We recently connected with Dr. Denise Fournier and have shared our conversation below.

Dr. Fournier, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Is there a heartwarming story from your career that you look back on?

I was recently contacted by a client I worked with several years ago at a drug treatment center, prior to opening my private practice. He reached out to thank me for having such a meaningful impact on his life and shared that not only has he maintained sobriety since his time at the treatment center, he has also decided to pursue a career as a therapist. It was incredibly heartwarming and gratifying to learn that someone made such significant changes in his life as a result of our conversations in therapy. It goes to show that you never know what kinds of seeds you’re planting in someone’s life through your encounters with them!

Denise, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I’m a mindfulness-based psychotherapist with a private practice that was once located here in Miami but, since the pandemic, has gone entirely virtual. I’ve been in the mental health field since 2002 and working as a therapist since 2007. As I like to tell people, I eat, sleep, and breathe all things mental health and personal development. It’s truly what I’m most passionate about! The journey that got me to where I am now started when I was a curious college freshman who wanted to understand myself and others more deeply. I started taking psychology courses and kept pursuing that passion through 3 degrees, culminating in a Ph.D. in Marriage and Family Therapy, and over the course of many professional experiences, culminating in my current private practice, Evergreen Therapy. These days, I focus mainly on working with individuals who are confronting challenges like anxiety, trauma, relationship issues, and a number of existential challenges, and who generally want to become the most evolved and enlightened version of themselves. What I think most defines the way I approach therapy is the human element I bring to the process. I work with all my clinical tools and professional know-how, of course; but I also work with heart. I aim to be authentic and fully present in my humanity when working with people in the therapeutic process, and my clients have shared that it has made a meaningful difference in their experience. After years of working one-on-one with many incredible individuals, I’m proud and excited to now be expanding the practice by adding some incredibly skilled and philosophically-aligned therapists to the Evergreen Therapy team. Watch this space!

Training and knowledge matter of course, but beyond that what do you think matters most in terms of succeeding in your field?

Training and knowledge are essential to excellence in the mental health field, as they are in any field, but they will only get you so far. To truly excel and achieve mastery, I think therapists need to be centered, self-aware, and authentic. Over the years, I’ve heard tons of clients and potential clients tell me about unsuccessful or discouraging therapy experiences they’ve had with therapists who come across as hollow, uncaring, distracted, or disconnected. I am a firm believer that as therapists, we can only take clients as far as we’re willing to go with ourselves. To really be successful and effective, we have to do our own work with ourselves so that when we practice therapy, we can show up present, open, and willing to authentically and honestly engage with our clients. This is how we take our work to the next level.

What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?

The people who become clients of my practice tend to find me in one of two ways: either they are referred by someone in their lives who has had a positive experience with me, or they learn about me through my blog or media appearances and feel that something about me resonates with them. I believe the common factor is that people have a sense of familiarity and/or trust in me before we speak for the first time. There’s a sort of connection in place already, before we connect in a consultation or therapy session, and that’s been essential to the growth of my practice. The success of therapy relies so heavily on the connection between therapist and client; there has to be a sense of comfort and trust there if the process is going to go anywhere. So, for me, authenticity and alignment will always be the only way to go and grow as a business.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://evergreen-therapy.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dr.denisefournier/
• Other: https://drdenisefournier.podia.com/