LSC

Life's Solutions is having it's GRAND OPENING on Monday, June 29th!

309 North State Street

Orem, Utah 84057

Phone: 801-404-3069

Fax: 801-434-8333

LifesSolutionsCounseling@gmail.com

www.LifesSolutionsCounseling.com

Ending & Beginning

Mediation is over! We settled! It was a very hard day, but I got enough to pay off my student loan. 8 1/2 years I've been battling this auto insurance crap. Whew, I feel like I've gotten a new start on life. Now Chris & I can think about having a baby...

I'm planning on renting an office space from my chiropractor, in Orem, for my private practice. I'm hoping to start in early June, if everything goes as planned. 309 N. State St. I'm excited! I still have to order business cards, get a phone line, follow-up on an Orem business license, get billing software, finish my website, and a few other things. There's so much to do to prepare for the start of a new business. I might need a vacation!

I'm excited Chris and I can finally rely on one income, allowing me to try this new business adventure. I'm happy to be closing a rough chapter of my life, but a strange part of me hates to see it close. I feel guilty. No, that's not the right word. Scared? I want to move on, but at the same time hate to let go. Does that make ANY sense? I don't think so either! Maybe I fear losing part of my identity? I just don't want to ever forget Steven and I don't want others to either. As nice as it is to not have to worry quite so much about my medical expenses, it doesn't really make it all go away, or even make it better. You know, I'd give up millions of dollars to be the person I was before my car accident. I'd love to get my brain, my memory, my back, my shoulder, my ribs, and my life back. I miss me. Sorry to have rambled for so long, I've just got a lot on my mind. Very few people get it. I'm hoping the computer does. ;)

Maybe Chris and I will take a little vacation for our 2 year anniversary, coming up on June 2nd.

Chris is 30!

Chris celebrated his 30th birthday yesterday. We had a birthday party last Saturday with a few close friends and family. I got him 2 new wedges for his golf game. He played with them several days before his birthday. Such a cheater! He did amazing work with them though. I'm lucky to have such a talented, patient golf coach.

Looks like I'm back to the drawing board for my private practice. I'm hoping to have it fully functioning by the end of May. Beacon didn't work out quite like I had hoped. Oh well. I've already had the private practice plans in my head for a year now. Once I'm an LPC, on May 23, 2009, I'll get this thing up and running. Chris has been very supportive throughout this whole thing. Who wants to help their wife clean out her office on their 30th birthday? No one! But, my husband did it anyway. There are SO many reasons I love this man. I swear, I love him more everyday.

Here's my logo, in case you hadn't seen it a few months ago. I'm ordering business cards & I'm just waiting to go! I'm hoping to be able to continue seeing the clients I started seeing while at Beacon. My phone number for my future business is: 801-616-3097. People can call with questions now.

I've also been asked to speak to Chris's aunt's stake. I'm presenting on Pornography and the Specific Issues Related to Women, such as romance novels, soap operas, etc. I'll be presenting to them with one of the counselors in the General Relief Society Presidency, on May 9th. What an honor!

I was also invited to present classes to my ward enrichment on Destressing Your Marriage, specifically improving communication skills. This meeting will be held on June 10th. This is a great opportunity to share my ideas, regarding the book I'm planning on writing, with others.

I hope everything works out! I'll be fairly unemployed for the next month or so getting licensed and the foundational work to open this practice going. But, hopefully after that I'll be able to make a dent in this lovely student loan of mine. :)

Mediation is scheduled for May 1st for my auto accident! I can hardly wait to get all of this behind me. I'm excited to finally have closure and to be able to make sense of it all. I pray my insurance company will offer some financial support for my ongoing physical injuries. Time will tell...

Check Me Out!

The Company webpage shows this:

Aimee Francom

LPC

Aimee is one of just a few counselors qualified and fluent in American Sign Language. She can work with individuals and families that need assistance in Deaf and hard-of-hearing situations.

She has also taught seminars on stress management, emergency preparedness, communication skills, grief and loss, dealing with trauma, and getting the most of your current employment.

Aimee is a National Certified Counselor and a Licenseded Professional Counselor. She has a Master of Arts Degree in Mental Health Counseling, and a Master of Science Degree in Administration and Supervision from Gallaudet University in Washington, DC. Aimee also has a Bachelors Degree in Psychology, with a Minor in Family and Human Development.

Her background is impressive, having worked at Valley Mental Health, Beneficial Life, Child and Family Services, Blomquist Hale Consulting and the Family Service Foundation, Inc.

GOOD news

I did it! I finally got my scores for the NCMHCE back. I passed! I also passed the Utah Professional Counselor Laws, Rules, and Ethics Exam last week. I'm mailing my application to become an LPC tomorrow! Not that anyone cares about my "official" scores, but I'm attaching them because I'm THAT proud!

