Today we’d like to introduce you to Morgan DeAmezola.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I am originally from a small town in Illinois. Life was very normal until the summer after I graduated from college with a degree in Art History from Illinois Wesleyan. I went home to figure out what to do next, as I had been rejected from two graduate programs in Art History and I had no idea what was in store. That summer, my dad told my mom he was in love with someone else and left to be with her. At that point, I said, “I need to get out of here!” so I called Illinois State University to see what they had. There was a graduate program in Art Therapy and I could start that fall as a grad student at large and apply to the program after the first semester was done. The first weekend after classes started, I found a good friend of mine murdered in her apartment and suddenly, my first semester of grad school was rearranged with trauma and grief counseling, interviews from detectives and my first experience with PTSD. There was a trial, a man was sentenced and oddly enough, exonerated after 13 years due to lack of DNA evidence. The crime is still unsolved.
I got my degree, got licensed as a therapist in Illinois and ended up working for a while at a rehab. I got married, divorced and then moved to DC to start over in 2000. I let my license expire because I wasn’t going to use it in a different state. Over the years I got into sales, working my way up in the wine and premium sake industry and I traveled all over the world. I moved too, to SC, MS and finally FL. I also ended up in Alcoholics Anonymous, which is a dreadfully scary and dark story. One day, I was telling my story in a meeting (2019) and sharing that I had been licensed and perhaps because I knew the diagnostic criteria for addiction, I lied to myself about how sick I was. After the meeting, a woman came up to me and handed me her card and said “I work for a rehab and we are hiring a number of therapists, please call me!” I did. I promised her I was licensable, and that I would get to work on getting licensed in FL. It took about exactly 1 year to take a few classes, retake the exam and get all of my paperwork together and in March of 2020 I was a licensed therapist in FL. Since then, I have reinstated my license in IL, I am licensed in NJ and SC, and I am working on a license in NY.
I no longer work at the rehab (although I thank that woman regularly for changing my life that night!) I am not in private practice, working from home and my case load is FULL! I feel very blessed!
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
It has been a crazy road! As I mentioned in my first response, I have not had an easy journey. In college, I battled anorexia. After beginning graduate school, I found my friend murdered, which is still an unsolved case. – It is a very crazy story, which I am happy to elaborate on, if needed. I am still in touch with my first therapist, he helped me so much with my eating disorder and trauma! My parents divorced when I was an adult and my father married a woman with whom he cheated on my mother. I got divorced myself after 3.5 years of marriage. I had a massive career change that was great for a long time, but nearly killed me in the end. In my alcoholic days, I went to countless detoxes, rehabs, half-way houses, I got 2 DUIS and I was Marchman acted to finally get the help that got me sober in 2017. I lost my dad in 2014, my step father in 2022. I was diagnosed with esophageal cancer in 2021 and went through chemo, radiation and major resection of my entire gut (a 10 hour surgery) and I am about to celebrate 5 years cancer free. Although I’ve had two bowel obstructions since the cancer journey – one where I nearly died. I got remarried in 2023, a dream wedding I won as a cancer survivor.
And as I mentioned, I got to come back in to counseling in 2019 – an absolute gift! But not without a lot of life experiences that make me more useful today.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I became an LLC in 2021, not long before I was diagnosed with cancer. I work entirely from home and do all telehealth counseling. I am licensed in 4 states and my specialties include addiction, alcoholism, chronic illness/cancer, anxiety, depression, divorce, new beginnings, trauma and I am certified in grief. As a woman in recovery, I made a promise to my higher power that I would accept anyone who needed help and take a moment to listen and continue with counseling or take a sincere moment to refer out to a therapist I trust. But I always reach out and I always feel grateful.
I honestly believe I have the best clients and it is a true privilege to watch them begin to love themselves and change.
I do trainings on a regular basis, having recently begun a training in nutrition, holistic treatments and mental health. I am also working on a certification on sleep and mental health. Most recently, I have been completing trainings on cruise ships and in other countries – there are a lot of ways to learn new things in new places. Last year I did a training on a Mediterranean cruise, and this year I completed a training in Spain. In January I am doing a Caribbean cruise that has a training on EMDR – a modality that is good for people with trauma.
How do you think about luck?
I guess I could call all of the things I’ve been through as “bad luck,” but I don’t. I think they are all obstacles that I have learned how to cope through – and can now help others. I could say I am a therapist all over again and that it is “good luck,” but I have come to believe through the 12 steps and recovery that I have a higher power who wants me right where I am today. I believe nothing is wasted in God’s economy, including hardship and adversity and also blessings and fortune. Why I chose “Mighty Lotus Counseling” is because the Lotus grows in muddy waters that are unsuitable for many plants. However, the blossoms are amazing and demonstrate that beauty can always benefit from the muck.
Pricing:
- I take most insurances
- I offer a sliding scale if it is warranted
- I also offer cash pay with many ways to pay
- I am accepting participants in a free cancer support group, please ask!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.mightylotuscounseling.com/
- Instagram: mightylotuscounseling
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MorgandeAmezola.LLC/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/morgand255/
- Other: https://mightylotuscounseling.clientsecure.me
Image Credits
murnorstudio.com
