Holly Tracy – Peace By Piece Psychotherapy Ltd

Holly Tracy

I bring 40 years of mental health experience to my work. As a partner, my husband and I have been together 40 years and have raised children with both chronic mental health and chronic physical health diagnoses. Through 14 moves in my adult life I have consistently used two mantras: Bloom Where are Planted AND Plant your own Garden as motivators to take responsibility for how I view, experience and can change my circumstances. Growing up in the mid-west taught me the value of hard work, honesty, helping each other as we are all part of the same community, good snow tires and casseroles! I once made a casserole involving canned asparagus and sliced hard boiled eggs. Not a favorite of my family! Follow me for more recipes 😉

I have always been and animal lover and at one point we had 4 dogs, 2 cats, 2 guinea pigs, 2 gerbils, 2 hermit crabs and 2 beta fish at the same time. I learned that we can get along given time, love and understanding. I learned that guinea pigs are adorable and loving – and really messy! I learned hermit crabs are so much more fun to watch than I would have guessed. I learned gerbils bite less than hamsters. I believe in kindness and doing whatever small part we can do in this world one soul at a time. As such, we recently adopted a 12 year old rescue 70 pound scared and sickly dog. We chuckle that my 30 pound rescue therapy office dog runs directly under the new dog and tries to hide there when they are playing!

My work has included conducting weekly 38 hour groups for the military and substance misuse, research at EVMS surrounding the creation of TF-CBT, Military Emergency Crisis Worker for the American Red Cross, Chaplaincy, Psychiatric Hospital, Home-Based Counseling and private practice for about the last 25 years. I grew up working at a car wash and gas station, starting at 5 (I am from the 1900s!) In adulthood I also worked as a secret shopper, a nanny, a product display creator and giver of coupons/tastes of products, a waitress a house cleaner and a substitute teacher at a Title 1 school. As a professional with training in multiple specialty areas. a mother and a partner who has been connected to first responders and the military for about 38 years, I bring practical life experience to my worldview. I have been called “well seasoned, not too spicy.” I love to learn and stay current and fresh through attending and conducting trainings, readings, and consultations. I enjoy finding humor where I can and think it makes like bearable. I will meet you were you are and not rush you or the process.

As a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (License #0717001120) and Licensed Professional Counselor (License #0701004033), I believe in the importance of creating and maintaining healthy and fulfilling relationships through my work with children, adolescents, families and couples to achieve the relationships they desire. Most of the time things happen and we manage fine, but sometimes things happen that throw us for a loop and we need some additional support. Using cognitive-behavior therapy (thoughts and behaviors), family systems therapy, Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) and play therapy as appropriate, I help individuals and families identify and use their strengths to facilitate their goals for growth and change. Having completed Level 1 of The Gottman Method of Couples Therapy adds to my knowledge of the family system.

Being Certified in Dialectical Behavior Therapy allows me to use this evidence-based treatment to help people regulate emotions through the use of CBT combined with mindfulness and acceptance techniques.

Being a Certified Trauma Treatment Specialist and Certified in Thanatology (grief and loss) allows me to specialize in the linked issues of loss and trauma, both past and present. As a Registered Play Therapist-Supervisor™, I am equipped to work with young children and resistant adolescents.

Additionally, as an Approved Clinical Supervisor, I am passionate about providing clinical supervision and consultation services. As the clinical supervisor for the Residents at the practice, she works closely with them to ensure clinically sound, ethical and legal practices.”

Supervision
- Approved Clinical Supervisor
  - Because I take supervision seriously, I have chosen to be credentialed as an Approved Clinical Supervisor (#ACS00707) through the Center for Credentialing and Education, a division of the National Board for Certified Counselors. This credential requires significant qualifying events and continued education to maintain. I have been providing clinical supervision in a variety of roles for two decades. In addition to the ACS designation, I am approved to provide clinical supervision by the Board of Counseling for both Residents in Marriage and Family Therapy and Residents in Counseling.
- Registered Play Therapist-Supervisor™
  - If you are seeking supervision towards licensure or as part of consultation or peer to peer to supervision, we can discuss how to ethically incorporate Play Therapy supervision into regular supervision.
  - I am delighted to also provide supervision for those working solely towards their Registered Play Therapist credential.
- Trauma and Grief
  - Some of the more valid credentials related to grief and trauma require supervision. If this is an interest of yours, we can discuss ways to incorporate that into regular supervision.
- Ethics and legal issues
  - Part of becoming and maintaining professional ethical and legal behavior entails consultations, trainings and education. As these areas are of a special interest to me, I have served on the Virginia Board of Counseling’s Regulatory Committee (over the past 6 years and most recently as the Chair (Term ended June 2022). Additionally, I attend approximately 40 hours of legal and ethics training per year and read about those issues as a hobby.
  - These areas naturally become an integral part of supervision and consultation, which leads to better client care and clinician protections.

If you are seeking clinical supervision toward licensure, towards becoming a Registered Play Therapist™ or peer to peer supervision, please contact me so we can set up a meeting and I can send you my disclosure statement to review.

Consultation
Research is clear that regular and as needed consultation leads to an increase in ethical and legal choices it also decreases Board complaints and adverse decisions by the Board
- If you are seeking regular consultation or one time consultation please contact me for additional information. I have experience providing both types.
- Over 30 years in the field has afforded me the opportunity for a variety of professional experiences which include (but not limited to): 38 hour groups for the Navy (Level One substance misuse), American Red Cross Armed Forces Emergency Caseworker, Medical University of South Carolina psychodiagnostics interviewer, in-home therapist and assessor, in-patient assessment clinician, volunteer mental health professional with the Tidewater EMS, deployment with the Red Cross post natural disaster, mediator and EAP specialist.