Mary Schwartze Grisham

M.Ed., LPC

Greetings, my name is Mary and I have worked as a counselor in our community for ten years. I completed my licensure in 2014 after graduating from SRSU and completing 2 years of internship at the High Frontier of Fort Davis. Since that time, I have worked as the Director of the SRSU Counseling and Accessibility Services Office, and for the Texas Workforce Commission as a Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor working in part with our area high school students and their transition from graduation. In October I returned to my former position at SRSU, and it is great to be back, working with college students. In addition, I have a small private practice, Equanimity Big Bend. My passions include, traveling with my husband and three children, hiking, food, sleep, wellness and meditation. Today, I will be speaking on the benefits of Meditation: What it is, what it does, and how to do it.

In the counseling relationship I utilize a variety of models that can help assist the client navigate the issues that are arising. The primary model I work with is called Internal Family Systems (IFS). In December 2021 I completed a 16-week training through IFS Canada. IFS is one of the fastest growing counseling modalities and for good reason. It provides a remarkable map in helping the client learn more about themselves and the parts of their system that sometimes take over. For example, have you ever been in a fight with your spouse or family member, where the things you were saying were only making matters worse, but couldn’t seem to stop yourself? Through the IFS lens we might discuss how your system got ‘hijacked’ and you got “blended” with this Anger Part. The client would then look for what are called burdens, that were acquired through life and are continuing to play out, in relationships today. There are a variety of steps that go into the unburdening process.

Sometimes clients come to counseling in quandary, for example, wanting to stop drinking but feeling unable to. This would be an example of what we call polarization of parts. It is tough living with polarized parts. This is a common one for students, knowing they need to study, but a procrastination part that seems to get in the way. The good news is we are all wired in this way and the goal of counseling, is to get curious about what is showing up, with openness and possibility for change.

IFS is a nonpathological model that recognizes what is called multiplicity of the mind. This short video gives a general overview: https://ifs-institute.com/about-us/richard-c-schwartz-phd.