Chong M. Concannon

“Don’t throw away your suffering. Touch your suffering. Face it directly, and your joy will become deeper. You know that suffering and joy are both impermanent." ― Thích Nhất Hạnh Hello, my name is Chong – thank you for pausing here to get to know me and my practice. ================================================================= I believe in the innate human potentials possessed by each one of us. These potentials are too often thwarted by difficult and painful life experiences, which can lead to great suffering. These emotional wounds fester and grow when they are ignored, unattended, and avoided, and they significantly impact our connections to Self and others, to our nature and greater societal systems. Sometimes, our struggles and suffering seem inexplicable, and we are left confused by the reactions we have in our feelings, thoughts, and behaviors. At other times, the roots of our pain are clearly identifiable, but nonetheless challenging to understand and cope through them. I believe that the responses of our body and mind often operate at a deep, subconscious level, and they need to be identified and addressed through the lens of trauma - personal, family and intergenerational, and societal and historical. We also tend to exacerbate our suffering through harsh self-judgment and self-criticism, leading to a double injury. An exploration into our suffering requires great vulnerability and courage, and I am here to create a safe space and offer unconditional compassion and acceptance to all that you bring on this scary, yet, empowering journey. Learning to let go of the cruel and hurtful thoughts about yourself serves as an important foundation for your journey. I invite you to take charge of this journey with your own sense of compassion and curiosity. There is no one-size-fits-all approach or a miracle treatment. My belief is that you possess all the answers and wisdom within, but they are veiled behind great fear and apprehension. I hope to offer you guidance, encouragement, and support as you lift this veil and find your truths. In doing so, we will practice theoretical perspectives and interventions from various modalities, customized to best meet your needs. Our collaborative efforts will lead to greater understanding and insight into who you are, as well as arming you with practical tools that will help you to increase mindfulness, strengthen self-compassion, and make meaningful changes that align with your authentic self. Out of all the therapeutic interventions, I believe that the most important agent of change and healing is the therapeutic relationship that is based on trust, safety, authenticity, compassion, and unyielding hope - this is at the heart of CMC Counseling. ================================================================= My areas of passion and specialization are as follows: * Asian-American Mental Health - traditional and rigid family roles and obligations, filial piety, parental pressure for academic and career successes, attachment trauma, racism and racial identity issues, navigation bi-cultural conflicts, gender and sexual identity issues, alcohol and substance dependence (I am especially drawn to working with parents that want to break the cycle of intergenerational trauma to build warm, loving, and authentic bonds with their children and practice conscious parenting.) * Transracial Asian-American Adoptees - relinquishment and adoption story, adoptee trauma, losses and grief, identity development, family dynamics and conflicts, birth-family search * Infertility Trauma - infertility diagnoses, body acceptance, family-building options, infertility treatment stress, family/couples issues (processed as an individual, not family or couples therapy) * Nature-Based Therapy - connecting with nature for all its wisdom and healing power; certification-pending; individual and group services to be offered Spring 2022 ================================================================= CMC Counseling is not contracted with any insurance plans at this time. At CMC Counseling, Chong Concannon, LCPC, is the sole provider of clinical services, and she is a private-pay and an out-of-network provider. Receiving care from this provider will likely cost you more than if you were to utilize your insurance plan in getting similar types of service from an in-network provider. Effective January 1, 2022, a ruling went into effect called the No Surprises Act, which requires practitioners to provide a Good Faith Estimate about out-of-network care. The Good Faith Estimate works to show the costs that are reasonably expected for your health care needs for an item or service, a diagnosis, and a reason for therapy. The estimate is based on information known at the time the estimate was created. The Good Faith Estimate does not include any unknown or unexpected costs that may arise during treatment. You could be charged more if complications or special circumstances occur and will be provided a new Good Faith Estimate should this occur. If this happens, federal law allows you to dispute (appeal) the bill if you and your therapist have not previously talked about the change and you have not been given an updated good faith estimate. Under Section 2799B-6 of the Public Health Service Act (PHSA), health care providers and health care facilities are required to inform individuals who are not enrolled in a plan or coverage or a Federal health care program, or not seeking to file a claim with their plan or coverage both orally and in writing of their ability, upon request, or at the time of scheduling health care items and services to receive a Good Faith Estimate of expected charges. The PHSA and GFE does not currently apply to any clients who are using insurance benefits, including out-of-network benefits (i.e., submitting superbills to insurance for reimbursement). Once you make a service appointment with CMC Counseling, you will be provided with a more detailed Notice of No Surprises Act Protection and your personalized Good Faith Estimate. If you have any questions about this, please call or email me.