About Rossana Counseling Services
Rossana Lorentz Magalhaes is a Board Certified Clinical Mental Health Counselor and a Certified MBSR Teacher by the University of Massachusetts Medical School and Brown University.
Rossana graduated with a B.A. in Psychology and an M.S. EdS in Marriage and Family Therapy from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, UNC-G. Rossana also graduated with a B.A. In Education and Student Orientation from a university in Southeast Brazil.
Rossana’s special interests include couples, marriage, and family counseling, relationship and parenting concerns, women’s issues, developmental transitions, adjustment disorders, depression, anxiety, spirituality, career issues, intimacy, attachment, and self-esteem difficulties.
As a mindfulness meditation practitioner, Rossana believes that interacting with our feelings and bodies can be an important resource in the coping process. She is a qualified MBSR (Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction) teacher and holds a certificate in Biofeedback from The HeartMath Institute.
Rossana’s main theory for working with couples is Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy (EFT).
Approach to Therapy
My approach to therapy, either with individuals, couples, families, adolescents, or children, is to facilitate the client’s journey into finding resources and skills to increase awareness of themselves and achieve greater life contentment.
I strongly believe in encouraging compassion, awareness, insight, and self-acceptance.
Carl Rogers once said: “The curious paradox is that when I accept myself just as I am, then I can change.”(Carl R. Rogers – American psychologist)
My goal in therapy is to create a safe environment that will promote healing. I promote safety by being nonjudgmental and compassionate and by allying with my client’s needs and histories.
Drawing on attachment theory, I understand that experiencing rigid models of attachment relations may develop protective mechanisms of isolation, disconnection from emotions, and potentially inappropriate models of interaction. As a therapist, I strive to serve as a reliable and secure base from which my clients can begin the arduous task of exploring and reworking their internal beliefs.
I understand that painful childhood events and life changes may have promoted not-so-ideal coping mechanisms that were defense mechanisms at some point in life. I strongly believe that each individual has the potential to transform his/her life. It is just a matter of accepting what is present at the moment.
As a couples therapist, I use Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy (EFT), developed by Dr. Sue Johnson (*). EFT is a highly effective therapy model for couples, with scientific research demonstrating its efficacy and low rate of return to therapy.
I completed intensive training in EFT, including EFT Externship and EFT Core Skills. I provide a nonjudgmental, safe, and empathic environment where we explore the relationship.
My style is probably best described as warm, inquisitive, and attentive. I use Play Therapy with children and some adolescents, allowing them to “tell their story” and express their feelings with the tools most familiar to them: sand tray, artwork, imagery, and puppets.
In addition to relationship issues, I work with couples on parenting skills. I also treat children, teens & adults struggling with issues related to Domestic Violence, Death & Dying, Trauma, Adoption (birth- and adoptive families), and Sexuality (particularly sexual compulsivity & addiction).
Diplomas & Certifications
- National Certified Counselor
- Licensed Professional Counselor Associate Member of the American Counseling Association
- Member of the North Carolina Psychological Association
- Member of the North Carolina Licensed Professional Counselors Association – NCLPCA
- Member of the International Centre for Excellence in Emotionally Focused Therapy
(*) Dr. Susan Johnson is a clinical psychologist, professor emeritus at the University of Ottawa, director of the Ottawa Couple and Family Institute, and director of the International Center for Excellence in Emotionally Focused Therapy.