Here's my scores on the National Clinical Mental Health Counseling Exam (I needed a 104 & 130 to pass, I got a 130 & 156, respectively)


Here's my scores on the National Clinical Exam (I needed a 97 to pass, I got a 131)
Here's my scores on the UT Professional Counselor Laws, Rules & Ethics Exam (I needed 75% to pass, I got 85%)

I'm SO close I can taste it! I start working at Beacon FMH on March 2nd, but will be attending the Open House on Feb. 27th & 28th. Hopefully you've received an invitation to the open house?

On another happy note, I heard from my lawyer regarding my lawsuit today for my auto accident in Jan. 2001. The coroner in Idaho stated the police had done a "piss poor investigation" and he was positive I could not have been driving. This is great news and hopefully encourages my insurance company to help me out a bit. I'm getting tired of hurting. Only time will tell...

It's been a GOOD day!

Updates

My niece, Natalie, won the cutest baby contest! Thanks for your votes. And I'm truly sorry if you continue to get emails from UtahBaby. There's an email address, at the end of their emails, you can reply and request they take you off their list. :)

I took the NCMHCE last week. I have NO idea how I did and won't get my score for 6-8 weeks. AGH! The highlighters they gave us to use for the test didn't work. It was a frustrating day! But, at least it's over. Whew.

I start my new job on March 1st. I'm depending on referrals, so if you'd like to send people my way, I'd love it! We're having an open house the end of Feb. I'll post more information when I have it. I've mailed several of you the following:

Aimee Francom, CPCI
Beacon Family Mental Health
8915 South 700 East, Suite 203
Sandy, Utah 84070
801-938-5151

Dear Family and Friends,

It is my pleasure to introduce you to Beacon Family Mental Health, which is now my new place of employment! Beacon Family Mental Health is a new counseling agency, located in Sandy. I am excited about this current transition in my life and hope to be able to serve more clients, including Deaf clients.

After meeting with the founders of Beacon Family Mental Health, I was drawn in by their commitment to clients and vision of better care.

I’d also like you to know of the Beacon FMH Education Center. Many classes and workshops are available to individuals, couples and families for a nominal fee, with some classes being totally free of charge! Please see the enclosed class and workshop schedule. More classes may be offered in the near future. We assist all individuals, as we have clinicians fluent in American Sign Language, Spanish, and Portuguese. Lindsay Brand specializes in child therapy, and does an excellent job in working with children.

Also enclosed is a pamphlet outlining The Safe Harbor Treatment Program, which is designed to assist those with sexually addictive behavior. Sexually addictive behaviors can cause personal conflict, marital and family discord, depression, anxiety, anger and resentment. Please take a few moments to review these pamphlets. We treat all individuals and families with a variety of emotional struggles. My specific areas of expertise include Sexual Addiction, Pre-marital and Marital Counseling, and Grief and Loss.

Our fee schedule is identical to LDS Family Services. The fees are as follows: $70.00 per session, $105.00 for an initial assessment and $20.00 per session for participation in therapeutic groups. We accept most insurances.

I invite you to utilize Beacon Family Mental Health either for the needs of your loved ones or someone else you may know that might need assistance. We’d be delighted to meet with members of your family! Once you engage with the clinicians in our agency, you will also feel the hope and enthusiasm I experienced when learning of Beacon Family Mental Health. We hope to assist and empower others to make positive changes in their lives that are lasting.

We strive for excellence in serving you and are committed to providing the highest quality of treatment. We long to assist those who are in emotional pain and help empower them to create positive forward movement in their lives.

Please feel free to contact me with any questions.

Sincerely,

Aimee Francom, CPCI

NEW Employment

OK, I was planning on opening a private practice...and I still may. I'm open to seeing people ANY time. I'm registered with the state and everything. And you saw my logo, it's amazing! But, with Chris and I planning to start a family in the near future, and the crappy economy, I'm nervous about taking out a small business loan. So, I decided to interview with a few places for a possible change in employment.

And...

Drum roll...

I've been offered a position with Beacon Family Mental Health in Sandy, UT. It's a new business. I'll participate in the establishment of a business, making opening a successful private practice later MUCH easier. I'll use both of my degrees as well. I'll do individual, couple, family, and group therapy. I'll also have the opportunity to give presentations, teach classes, and offer seminars. In addition, I'll help with marketing, organization development, and design. They even encouraged me to write the book I've been planning for some time now! And my personal favorite, I'd finally be able to see Deaf clients when I want.

The company's mission statement is "Emotional healing, for individuals and families, centered on Christ". I'll post the website when I've helped get it up and running. ;) It's similar to LDS Family Services, but I'll probably make more $. HA! I was quite impressed by this company. They seem to care about their employees, which is something I haven't felt in a LONG time. When explaining their business model to me, it sounds very much like a "private practice" feel, but without having to do the billing, scheduling, etc. I'm very excited!

