Healing Hearts

The reason why we came to therapy initially was my daughter’s suicidal thoughts, and that initial reason has been resolved. Now we have moved on to finding the underlying, root causes and working through these causes. We have evolved from "oh my gosh, crisis mode," to, "OK, here is the backstory of how we got here." So, now that the original fire has been put out, we are working through what ignited that fire. Her thoughts were because of a series of events that happened from ages 0-9 that created an inner feeling of "I am wrong." This process has changed our lives because it has brought my daughter and I closer together. I'm not sure if we hadn't started therapy, we would be at this comfort level of talking. We are able to be a witness to each other's emotional journey, pain, and stories. We are able to better understand how our emotional pain influences our actions, and we talk about it outside of therapy. Our lives have changed in terms of our relationship.

I initially reached out to Re-Emerge for my daughter who was going through a hard time navigating emotions when it came to an absent parent. My daughter was struggling to navigate big feelings in a safe and healthy way. Since coming to Re-Emerge I have seen a huge improvement from my daughter in how to navigate feelings through the tools she is learing. I see how giving her a safe person where she may express any emotions she is feeling, is giving her a better sense of security, and an understanding that learning healthy ways to navigate emotions is always best. Reaching out for help is OK, and it takes more courage to reach out for help, then to try and navigate things on her own. I see how therapy is instilling good values for her to keep in mind as she ages, and she comes into adulthood.

The work with Stephanie has been incredible, and it has helped me in ways that I never thought was possible, not only when it comes to how to parent, but also helping me navigate my own past traumas and how they show up in my adulthood. Before we started working together, I never linked little-me and parent-me. I never linked why things that trigger me today are linked to what happened to little me. I have learned how to link what I am going through as an adult, to my loss of control, sense of abandonment as a child. Learning how to link those events from the past, into the present, is helping me understand myself as an adult.

"To say that I am grateful to Tenne for all of her guidance and support over the past few years would be an understatement. I had a picture of the kind of parent that I wanted to be but wasn't quite sure on how to make this picture a reality. Not only has she helped me to bring this picture into fruition, she has helped to empower me to become the kind of parent that I always wished I had. Through working with her I have been able to undergo some incredibly important healing and 'reparenting' for myself which has thus healed and strengthened my relationship with my kids and my husband."

We had been going through the motions since becoming parents. We were not connecting and saying hurtful things to each other. We were bitter and angry. We had tried anger management prior to coming to Re-Emerge but it did not give us the results we wanted. Our therapist was able to teach us to listen, understand and communicate in a way that not only helped us see what our partner needed but what we needed and how our individual actions contributed to the state of our relationship. Through this process, we learned how to forgive each other and tend to our individual and partner’s emotional needs. As a result, we were able to let go of our hurt feelings, reconnect and learn how to be better partners and parents.

"Re-Emerge Therapy has helped me learn how to look within myself and nurture and understand the parts of myself that need healing

“My dad left and my brother was mean to me, so my mom called Re-Emerge Therapy to help me. Before I started therapy, my mom tried to help by giving me two-hour lectures. After going to therapy, my brother did not yell as much, and I stopped yelling. I enjoyed the games we play, and I would recommend Re-Emerge Therapy because they are best.”

“I worry excessively about tornadoes, hurricanes, my dogs getting out, and lots of other things. I had another therapist prior to seeing Ms. Tenne. Ms. Tenne taught me how to solve my problems and to recognize that some worries are ok.”

I was fortunate to be matched with Re-Emerge for my first internship as an MSW student at VCU. Tenne created a loving and welcoming space for growth and change that highlighted my strengths and transformed my weaknesses. She encourages everyone to find the direction that works best for them as a learner and future clinician, and I was drawn to this unique space created by Tenne as a supervisor, clinician, and owner of Re-Emerge. I was presented valuable learning opportunities having Stephanie as another mentor and seeing the similarities in values between her and Tenne, making a cohesive team. I was encouraged to use my life experiences to shape my values and when I lost my mom to cancer almost halfway through my internship, Tenne and Stephanie supported me with empathy, giving me insight of my own capability to continue to learn and grow through a tremendous amount of grief. Tenne educates interns and clinicians with Internal Family Systems for the therapeutic approach at Re-Emerge, which provided me with insight into the way I want to grow in my future as a clinician. The environment at Re-Emerge encourages clients, clinicians, and interns to strive towards inner peace as we learn how to challenge ourselves through awareness in a constructive and positive way.

When I came here in September 2021, it was to complete my first-year internship as an MSW student at VCU. As a student intern, I could sense entering the room with Tenne, that this was a place of learning and growth. What I didn’t expect to discover was love. The model at Re-Emerge encourages supervisees and or interns to discover their best selves as clinicians. Clinicians and interns are taught how to structure and manage their schedules, sessions, and learn the model of IFS. How we show up in the room, for ourselves and our clients, is ours to discover. Tenne guides this discovery by being present, asking the questions that won’t give us the “right” answers, but allow us to apply critical thinking to interpret information that leads to inner wisdom. The environment at Re-Emerge is both supportive and challenging, full of love and brimming with wisdom. When given a chance to stay at Re-Emerge for my second-year internship, I accepted the opportunity, and was then hired after my degree was completed. As I continue to grow towards becoming an independent clinician, I can see how being at Re-Emerge is honing me into a clinician that is present, speaks the truth, and is full of love.

“I began working at Re-Emerge as a new clinician shortly after completing my graduate degree. Tenne’s wealth of knowledge and thoroughness allowed me to not only grow as a clinician, but as person of the therapist. As an employee, I always felt free to practice transparency and take accountability during supervision, to which Tenne provided tailored guidance and support. Tenne shared constant education and feedback to strengthen and refine therapeutic approaches, which has immensely contributed to my foundation as a therapist and has been greatly appreciated. Although I began working at re-emerge to assist clients with transmuting trauma, healing, and being empowered, I found myself also being empowered through the work and growing into the competent therapist I am today. “

My internship with Re-Emerge was top-notch. It provided opportunities for me to grow both professionally and personally. I gained invaluable experience in the many dimensions of clinical work and learned what it takes to build a thriving practice. I learned skills ranging from conducting intake phone calls with prospective clients to verifying insurance coverage to carrying out therapy sessions to making sure charges were billed correctly. As a supervisor, Tenne has high expectations and challenges interns to do their absolute best. She provides structure, yet flexibility, and she gives interns room to grow, while acting as their safety net. The training program is rooted in evidence-based theoretical approaches that Tenne encourages interns to explore. Video demonstrations, individual and group supervision, and a wide variety of resources enrich and deepen the learning. The Re-Emerge internship helped me to build the competence and confidence that have taken me into the next stages of my career.