The “God Factor” in Abuse (ft. ATL Shrink, Claire Horner)

On this episode, your host, Eric Skwarczynski, is joined by Claire Horner. Claire Horner is known in Atlanta as ATL Shrink and The Relationship Translator. Therapist and advocate for clients seeking relief from sexual assault and those pursuing healthy relationships. She is licensed as a Professional Counselor with a dual masters. There has been so much hurt and abuse within the Church, that she thought it best to gain particular education in this area so she pursued a degree in Professional Counseling, but also one that brought psychology and theology together. Her experience growing up in a fundamentalist religious atmosphere also provides a level of understanding that can assist those healing from doctrines that went too far, contributed to abuse, or were potentially isolating in ways that have made moving into adulthood... complicated. After completing the degrees by early 2004, she became licensed on Valentine’s Day in 2007. In the past 17 years, she has found providing group therapy, recovery from toxic religious experiences (including abuse and sexual assault), and working with intercultural/interracial couples to be particularly rewarding. Her work in corrections at the start of her career fueled her passion for assisting all people to raise their awareness of how to better care for themselves, to reduce the stigma of mental illness, and to slow down generational traumas. As a new endeavor in the summer of 2019, she decided to start the Atlanta Sexual Trauma Specialist Database. The networking community serves as a resource to one another and the community who needs access to a single place to find providers. The services the specialists offer span psychotherapy, psychiatry, alternative medicine, functional medicine, massage, among others, and can also include trauma-informed businesses. As it develops, it is hoped that The STS Database will be a source for speakers to area groups on the topic of sexual trauma – both on the sides of prevention and healing. (A trauma-informed business may be a salon, tattoo shop, or real estate company that has been trained in practices that would make it easier for a person with Complex PTSD – for example – to utilize their services in a minimally triggering atmosphere.) The STS Database is excited to have been part of a specialist roundtable discussion in the upcoming documentary Unlearning Sex by filmmaker and sexual assault survivor Zahah Thirus. It is being released in educational institutions and will be hitting the film festival circuit starting this fall. When she’s not tending to her practice, she is likely hunting Greg Mike’s newest graffiti masterpieces in Atlanta with her photographer mate, rewatching Chef’s Table, planning the next Halloween creation, or tackling the technological learning curve of becoming a voiceover artist! The approach Claire uses in counseling stems from the following belief: “We are not bits and pieces that work separately, but a compilation of physical body, complex mind, emotional information center, relational motivations (or not), sexual energy, and spiritual glue that bring together these aspects of life. These systems break down during grief, trauma, life transitions, and other experiences that create disturbing symptoms. The therapeutic process seeks to restore the way these aspects work together thereby reducing the symptoms, calming emotional storms, and providing choices for the future.” Claire Horner: Claire Horner, MS, MS, LPC, is nationally certified and a state licensed professional counselor. For individual, couple, or group counseling, Claire can be reached at ATL Shrink, Inc. by calling 404.277.6631 or via the following: Email: clairehorner@atlantashrink.com Website: http://www.atlantashrink.com IG: atlshrink LinkedIn: Claire Horner, LPC FB: ATL Shrink YouTube: Claire Horner Find more stories regarding the IFB movement by visiting:...

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