David Johnson

I'm a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in the State of Illinois, Licensed Clinical Addictions Counselor in Indiana, and a Certified Gambling Counselor who has extensive experience working with children, adolescents, and adults since 1994. I have 35 years of experience working within the community mental health arena. It has provided me with a strong foundation and opportunity to work with a variety of client populations which includes outpatient therapy, alcohol and drug addictions treatment, gambling addiction, inpatient psych, and inpatient medical stabilization for alcohol/opiate detoxification. My goal is to support & empower my consumers to discover their inner strength.

I build a client centered process asking about goals, needs, preferences, challenges, and expectations. I like to establish a clear starting point without judgement. I want to agree on what success looks like in the eyes of the client. Create a collaborative plan giving the client meaningful choices. Working through the plan in manageable stages, adjusting when something doesn't fit.

The client can expect an introduction and logistics - explanation of my therapy approach, confidentiality, scheduling policies, and what therapy will look like. I would like to know why the client is seeking therapy, background questions, goals that client wish to obtain, questions about safety, and a preliminary plan for treatment.

I would like to know what the client's goals are and what tools client has used that has worked and those that didn't work in accomplishing their goals. The objective is to review the barrier that hinder success and to monitor change over time.