Janet Mason
Trauma creates change beyond one's own choice. Healing is about creating change one chooses.
My Journey
I did not set out to become a mental health therapist. However as I look back at my life, it seems that most of my personal and work experience has pushed me towards this profession. I grew up in a large family in rural Montana. Early lessons learned on the ranch were that sometimes you had to do hard things, that the work you did mattered, and at the end of the day, you turn to family when you need help. I received my bachelor's degree in Interpersonal Communications, intending to go into law. A summer spent in Washington DC disabused me of the TV fantasy of the defense attorney brilliantly defending the wrongly accused innocent, but by then I was engaged, and did not change my major as I rushed through college in order to have a degree before I married. The marriage was a mistake, and four years later I exited that marriage worse for the wear, but with a beautiful daughter to show for it. I had so much support and assistance from my family in getting out of that marriage that I vowed that I would spend my life "paying it forward." That vow, and my innate love of children, led to extensive volunteer experience as a foster parent and an advocate for vulnerable children and their families. I became dedicated to serving those in crisis, especially children and their families. The 2008 economic crisis required an overhaul of my career trajectory. Ultimately, I decided to get my Master's of Social Work and become a mental health therapist. When I started working at my first paying job, I felt continually amazed that I was getting paid for doing something that I loved so much that I would have been willing to do it for free.
Clinical Orientation
My clinical orientation draws from the dialectic belief that everyone is doing the best that they can, and that everyone wants to do better; that everyone has strengths that they can bring to their own healing; that healing occurs within a system (family, community); that much of healing is relational; and that it is possible to recover from trauma.
Specialty
I specialize in Infant and Childhood Mental Health (ages 0-7) and their families. When working with children and their families, I accept that most children's maladaptive behavior can be addressed by playful, accepting, curious, and empathetic parenting. I understand that the parent is likely to be the greatest expert on their child, and love to help parents tap into that expertise by helping them adapt their parenting strategies to effectively bring out the best in each child. When trauma has been involved either with the child, or generationally, I have the training and experience to help heal attachment ruptures within the system, helping the system to function better as a whole.
Trauma Focused Modalities
I am rostered in Child Parent Psychotherapy (CPP) with the state of Minnesota. This is a therapy that helps children with preverbal trauma integrate their trauma experience. I am also trained in Attachment, Regulation, and Competence (ARC), a therapy that focuses on attachment theory to overcome trauma and other behavioral issues.
Other Modalities Used
- Cognitive Behavior Therapy
- Narrative Therapy
- Psychoeducation
I utilize playing with toys, games, art, and other activities (not Play Therapy) to allow children the freedom to express themselves without the words they do not yet have.
Assessment
I believe that effective treatment starts with accurate assessment. In addition to experience in standard assessment practices, I also am trained in the DC0-5 and autism assessments.
Education
MSW - Saint Catherine University / University of St Thomas in St Paul Minnesota
BA - Brigham Young University in Provo Utah
Licensure
Master of Social Work, Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker in Minnesota
Member of the Minnesota Association of Mental Health
Current
Currently I live in New Ulm, Minnesota with my husband of 33 years. When I am not at the Rising Hope Counseling office three minutes from my home, I am often spending time with my husband and extended family, landscaping our yard, redecorating our home, making jewelry, quilting, sewing unique articles of clothing, taking or editing photos, reading, going to church, or putting together electronic jig saw puzzles.