About
Elizabeth Bailey, LMHC, CADC, PMH-C is a licensed mental health counselor. She received her MS in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from Drake University in 2019. She is a Certified EMDR therapist and EMDRIA approved Consultant-in-Training. Elizabeth is also a Certified Alcohol & Drug Counselor and Certified Perinatal Mental Health Professional. She has completed advanced EMDR training in ego states, perinatal trauma and issues, complex trauma, grief and loss, addiction, and dissociation. Elizabeth is also trained in Exposure and Response Prevention, which is an evidence-based treatment for obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Elizabeth has been providing mental health therapy in a private practice setting since 2022. Prior to that, Elizabeth worked for six years at a long-term residential substance abuse treatment program for women. While there, Elizabeth served individuals with substance use disorders in various roles, including direct care, parenting education, and providing substance abuse & mental health counseling. She has extensive experience facilitating groups in topics such as grief & loss, Adult Children of Alcoholics, complex trauma, emotional intensity, and sexual health.
Elizabeth is passionate about providing therapy services to the perinatal population that may be experiencing pregnancy/postpartum mood & anxiety disorders, difficult role transitions, perinatal OCD, birth trauma, and pregnancy and infant loss. Elizabeth also enjoys working with parents that are in any stage of their parenting journey, from pre-conception, all the way to parenting an adult child.
Elizabeth may be a good fit for clients that are motivated for change, looking to be challenged, and prefer a direct, but warm approach in therapy.
What is EMDR?
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing) is an eight-phase psychotherapy approach that is used to treat a variety of mental health disorders and traumatic and adverse life experiences. EMDR utilizes bilateral stimulation (back and forth movements, such as eye movements or tapping) to lower the emotional distress related to traumatic and stressful memories. EMDR has been extensively researched and is recognized as an evidence-based treatment for PTSD and other trauma/stressor related disorders.
In layman’s terms, our brains have a difficult time storing traumatic memories appropriately. Think of your brain like a filing cabinet, and the file folders inside are all of your memories. Traumatic memories don’t fit very well in the filing cabinet and tend to fall all over the place, with you being unable to shut the filing cabinet drawer. EMDR assists our brain in making those file folders fit into the filing cabinet, so you have more control over the memories and can choose when to open and shut the filing cabinet drawers.
If you would like to read additional information on EMDR, I recommend the EMDRIA website: https://www.emdria.org/about-emdr-therapy/
What is ERP?
Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) is a type of therapy utilized to treat obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). In ERP therapy, an individual is gradually exposed to situations that trigger their obsessions, while working on resisting their compulsions/rituals. This helps the individual learn to tolerate anxiety and uncertainty without performing compulsions/rituals to feel safe. A therapist trained in ERP will assist you in facing your fears head-on, without engaging in coping mechanisms that reinforce and increase anxiety. ERP is an evidence-based treatment for OCD.
For more information on OCD and ERP, please visit the following links: