About Grit and Grace
GRIT ~ courage and resolve; strength of character
GRACE ~ unmerited favor; courteous goodwill
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Perhaps you are wondering what grit and grace have to do with counseling? Counseling is a process of resolving problems or difficulties. There is no "one size fits all" fix for everyone. There is no magic answer that will make it all suddenly better, although there are often "a-ha" moments. It is not a counselor fixing your problems or telling you what to do; that is up to you as you are the expert of your life. Counseling is a process that often requires a person to dig deep within themselves for awareness, understanding, realization, acceptance and/or healing. This can be uncomfortable work taking one outside their comfort zone which involves courage and resolve (grit). Courteous goodwill (grace) to oneself is often needed as people tend to treat themselves way harsher than they treat others. I believe the counseling process involves part grit and part grace, with both being needed to heal and thereby strengthening your character.
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And from a Christian perspective, we can not fully heal without HIS grace upon us.
But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me. ~ 1Corinthians 15:10
Meet the Counselor: Amy Vann, LPC
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Welcome to Grit and Grace Counseling Services, LLC. I am Amy Vann, a Licensed Professional Counselor. I have a Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health Counseling and a Master of Arts in Addiction Counseling from the University of the Cumberlands. My counseling background consists of working with children, teen and adults with a variety of mental health diagnoses in a community mental health facility. While there, I provided individual and family counseling, mental health evaluations, and court mandated anger management and alcohol and drug assessments. I also worked in Colorado in both private practice and with a correctional psychology company in a variety of roles. Those roles included working closely with the court system to offer substance assessments to qualifying inmates to get into recovery (drug/alcohol) court, mental health court, and veteran court programs, as well as working with inmates that were in the competency process. I counseled inmates individually and in group settings as well. I also have experience working with adult clients through a telehealth platform. Professionally, I strive to offer a warm, kind, and non-judgmental space for clients to be seen, heard, and validated. I believe finding a counselor you can feel comfortable with and trust is crucial to the healing process.
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When not working with clients, you may find me spending time with my family and close friends, in the mountains or on the lake, traveling, hiking, watching movies or reading. My own therapists are my 3 "puppies": Cooper, a white English cream golden retriever; Josie, a black labradoodle; and Finnegan, the puppy of Cooper and Josie.
