Kassidy Veness, LPC-IT - Get To Know Me
By: Kassidy Veness, LPC-IT
Hi, my name is Kassidy and I’m the newest addition to the Empowerment Within team!
I didn’t always know I wanted to be in the mental health field. When I started college I was a marketing major with the hope of working in sports marketing. I connected to marketing because I wanted to be able to embrace my creative side, be a part of ongoing problem solving and I could have variety on a day-to-day basis. I wanted a job that looked different every day and brought me the opportunity to help others and tell their stories. The thought of working at a desk job and staring at a computer overwhelmed me. I learned quickly that while I was really interested in connecting with the customers and supporting them, the focus on selling a product made me question how much of a difference I could make.
I stayed with it for a while because it came pretty naturally to me and that felt comfortable. That’s the thing about being comfortable, it can convince us that we are in the right place, but over time it can make life feel dull, monotonous, and we can forget who we are. In pursuit of connecting with myself and my work again, I started the search to find a job that allowed me to connect with people at a deeper level. Where I was able to support others in empowering themselves and helping them make a difference in their own life.
Breaking out of our comfort zone is never easy.
It requires that we let go of feeling competent, and in control and asks us to embrace uncertainty. We have to be willing to fail to break free. Branching outside of marketing and the business world felt very daunting and overwhelming. A lot of people questioned why I would leave behind something with stability for a path with a lot of unknowns. In some hard moments, I questioned why I was leaving behind the comfort of something I knew I was good at for something I hoped I might be good at. I knew if I didn’t take the risk and see where this other path led, I would always wonder if I should be doing something different. This voice told me that I owed it to myself to try and find a career that was meaningful and fulfilling for me.
I met a lot of points where I fell short, didn’t succeed, and needed to find a different way forward. I learned that owning the discomfort and moving through it, gave me a lot more fulfillment than moving in the direction of comfort. One of my mentors told me, “Growth is uncomfortable because we have never been here before. Embrace it.” I held onto those words then, and I remind myself of them often now.
The path that led me to counseling wasn’t long or complex.
Once I decided I needed something more meaningful, I began an internship at a forensic interviewing and family advocacy center. Our team worked with children and families at the hardest moments of their lives and we had the chance to stand by them in moments when they felt alone. I watched them grow, find hope again, and start to find themselves. After seeing the impact that therapy had on those kiddos and their families, I knew my search for something more meaningful was over. I wanted to be a part of that process. To walk with people through their hardest moments and let them know they were not alone. I wanted to be there when they found their hope again and support them in finding a way back to themselves. My only hope was that my clients would trust me enough to let me be there for their healing journey.
It is not easy to sit across from a stranger and let them into your inner world. Before I saw my first client, I was nervous about what it would feel like, if I would say the wrong thing, and if they would come back. My supervisor told me she just wanted me to focus on two things – being present and being authentic – and the rest would come. When I started seeing clients, and even now when I sit with clients and hold space for their healing journey, I feel proud of the bravery and vulnerability of the person in front of me and I am grateful that they feel comfortable and safe with me.
Seeing people open up before your eyes and show you the rawest versions of themselves is a gift that I do not take for granted.
Going through school, I understood the importance of adapting to clients’ unique needs but putting it into action in the counseling space was another story. There was a time when I first started at the Healing Center when I wasn’t appropriately adapting to my client’s needs because I wasn’t seeing them for the entirety of who they were. Overlooking a piece of someone often means misunderstanding them as a whole. I had to recognize how each aspect of my clients’ identities shaped their experiences and how the intersection of those identities created a unique reality for each client. What worked wonders for one client might fall short for another.
One of my clients gently reminded me of that early in my internship by saying, “I know this is probably helpful for other people. But I’m not other people.” I was so grateful for that moment because what followed was a beautiful and honest conversation that served as a constant reminder for me. I try my best to see and understand my client as a whole – all of their identities and life experiences – and adapt my counseling to best serve the person in front of me. And in the moments where I don’t succeed at adjusting to meet their needs – I ask my clients to be brave and show me who they are, what they need, and what I am missing.
I love that this job and my clients constantly challenge me to learn new things, get outside my comfort zone, and get comfortable with ambiguity.
Outside of work, I enjoy spending time outside. Whether I’m hiking, kayaking, hammocking, or just walking, anything that involves fresh air helps me feel grounded. I also love reading, cooking, traveling, and spending quality time with my friends and family!
I graduated in May and I am so excited to learn from and grow with all of the incredible women on the Empowerment Within team. In an ever-evolving world, I aim to be a lifelong learner – always open to new ideas and eager to hear different perspectives. I am so grateful the team at Empowerment Within embraces the same mentality and is always encouraging and supportive along the way.