan that empowers your success.

What is your approach and what methods do you employ?

I believe wellness is a package deal. The words, thoughts, foods, and activities we feed our brain and body will impact our overall health. In working to understand the ways in which these items influence your wellness, I predominantly use Cognitive Behavioral Therapy techniques to help inform the questions I ask during sessions. For younger ages, there are times when play therapy is more appropriate.

What age groups do you most often work with?

I personally enjoy working with a myriad of different individuals.  In past roles, I have worked with children as young as 5 and seniors over 70.

What is your background and what are your credentials?

Prior to pursuing licensing as a Mental Health Counselor, I worked in various leadership roles that required working to understand the goals of multiple stakeholders to develop solutions. My early education was in business and economics. My comfort with statistics and data helps when analyzing mental health research and best practices. I read a lot of new research to ensure the methods I use are backed by sound scientific support. As a master’s student in a Clinical Mental Health program, I am a member of the American Counseling Association and the Florida Counseling Association.

What can a client expect sessions to be like while working with you?

Understanding you is our path to success. To do this, I am going to ask questions about quite a bit. As you answer, I will likely check my understanding with additional questions, to ensure you are heard. We live in a world that can make a lot of assumptions about people and their motives. This environment is a place for you to work through your thoughts and feelings without judgement or being talked at before you get a chance to finish your thought.

What is the reason you decided to get into counseling?

Life has unique stages that impact our development and happiness. Difficulty helps us grow into better people who can enjoy all that life has to offer. Helping people through difficulty is what brought me satisfaction in my previous careers. So, instead of working full time with opportunities to help people at work occasionally, I decided to pick up a skill that would allow me to help people every day.