My approach is a holistic approach that takes into account the whole person, spirit, mind and body. It draws from various modalities and is individualized for each person who comes to work with me.
Everyone has the ability for growth and healing; this is the underlying assumption in my work with clients. In session with me you will find a safe and supportive space where you can explore your deepest thoughts, feelings and experiences. My clients have shared with me that they feel this sense of safety almost immediately, even though we are meeting on-line. The distance between us drops away and we connect over who you are, what you have been through, how you want to grow and heal. I am here for you. You feel it. I have years and years of experience as a therapist, coach, and a human being who has studied extensively what it means to be human, what matters, what do people care about when looking back on their life, how we heal, and how we self-actualize, each with our own unique challenges. I have had many life experiences. I am a mom, a grandmother, a teacher, a mentor, a speaker, a student, an author, musician, and lover of nature and photography. I have accomplished many of my own goals, and I have failed at times, too. I understand things, and clients report that working with me is an experience unlike anything they have experienced before.
Everyone has an innate need for growth; that is why we are here, but our culture does not always allow for us to tap into our potential. We twist ourselves around in order to fit in, and we lose touch with who we really are, what we really feel. We numb out, believing that our truest goals are insurmountable. We numb with food, alcohol, shopping, screen time, status, unhealthy relationships, unhealthy coping skills, meaningless work, etc., and we avoid thinking about why we are here and what really matters. We pretend to not care, but our truest selves care, deeply. Our self-deception catches up with us, showing up as anxiety, depression, loneliness and physical illness. We study, read and learn about tools we can use to deal with these symptoms, and this is good and helpful.
In my work we continue by healing the underlying causes and reconnecting to meaning, purpose, vitality and joy!
I have worked with many, many clients from every walk of life. I welcome you, one and all!
Two new services I now offer:
Healing for the Healers Recently I am finished up my work with an agency where I had been working for almost three years. It is feeling like an end of an era, the pandemic era, four plus years working out of my bedroom office. As I look around I remember the various ways I had things set up, the paintings, photos and credentials on the walls behind where my desk had been, to create a tone, to set a tempo, to give hope. I remember. So many stories, so much grief, so much anguish, so much courage and strength and determination. Tears, laughter, break throughs, and so many stories that I will carry with me, always. I carry my clients with me in my heart, forever. Speaking of my heart, it is all over the place right now. This is a week of transitioning for my son, who is finishing his four years in residency for radiology, and moving with his family, my daughter-in-law and my two granddaughters, to Alaska next week, leaving his home in Northern California that I have grown to love so much. Alaska seems like some foreign land with grizzly bears and moose, and I can’t wait to get to know it! My daughter is finishing her first year of teaching in a little village in France, Tinteniac, and waiting to hear if she has been hired on for next year and thinking about other options in case she leaves, though she is certain that she is staying in France, so French frontiers are on my horizon as well! My mom is struggling with end-of-life health issues and we made the decision to not do any invasive surgeries, so we are not sure how much longer she will be with us – days, weeks, months, who knows. We just celebrated her 95th birthday, and I cannot imagine a world without my mom’s physical presence; we are very close. I think of the other healers, and the temptation to simply carry on, as if none of what we have been through as healers during a pandemic really matters. It so does matter. If we are at all conscious, we are changed. Now it is time for the healers to spend some time on their own healing, to integrate all we have learned, to use these lessons learned to make us better healers. Healing for the healers. I offer one-on-one support, a supportive on-line community, and for those in the area, a monthly in-person meet-up at a local pub, just to have fun and relax together. Get in touch at donnahavensmed@gmail for more information!
Changing How How We Do Business – Creating Compassionate Work Cultures When I was an undergrad at UMass (a long time ago!) a favorite professor told me about a new area of psychology called Industrial and Organizational Psychology, which he said focused on how businesses and corporations can build psychologically healthy workplaces, which in turn will result in improved productivity, and substantially increase the bottom line. He suggested that I go to a local business and offer my services. I could not come up with the words to do this because I really did not understand what he was suggesting, but I did then get into Georgetown University for an MBA, and I did then decide not to go. I was not very clear on a career path or goals. I took off to travel across country, taking 2 ½ months to see what I could, camping all the way. I then lived in the Seattle area for about a year, and during this time I had a “born-again” experience. I hesitate to call it that anymore because Capitalistic Christianity in America is too aligned with unchristian values these days, although that is not true of Christianity throughout the world, and Christian values are still Christian values regardless of how they may be distorted by men. So, in that moment of awakening I was hit with a Love so powerful, my heart was changed; I felt it change. I had been raised to love and serve others and to be fair and kind, but in this moment that became a part of me on a cellular level. I decided that the cut-throat ways of business were not for me and I continued on my spiritual pursuits towards self-fulfillment, and a life of meaning and purpose and the joy of service to others. It is 41 years later and I just gave my notice at my third job in five years in the mental health field. I plan to continue to work with individuals, couples and families as this is very fulfilling work. I am so grateful for my clients and all they have taught me as we navigated the challenges of a global pandemic and all that means, but working in the mental health field is brutal due to exploitative and unethical business practices, and a lack of concern for the mental health and wellbeing of the healers. It’s a business! That is the excuse/explanation, and I have been told that I am a fool to not believe this and that I better fall in line if I don’t want to become homeless. Recently I was introduced to Sounds True, Tami Simon, and The Inner MBA. Tami and Sounds True teach on the value of spiritual entrepreneurship. I am not alone in knowing that we can create psychologically safe and compassionate workplaces. That said, the motivation in my opinion needs to be not to improve productivity and the bottom line, even though that will often be the result. The motivation needs to be because it is the right thing to do. I now offer services for businesses and corporations who feel the same and want to know how to do this. This is a movement that will not quit. This sounds true because it is true. Get in touch with me at donnahavensmed.gmail if you would like to learn more about how we can work together.
To book a session - Call me, Donna Havens MEd at 413-658-4403 -or email- [email protected]
Donna Havens, MEd Psych Counseling 2006 Certified Holistic Health Practitioner 2012 Author, Teacher, Speaker, Mentor, Coach Individuals, Couples, Families Trauma Sensitive, Informed, Aware and Healing Experienced
Focus on mental, physical, spiritual and emotional health, well-being, vitality, relationships, love, belonging, community, safety, impact, longevity, legacy, all that really matters
Working with my clients towards true healing of underlying causes and back to joyful living!
Currently (April 2024) I work virtually. Costs to work with me, paid at the beginning of the month:
Individual - $85/session if weekly, $99/session if bi-monthly Couples - $99/session if weekly, $125/session if bi-monthly Families - $125/session if weekly, $150/session if bi-monthly
Cancellation policy: Sessions will be rescheduled with 24 hour notice of cancellation or in the case of an emergency.
