804-213-2674
Hello!
licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW)
Founder of The Painted Bird Psychotherapy, rev. Desiree Smith is a licensed clinical social worker and highly trained Trauma Specialist, EMDRIA approved EMDR practitioner, and Certified Clinical Military Counselor.
She holds a BS in Psychology from Capella University and a Master's degree in Clinical Social Work from Widener University. In addition, she is an ordained minister and doctoral candidate working on her PHD in transpersonal counseling through the university of sedona.
She holds additional certifications in Flash Technique, Internal Family Systems, Ego States, ACT, CBT, DBT and expressive arts. Her style of therapy is a fusion of clinical evidence based practices with holistic, creative, spiritual and alternative healing modalities to help her clients heal on the deepest levels.
She is a highly intuitive shamanic healer and artist who develops treatment plans that are individually tailored to each client from a biopsychosocialspiritual lens to maintain a whole person approach. Her treatment consists of psychotherapy, clinical hypnotherapy, EMDR, meditation and somatic body based and holistic and expressive arts therapies.
My Story
Prior to my clinical work, I was a licensed massage therapist. I left my private massage practice to join the Navy in 2008 and completed two back to back deployments shortly after joining. This experience was bittersweet as I was challenged but, also was deeply wounded from being away from sons who were both under the age of five at that time. As painful as that was, it was through my darkest hour that I found my calling. I knew that my life's work would be trauma recovery. Through my own struggles during deployment, I began to study in great detail depression, anxiety, attachment disorder, complex and post traumatic stress disorder and chronic stress.
When I am not working, I love spending time with my family! I have a small organic homestead in rural Virginia and I relish spending time in nature and with our animals. We have goats, chickens and bees and from them, I craft holistic, handmade, organic and top 8 allergen free offerings such as candles, soap, and hemp products.
I donate any proceeds to my nonprofit effort Hazel Gray Foundation. Our staff of military veterans and spouses are dedicated to improving access to trauma treatment options for nations veterans and families and advocating for the sacred, therapeutic and safe use of plant medicine in mental health.
our goal is to open a therapeutic center that offers workshops, retreats, and events that utilize holistic and clinical based interventions to empower diverse clients who are underserved. We hope to provide sacred healing ceremonies, individual and group therapy (expressive, trauma informed, equine & plant based) and possibly short term transitional housing for homeless veterans.
I love being outside barefoot whether at the beach or in the mountains but, always with a good book. My belief is that we all have the tools within us to heal but, we sometimes we need a guide to hold a lantern in the darkness to illuminate our path and that laughter is life's greatest elixir. I bring humor, compassion, empathy, and a non judgmental stance to treatment.