Magan (Harlan) Hopson, LCPC

Simply put, my role as a therapist is to be there for you. My job is not to tell you what you need to change or even how to change it, but rather to help you explore for yourself what changes you want to make, how you want to cope and what makes sense for you. My role is to help you explore those thoughts, feelings and behaviors that led you to seek therapy and give you the freedom to be vulnerable and open without judgement. I am there to help you see that you have so many strengths and positive attributes that you can draw on and that it is okay to express any emotion or feeling. My role is to help you work through what you want to work through, in the time frame you need, in the environment you need, and in the way you need it. I am there for you.

I believe that one of the most common misconceptions about therapists is that we have it all together. I am human just like all of you and have had my own struggles and issues that I needed to work through. I believe that as people we should constantly be evolving and working on ourselves and I continuously strive to do that as a person and as a professional. My childhood was far from perfect and I have had to work through a lot of pain, hurt, confusion and suffering. I've made mistakes in relationships that I have had to go back and address. I've felt worthless and hopeless before and had to learn how to love myself and draw on the strengths in my life. I've learned how to surround myself with good, healthy people that can help me. And I've learned that it is okay to ask for help when I am hurting. I'm not perfect, but I have learned the power of working through struggles and painful emotions and the healing that can come from that. Pain and suffering can bring about tremendous growth and change if we allow it and, as a therapist, I want to help others work through those things to become the best individual they can be. I may not have experienced your exact circumstance, but my own struggles allow me to understand hurt and pain and the beauty of working through those things.

We all have weaknesses, but that does not mean we are weak. We all have flaws, but that does not mean we are flawed. It takes a very strong individual to identify that they are struggling with something and then seek help to work on that issue. We all need someone to help us at some point in our lives. It is much easier to close off and keep things inside, but to be vulnerable and allow change to occur takes a deep inner strength. I admire and respect each individual that I work with, because I understand the courage it took to take those first steps to enter into therapy.