GET TO KNOW JENNIFER
Jennifer Slingerland Ryan
Jennifer Slingerland Ryan, M.Ed., LPC-S
*I am currently at capacity and am not taking new clients, nor do I have a waiting list. I highly recommend the colleagues and counselors at I Choose Change. I handpick them and think they are all amazing choices. If you do not have a good experience, you can contact me directly to let me know, and I will make sure you are taken care of, no matter what.*
Hello, thanks for coming! I’m Jennifer Slingerland Ryan, and I know a thing or two about kids and families. First, I know they are joyous, exhilarating, loving and so darn fun. Second, I know they suck your life dry and make you weep like a baby. By day I’m a counselor and business owner; by night I’m a mom and wife. I love therapizing couples, educating parents, reading dystopian fiction and sleeping in my free time (read: I never sleep).
I’ve has spent over 15 years in private practice working with individuals, couples, and parents who are faced with kid-drama, mamma-drama, and family-drama, and although some stories make a grown woman cry, I love it.
We spend most of our time in relationships – with friends, children, life partners, and coworkers – and you may not realize it, but many issues arise out of those pesky, er, lovely people we call family. You have symptoms of depression, anxiety, ADD, anger and fear you say? Yep, those come from relationships, too. I will show you how. Marriage is my thing (but it wasn’t always – my husband taught me a lot about myself how to even be in a marriage. I’m happy to share that story if you want).
I’m an attachment-based and Cognitive-Behavioral Therapist (CBT) and I love, love Attachment Theory. (That may not make sense now, but it will when you schedule an appointment with me.) Relationships create a blueprint for all other relationships throughout life, and our job is to change those people in our life…no wait that’s not right…our job is to change ourselves, early processing and belief systems that keep you feeling stuck.
Jennifer Slingerland Ryan
Marriage Expert
Relationships (all of them!) are our most important asset. Our intimate partnership is one of our most important because this is where we’re the most vulnerable, and should feel the most connection and acceptance. I’m a Level 3 Gottman Counselor and Emotional Focused Therapist (EFT). I’m also a Gottman 7 Principles Program Educator, which means I can train couples within groups to be more emotionally cohesive and better communicators (but you probably don’t need better communication in your marriage).
Jennifer Slingerland Ryan
Self-Care Bad***
Work hard, play hard – that’s my motto. I see a lot of people that work really hard, and because of that, I’ve become hyper-focused on helping others understand what real self-care means. I have eight things I teach every single client about self-care. These are the most important things we should be managing on a day-to-day basis in order to become better, healthier, and happier human beings. (I’m putting those all down in a book now, but you’ll be getting this lesson for free in my office, guaranteed!)
Jennifer Slingerland Ryan
Communication Guru
He said, she said…what? One thing my couples would say about me is that I help translate their conversations with each other so they hear each other better. Most couples couple in and tell me they are bad at communicating, but I rarely find this to be the case. We communicate all the time to all kinds of people throughout the day! What we really need is help getting the bottom of the core feelings of our partner. That may sound boring, and “blah blah blah” but if this key ingredient is missing, marriages end because of it. And it’s a pretty slow death.
Researching Tree-Hugger
Research matters, but so does hugging trees! I can tell you all about research in meditation, right before we meditate for example. Here are a few other things you’ll learn from me:
How early family relationships create a subconscious pattern of behavior in our life and and in relationships of which we engage (marriage, friendships, co-workers, etc.)
How thoughts, emotions, and actions are inter-connected, and how you can change the ones you don’t like
How early relationships create subconscious belief systems that drive everything we feel and do
The role personality, intuition, and mindfulness play in the change process
That homework and journal exercises between sessions make change happen more quickly
How meditation, self-talk, role-playing, role rehearsal affect the change process
Jennifer Slingerland Ryan
What is EFT (Emotionally Focused Therapy)?
I’m an EFT (Emotionally Focused Therapy) Therapist and have obtained the highest training through intensive training. EFT is based on attachment, which is the bonding we feel with another human being. It is experiential and focuses on people’s experience their relationship. How do they express their emotions? What is the dance couples perform with each other? What are their negative patterns?
EFT helps shift negative patterns of engagement and create a more secure emotional bond. Research shows that EFT produces a 70-75% recovery rate. No other couple’s therapy method has more extensive research than EFT; it has been researched over a span of 20 years.
For more information about EFT, click here.
Books I Recommend
Jennifer Slingerland Ryan
Robert Karen’s “Becoming Attached” – A great book about how we attach to parents as young babies and children, and what happens when we don’t. The childhood attachment process is essential in order to have a healthy adulthood.
David Burn’s “Feeling Good Together” – A great book for couples who are having a difficult time talking to one another because words are disrespectful and angry on an almost constant basis. This is a Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) perspective for couples.
Sue Johnson’s “Hold Me Tight” – This book examines the reason we have enraged conversations, and why we ultimately withdraw from the ones we love most – our spouse / life partner.
John Gottman’s “Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work” – This is a wealth of information, taking from over 20 years of research in what makes marriages succeed or fail.
MORE ABOUT ME
Ph.D. Family Studies, Texas Woman’s University (in progress)
M.Ed. Education in Counseling, University of North Texas
B.S. Human Development and Family Studies,Texas Tech University
Mom of 3, all girls, including twins
Wife of 1. He’s the hardest of all of them.
Blog Contributor at Collin County Mom’s Blog
Owner of I Choose Change Allen Counseling Center. I think we have an amazing team!
THE FINE PRINT
WHO I SERVE: Adutls and Couples
FEE: $155 for 50-minute session
Insurance: BCBS
Licensed Professional Counselor #19003
Texas Department of State Health Services