Today we’d like to introduce you to Morgan DeGilio.
Hi Morgan, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I am originally from Morristown, New Jersey. I grew up there my entire life until moving to South Florida during COVID in 2020. I completed my bachelors at Montclair State University in Psychology and obtained my Masters in Counseling with Specialization in Art Therapy at Caldwell University. I knew when completing my education that I wanted to move to Florida to start my career as a psychotherapist and art therapist.
When I moved here I was a Registered Mental Health Intern (RMCHI) and Registered Art Therapist. My first job down here I started working with Children’s Home Society’s Safe Harbor Program, a residential facility working with children and teens. I really enjoyed working with the population at the time, but the commute was strenuous and I needed to find somewhere closer to work. I then started working at Joe DiMaggio’s Children’s Hospital in Pediatrics providing primarily bedside art therapy services to patients. I primarily spent time working with patients and families in the Oncology/Hematology, Rehab, and PICU. It was a truly fulfilling job being able to build relationships with both patients and their families. A couple years later, I was offered a position to work for Memorial Regional Hospital in Inpatient-Psychiatry with both adults and pediatrics providing both individual and group counseling. It was such a fascinating unit to work on because of how diverse the population is. I truly learned a lot within the hospital setting and about myself as a professional.
When I became state licensed in the state of Florida and obtained my Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC) and became Board Certified Art Therapist, I knew I wanted to continue to serve the community long-term outside of a hospital setting. I started a contract position with an outpatient facility and opened my LLC, Creative Healing Space Therapeutics. It took some time to adapt and learn the new ways of working remotely. I had to get familiar with patient care outside a hospital setting, setting myself a new routine that required flexibility and discipline, and managing some of the challenges of working solely telehealth.
After a year and half, I was feeling stuck. I was comfortable with working as a contractor instead of taking the leap of going into fully private practice. Then out of surprise, my contract had ended with the outpatient facility and I was on my own. I was terrified that I only had myself to rely on to build a case load and maintain clients. As a discloser, I am more spiritual and I am a believer in “signs”. I asked the universe to show me a flamingo that I should be fully in private practice. When I received the email that my contract had ended, I had just boarded my flight back home after traveling and visiting family. It was a flight full of fear and anxieties of sitting with the uncertainty of what is going to happen next. When we landed I lifted up the window shade, and saw a plane with a pink flamingo logo. I thought to myself, “What are the odds of seeing a plane with a flamingo on it?” I have never seen one before! Right then and there, it confirmed that sometimes when you get too comfortable, and miss the opportunity to take the leap yourself, the universe does it for you. In that moment, the universe pushed me off the cliff not to see me fall but to see soar. After one month of being solely private practice, I was getting more calls for consultations for therapy services and doubled my case load. Here I am now, with a full case load of private clients and working for myself.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I have always wanted to go fully private practice, it was the matter of when and how. Through my entire career experience, including my internships during grad school, it has shaped me to the therapist and professional I am today. I have learned the ins and outs of what is like on the receiving end working in the hospital setting as well as navigating patient care in an outpatient and remote setting. There were definitely challenges I have faced working through the uncertainty, discomfort, and learning through mistakes, but having a great support system of family, friends, and colleagues has empowered me to be a business owner. Networking is a key aspect of how I got to where I am. It is important to know what you want as a business owner and what you want your business to look like, once you know, use your network to share ideas, learn from their experiences, and set goals.
We’ve been impressed with Creative Healing Space Therapeutics LLC, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Creative Healing Space Therapeutics LLC was developed in 2023 and offers integrative art therapy and psychotherapy services across the lifespan from children, teens, and adults. The goal in opening my private practice is to be able to build long-term therapeutic relationships, see clients achieve their personalized goals, and to serve the community that I live in. I believe that every individual holds the capacity to heal from within. I utilize both trauma-focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy along with a Trauma-Focus Art Therapy approach to have a creative outlet for expression, processing, and identifying unhelpful patterns that may be keeping you stuck or unfulfilled.
I am currently located in Coral Springs, Florida for in-person therapy and also provide telehealth services to individuals throughout all of Florida. In addition to therapeutic services, I also provide parenting strategies consultations to help parents understand child development, learn behavioral strategies to help increase positive behaviors and decrease unwanted behaviors in their child, and have parents feel more confident as a parent.
If we knew you growing up, how would we have described you?
I have always loved art and creating art, it has been a long hobby and outlet for myself for as long as I can remember. I found out about art therapy when I was in high school. As soon as I learned what art therapy was, I was determined to become one. I have always been more of an observer/listener than sharer, it is a quality about myself that I have always been a part of who I am. It is very fitting now being a therapist as it comes natural to be a listener and an empath. Therapy played a big role throughout my upbringing, having a safe person to confine in at different stages in my life definitely helped give me the reassurance and guidance that was needed at the time. Talking about mental health was introduced to me at an early age. Though at the time there was still a stigma towards normalizing mental health. I strive to this day to continue to help break the stigma towards mental health and teach clients more about self compassion.
Pricing:
- I accept a variety of insurances
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.creativehealingspacetherapeuticsllc.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/creativehealingspacetherapy
- Other: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/therapists/morgan-degilio-coral-springs-fl/1116751
