Meet Sarah Carlson of Mighty Oaks Counseling in Plano

Today we’d like to introduce you to Sarah Carlson.

Thanks for sharing your story with us Sarah. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I have always had a heart for working with children, which started when I was a camper at Camp Mystic for Girls and in my dance days in Abilene, Texas. I attended the University of Texas at Austin where I focused on Early Childhood Development, particularly the kindergarten classroom. After a brief stint in elementary schools, I realized I felt more empowered working one-on-one with children, instead of with 25 kindergarteners (there is a special place in my heart for those teachers). After some volunteer work at a local Children’s Hospital’s dialysis unit, I decided to pursue my work in counseling and have never looked back.

I attended St. Edward’s University in Austin for my Masters of Arts in Counseling, and the University of North Texas for my PhD in Counseling. While at UNT, I was trained by the top researchers in play therapy in the world and focused my work on play therapy, school counseling, and diagnostic assessments. It was at UNT that I truly feel I found my passion as a helper, specifically working as a play therapist.

After I graduated, I spent five years working at Jewish Family Service, a local non-profit, who’s mission is to have an open door policy to anyone who may need help, regardless of race, ethnicity, religion, or ability to pay. I provided services to the Vogel Alcove, a Head Start school for children effected by homelessness, and worked to grow the play therapy program.

During my time at JFS, I found I needed an outlet for self-care. As in any non-profit, self-care is crucial, especially when working with traumatized children and families, as a result of abuse, domestic violence, or overall injustice. It was at this time that I found yoga. I decided to go through SunstoneFIT’s 200-hour teacher training program, to better understand my needs and the needs of others. I will forever be grateful for this experience because I met my husband and friends that are family here! I taught vinyasa, barre, and fitness classes at SunstoneFIT and loved the community and students I met in the process.

In 2015, I began thinking about creating a private practice to bring my passion of counseling and yoga together. It wasn’t until 2016 that I fully took the plunge into Mighty Oaks Counseling. Through my work in my private practice, I have been able to provide yoga, meditation, and wellness in conjunction with counseling. I specialize in early childhood development and enjoy working with clients who experience various concerns, including anxiety, depression, grief, aggression, life transitions, twice-exceptionalism, and special needs. I also work with twins and families with multiples.

I have recently moved from a small office in Dallas to a five-room suite in Plano. With this expansion, I have hired clinicians who work with adolescents and adults, lead parenting groups, and specialize in trauma, addictions, perfectionism, and the LGBTQ community. Additionally, I have a yoga space dedicated to yoga classes that are trauma-informed, nurture-based, and psychologically-minded. We provide yoga classes for self-care, restoration, mental health professionals, and yoga for children. I feel truly blessed to have my vision come into fruition in our new Plano office!

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Change and growth can be scary, hard, and overwhelming for all of us! I always had the intention of being in private practice, but trusting the process, that it will be okay, was very daunting. I am very thankful for my husband, who is my eternal cheerleader, for pushing me to go out on my own and to follow my vision for our family and my business.

So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Mighty Oaks Counseling story. Tell us more about the business.
Mighty Oaks Counseling is different from other private practices because we truly come from a wellness model. Our approach to the people we work with, from play therapy to adult counseling, groups to yoga classes, is humanistic in nature, seeing all parts of someone’s experience as valuable. Garry Landreth and Sue Bratton, some of the leaders in play therapy research at UNT, use an important guideline. Focus on the donut, not the hole. At Mighty Oaks, we are not just focused on the “problem”, but the entire person for what they bring. We all have the capacity for fulfillment within us, given the right therapeutic and nurturing environment! We know that working with other family members and teachers leads to greater success, as well as do healthy habits and intentions, like yoga and mediation.

If you had to start over, what would you have done differently?
All speed bumps and detours are an important part of the journey. If you are truly connecting with others; parents, teachers, other clinicians, etc., your intention can be seen. There have been times I have felt “stuck”, or lost, or that I have made the wrong decisions. At these times, I pause and reflect, and remember that I can shift my mindset from one that is fixed to one that is growth-based. What can I learn from this. Additionally, I love what Rachael Bermingham stated, “the energy we put out is the energy we get back’. I truly believe this.

Contact Info:

• Address: 4100 West 15th Street, #220
  Plano, Texas 75093
• Website: www.mightyoakscounseling.com
• Phone: 469-844-0625
• Email: mightyoakscounseling@gmail.com
• Instagram: @mightyoaksdfw
• Facebook: @mightyoakscounseling

Image Credit:
Dickie Hill

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