Vicki Lannerholm

Hello there! Glad you have come to my page.

I am Vicki, a Licensed Counselor, Choice Theory Psychologist, and a psychology professor. I know it can be difficult to reach out, let alone find the right counselor. My goal is to be a springboard towards understanding on a road of discovery and healing. Whatever the challenge, big or small.

Counseling like any other necessity in life. Like going to a specialist to get a broken bone set, an infection treated, even our car tuned up or tires changed, counseling can help recalibrate things that aren’t steering us where we want to go.

The role of a counselor isn’t to fix anything or anyone. I don’t treat a diagnosis, I treat people.

If you need someone to support you by listening, I can do that and more. I listen through a lens of psychological expertise to give you the best information for your situation. While I may hold expertise in mental health, you’re the expert in YOU. My aim is to help you find practical ways to make life work by applying basic psychological principles to everyday living. I believe in keeping things simple. That begins with awareness and that is a learning process.

The approach I use in my work includes psychoeducation driven by humanistic and developmental theories and neuropsychological science. It is solution-focused but also leverages historical knowledge involving psychodynamic and developmental theory.

I believe that all people have the capacity to change and achieve their highest potential given the right environment, experiences, information, and tools – those all involve changing the brain in some way and that only occurs in one of four ways:
– Growth and development
– Learning
– Trauma
– Virus or illness

Often when we go to counseling because we’ve cycled around the same thoughts, emotions, and experiences for too long (usually the last two in that list). Fortunately, those have reliable patterns and are impacted by the top two in the list. Unfortunately, hijacking them to redirect can take some work.

That’s where I can help.

The good news is that the brain-body-behavior system can rewire. It’s a physiological reality. Some people only need a few sessions to get back on track while others take longer. There is no set timeline to unravel our inner experience in the face of external demand. Sometimes that stress is at the center of our struggles.

The role of a counselor is not to give advice – you can get that from friends, colleagues and family. It’s a unique role that facilitates learning and growth dialed in to your unique needs and delivered in a way that challenges and empowers you to move forward by your own mechanisms and no hidden agendas on my part.

A conduit of information at your disposal.

My training and experience go back nearly twenty years. First as a Behavioral Management Specialist and mentor, serving as a faith-based counselor, then acquiring a master’s degree and professional licensing as well as being certified as a Reality Therapist in Choice Theory Psychology. Lastly, I completed ABD for a Doctorate in Clinical Psychology and for the last few years, I’ve been a college adjunct professor. My career background spans corporate, clinical, non-profit, managed care and government mental health public policy. I’ve worked in various states including the Midwest and Southwest where I continue to be licensed. It’s been a privilege to serve a range of populations and learn diverse worldviews.

If you are experiencing a life transition or relationship challenge today, emotionally, psychologically, at home or work, let my years of expertise and knowledge in psychology work for you today! Schedule a time and we can begin to work through it together.