Today we’d like to introduce you to Monique Dunn, LCSW.
Hi Monique, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
My name is Monique Dunn and I am the founder of Destination Therapy which is a minority woman-owned therapy practice in Houston, Texas. I am a British therapist and since immigrating to the U.S. I have lived in New York City and I am now laying roots here in Houston Texas where I work as a therapist for busy professionals struggling with anxiety, perfectionism and burnout. At Destination Therapy, we provide individual therapy services to clients who reside in the state(s) of Texas and New York.
My story, which led me to this role is really the story of how I fell in love with the transformative process that we call therapy. For me, that started initially when I became a client myself during a difficult time in my life. I was able to get the support I needed to grieve and heal after a traumatic loss in my family, and I experienced first hand how incredible it can feel to have a safe space dedicated to your own personal growth and development. Therapy was a space that felt free of judgment and was facilitated by an unbiased, caring professional that I knew genuinely wanted to support me on my journey. It was refreshing, liberating and transformative!
A few years after this, I found myself looking into different career paths and kept circling back to programs where I could train to practice as a clinician. Eventually, I began training as a therapist in 2011 and obtained my degree in Humanistic Counselling Practice from the University of Nottingham, England. It was an amazing program that gave me clinical experience along the way, so I could work with clients on what I had been learning in the classroom.
I have always loved learning and traveling, so I eventually decided that I was going to pick up and relocate to New York City. However, there was a big “but” – I could move, sure… BUT there was no reciprocity with my British accredited program to practice as a therapist here in the United States. So fast forward to 2015, I was accepted into New York University, where I enrolled and obtained my Masters in Social Work.
Since 2017, I have been working in the field of Mental Health here in the United States and each moment has led me to where I am now as a Houston based therapist with my own private practice, Destination Therapy. The business is in an exciting period of growth as I plan to expand and bring in more like-minded clinicians to provide high-quality care in a safe and inclusive environment.
I have felt so welcomed here in Houston, I honestly feel so grateful to get to serve a community of incredible clients that are actively working on improving their mental health and learning new skills like how to set healthy boundaries, manage anxiety and prioritize their needs to align with their values.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
There’s a phrase that comes to mind when people ask me about obstacles and challenges, “Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.”—Confucius. I have managed to come through quite a few difficult times in my life, but looking back now I can see how many of those challenges taught me lessons that have been of huge value now as a business owner.
Creating my therapy practice, Destination Therapy has been more than just launching a business, it’s been about building something that aligns with my values and allows me to provide this supportive service in a way that honors the clients that I serve. In my personal life, I have had some negative experiences and challenges as a woman of color, where I have been in spaces that perhaps didn’t value some parts of my identity. Now, as a business owner, I feel passionate about creating a safe space for folks within marginalized groups and have used my own experiences to inform how I move forward proactively towards this. Destination Therapy is grounded in anti-racist, culturally affirming care that celebrates intersectional identities.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Destination Therapy?
Destination Therapy is a therapy practice based in Houston TX providing individual counseling and psychotherapy. Destination Therapy serves professional clients who may need support working through significant life transitions and navigating the complexities of their relationships with themselves or others. Many of our clients struggle with anxiety, perfectionism, burnout and low mood and have a desire to reclaim their time, implement healthier boundaries, learn positive coping skills, and improve their mood day to day.
Destination Therapy offers person-centered and humanistic care that focuses on each client’s individual needs to create a personalized treatment plan. We provided therapy in person at our Houston location in the Upper Kirby area, as well as online through our secure telehealth platform. Our clients can connect with their therapist from the comfort of their own home or private office, all of our paperwork is electronic and seamlessly connects to the app.
We are so proud to provide high-quality care to clients in Texas and New York. We pride ourselves in making sure you find the right fit and work collaboratively with other professionals on your health team along your journey as needed to ensure your overall well-being is taken care of.
If you are interested in therapy, we would love to connect with you! You can book a free 15-minute consultation with Destination Therapy via our website https://www.thedestinationtherapy.com/ or email us at hello@thedestinationtherapy.com.
What sort of changes are you expecting over the next 5-10 years?
I think the biggest shift I have seen over the last decade in the mental health field is the emergence of online telehealth platforms. Since covid hit, I have seen a huge shift of clients being more open to meeting online, and therapists being more receptive to offering telehealth services too! At Destination Therapy, we are able to connect with our clients where they are, as long as they have privacy, some good wifi and a smartphone, tablet, or computer they can connect for their sessions! After the pandemic, I asked many of my clients if they wanted to begin meeting in person, and many of them declined! While some folks are really excited to return to in person therapy sessions now, I think it really showed me how much of a connection we were able to make despite not being in person during Covid and that high-quality mental health care was still achievable with video sessions. I imagine that most therapy practices that offer this service will continue as this seems like a convenience that is here to stay.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.thedestinationtherapy.com/
- Instagram: @monique.speaks | @destination_therapy
Image Credits
sweenshots.com