Now, I have to get back to studying for the NCMHCE I'm taking on Jan. 17th. If I pass, I'm on my way to licensure as an LPC! I've completed my required hours, I've passed the NCE...I'm almost there!

Life's Logo

Here's my logo. Let me know what you think...

Private Practice

I'm doing it! I'm opening a private practice! It's a lot more work than I realized, but it will be worth it, I'm sure. My company's name is
Life's Solutions Counseling.
I have a web page & everything. But don't look yet, it's still being built. Also, more work than I realized. HA!

Chris is being very supportive. I've turned into the most boring wife. I'm always working on marketing, reading, or my financial business plan. I'm learning lots. Chris's grandfather has been teaching me the accounting, tax, legal aspect of setting up a business. Wow. He's an intelligent man! I'm lucky to get to pick apart his brain before he & his wife take off on a mission in 2 weeks.

For a while I'll be seeing private clients at my office in Orem, and a select few private clients at home. After a few months, when I have more of a clientele, I'll open an office in the Orem area. I'm excited to be doing this. I hope I can set it up to be successful, profiting, and helpful to all those who come see me. I'm planning on specializing in grief & loss (cause of personal experience), marriage counseling (cause I LOVE it), and work with Deaf and Hard of Hearing (cause I sign). If I need to add specialties, I can do that, but I've learned focus is power. Listen to me...I'm a small business owner! :)

Published

One of my widow friends asked me, and some of the girls I know that have been through similar experiences, if we wanted to submit an essay for a new book, "Alone But Not Lonely." Her friend was the editor for the book and there is a chapter on loss. She wanted us to share our experiences, advice, etc. I decided to submit an essay with my story and they accepted it. It was hard to write something so short when I could have written hundreds of pages about my experience. But I did it. Whew!

The book is only at Deseret Book, but I'm still excited to say I have something published! I don't have a copy yet but they should be mailing me one soon and a small check. If you are interested in checking it out, it's available at: http://deseretbook.com/store/product?sku=4959381

1st Year Down, On to #2

Chris & I recently celebrated our 1 year anniversary. We went camping in Hyrum, UT on the 2nd and then stayed at the Anniversary Inn in Logan, UT the following night. We had a blast. The weather was perfect. Shortly after camping the rain started coming down. We're lucky we picked the night we did!

On the 1st of June my sister & her husband, Lisa & Matt, blessed their baby, Natalie. She also won a local city's 0-3 month old girl photo contest. I got to escort her through the parade. It was fun! I hope my babies are as cute.

Shortly after our anniversary we returned home to find my scores on the National Counselor's Exam (NCE), I took on April 12, 2008. I was terrified to open it, as the test & all the study materials had cost me a small fortune, in addition to the fact that the test just SUCKS! But, I am happy to announce I passed it. In fact, I did better than passing, I kicked this tests trash! I'm on my way to getting my Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) licensure! This test qualifies me to be a Nationally Certified Counselor (NCC) to add to my Certified Professional Counselor (CPC) license. A lot of stupid letters if you ask me, but hopefully they each come with pay raises.

Chris continues to do well in his work with Novell. He covers the state of Illinois. He flew out to Chicago for a week last month. He received very positive feedback from companies he visited while there. He's quite persuasive, intelligent, & competent in his field. I'm proud of him. He's also loving taking care of our lawn and garden. We have one of the best yards in the neighborhood. Our aspens are taking root and the landscaping looks very nice. He's also enjoying riding the bike he bought last year now that the weather has improved. He also gets out golfing whenever he can. He loves to head to Victor, Idaho with his brother and dad for a friendly game or two of golf.

I'm currently working for an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) called Blomquist Hale Consulting Group, Inc. For those of you that don't know what an EAP is (the vast majority, I'm sure) we provide short-term counseling services to the employees of companies that contract with us. I get to see kids, teens, adults, couples, etc. I love it. It is exhausting though. I work 4 10-hour days, seeing 7-8 clients per day. I'm hoping to get my LPC soon, enabling me to open a private practice. That way I can hopefully see some Deaf clients, work less grueling hours, and possibly even make more $. We'll see...

I graduated from Gallaudet University in May 2007. Chris & his parents went out to DC with me. It was great to see everyone & FINALLY be done with school! The DC sites were beautiful as ever. I sure wish Utah vegetation grew like it does out there!

Chris & I have each gotten running shoes and are starting to run together. Chris bought me a pair for my birthday in April. I'd like to start doing a few 5Ks. Hopefully we'll get a couple in together this summer. If only they weren't always at 7:00 in the morning! I'd prefer something around 9:00 or, even 10:00.

I'm sure that's about enough for my very 1st post on this our new Francom Fam Blog.