My passion for psychology and counseling began at a young age as I had a teacher Mrs. Bev who was very enthusiastic about psychology and encouraged self-care activities. In my early teen years, my mother struggled with depression and social anxiety. That prompted me to learn as much as I could about how to help others struggling with mental health issues. Always been inclined to collaborate with others and help others evolve to be their best self, I was always the friend who was the empathetic listener. Many of my friends suggested I become a therapist, but early on I was interested in International Business, computer science and digital networking. There was a brief hiatus in my education as I married and decided to dedicate time to being a mother and raising my sons. Being passionate about education, years later I returned to complete my education and joined the work force. I earned a Bachelor of Science (BS) degree in Psychology, while I worked as a Science Lab manager in an elementary school campus. I worked in the education field for a few years and enjoyed seeing my students evolve and master concepts. My passion and interest in psychology and counseling lead me to I earned a Master of Education (MEd) degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling. Then proceeded to earn a post-graduate certificate of Professional School Counselor. So, I left the education field to start a career in the mental health field. Soon after graduating from Lamar University, I completed my 3,000 hours internship hours at a non-profit mental health facility. In which, I served as a case manager in the Youth and Family department, facilitating a variety of skills to children ages 3 to 17 and providing psychoeducation to parents/guardians. Later at the same non-profit facility, I was promoted to an intern Program Specialist position as Licensed Professional Counselor-Associate in one of their Veterans’ drop-in centers. Later, I was promoted a second time to a Program Specialist position under a Beta Program from the Texas Veteran Commission. At the same non-profit facility, I served as a Veterans’ counselor providing counseling services in two counties to service members, veterans and their family members. My passion and interests have led me to different trainings from various institutions in Mexico and the United States to learn about concepts and techniques such Mindfulness, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Cognitive Processing Therapy, Thanatology (the scientific study of death and the practices associated with it, including the study of the needs of the terminally ill and their families), and Graphoanalysis (study that psychological and physical diagnoses can be made based on an examination of one’s letter shapes). Currently, I am very interested in Mindfulness, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Narrative Therapy, Prolonged Exposure Therapy (PE), and Animal Assisted therapy. In continuation with academics, I am a member of a doctoral degree (PhD) cohort at a seminary studying Counselor Education and Supervision. Earlier this year, I relocated to the North Texas area to spend time with my twin grandbabies and returned full-time to the public education field. Most recently, I have joined the awesome team at Zen Life Counseling as a part-time counselor with flexible availability of late afternoons, evenings and on weekends. As a therapist, I strive to build a psychotherapeutic relationship that can provide empathic interactions and can foster the development of skills to assist to discover inner complexity, richness, beauty, and worth. Together we can cultivate and preserve a therapeutic environment that is safe and comfortable to allow person-centered therapy to flourish. My goal is to provide you with treatment that is most beneficial to you, and that is shaped to your specific needs. *Ruth is bilingual in English/Spanish (Ingles/Español)