Vicki Tucker
My greatest passion is to set you on the path to healing with a gentle, healing touch. We will do this together so that you feel you are in a safe and comfortable place to explore your deepest concerns and your truth that lies within. I have seen human pain and suffering from all sides. My study of psychology, since I was a young woman, has taken the forms of nursing, attorney, and now fulfilling my deepest desire, therapy.
I believe that my life experiences have been my best teacher. I grew up beside the beautiful lakes of Iowa at my grandmother’s cabins. I can still remember the beauty of the rolling waves on the blue, blue water, the exquisite sunsets, and the robin’s nest in a tree outside the bedroom window with an attentive mother robin that laid beautiful blue eggs.
It was here, at my grandmother’s knee, that I learned the essence of love and human connection. She never met anyone that wasn’t her immediate friend. I watched as she listened to people everywhere she went. It wasn’t long before they would be pouring their hearts out to her. It was clear that their cares would melt away, if only for a few minutes. This affected me deeply and I knew I would make this my life’s quest, to relieve pain and suffering.
My belief is that when a people are not living life as their authentic selves, they begin to feel disconnected, helpless, alone, and hopeless. It takes strength and vulnerability to come to therapy. That’s why it is important to find the right therapist for you. The relationship between therapist and client can be as important as the therapist’s skills. If you think we would be a good fit, it would be my pleasure to help you. Please just give me a call.
By the way, my grandmother lived to be 103. I think she did know some secrets to a happy, fulfilling life which she passed on to so many. I would like to do the same.
Vicki Tucker, MA, LPC, LAC, MSN, RN, JD
The Beginning of My Path to Healing Paths Counseling and the Healing Touch
It all began innocently enough with a neighborhood Bible study. I was six years old and very impressionable, as six year old’s will be. Miss Thieson had a felt board and felt Bible characters. She told the most fascinating stories. I was mesmerized and knew, even at six years old that she was changing my life. You see my Dad was an alcoholic, and I didn’t know it, but I already needed healing. I have carried her healing touch with me for the rest of my life and it led me to here.
Then it began to be my turn to offer the healing touch which I joyfully embraced. In middle school, I became a candy striper. This is a volunteer in a hospital where we delivered flowers, gave patients fresh water, and spent time with them sharing their stories, and offering friendship. I loved it! The patients seemed to feel the same about me.
Very soon many patients began calling me sunshine and couldn’t wait for my next visit. I felt the same way. I learned the power of the healing touch and human connection. People naturally confided in me, and for a moment, their cares seemed to melt away.
It seems like healing should be easy, doesn’t it? However, sometimes it takes the outstretched hand of someone trained and caring to get you on that path. Then empower you to search within for your own truths which once recognized and brought to the surface, can allow you to safely and comfortably go through the pain, so it can be released. The release of pain allows a person to live life in the joyful, complete, satisfying way you were always meant to.
My Path to here has been long, winding and fulfilling
My love for working with patients in the hospital led me to get a Bachelor of Science degree (B.S.N.) in Nursing at Wichita State University in 1975. I graduated Summa Cum Laude from my nursing program with a minor degree in psychology. My love for psychology has always been there and a thread through all of my education and experiences.
My interest in pregnancy and mental health was present at the University of Colorado through my Master’s thesis on Psychological Stressors during pregnancy. Perhaps my greatest accomplishment during my Master’s program was the development of a prenatal screening tool that when administered during the first trimester, can identify stressors which actively affect the pregnant woman’s mental state at the time it is administered.
This screening tool is also indicative of the likelihood of the development of postpartum depression and/or anxiety that can interfere with healthy bonding and attachment between mother and infant, and can detrimentally impact the whole family. I administer this instrument in my current practice. Dads as well as Moms have found this tool extremely useful for strengthening the parents, the parental relationships, and the family.
I went on to teach Baccalaureate level student nurses and post graduate, advanced practice level graduate nursing students for ten years. I was named to Who’s Who in American Nursing in 1988-1989 as a result of my work in Maternal-Child Nursing, and as an educator of nursing students in the area of obstetrical nursing.
Working in the field of Maternal-Child nursing, I saw many children severely mistreated in their own homes and in the foster care system. I saw families that just couldn’t cope, were overwhelmed, and seemed consumed in the chaos. Parents and children were lost and suffering and the system wasn’t helping them, if anything it was making it worse.
Thinking I could help modify the system, I went to law school. In 1993, I earned a Juris Doctor, J.D., at the University of Houston. I chose this program because they had a health-law curriculum that has been rated number one in the country over many years.
After graduation, I became a Guardian ad Litem (GAL), a lawyer for abused and neglected children, and I have fought in court for abused and neglected children that are in foster care. I have succeeded in several cases to obtain the funding that these children needed to get life-long care and treatment and a chance for a good life.
Now I am fulfilling my deepest desires
As I worked ever more closely with adults, families and children, it was not enough for me to try to help them from the distance of the courtroom. I wanted to share all of my hard-earned knowledge and experience to help others find their paths to healing from mental health issues, and realize the ultimate fulfillment of their needs, hopes, and dreams. I am devoted to providing the healing touch for my clients in this quest.
As a result, I went back to school one more time, to attain my ultimate goal of combining everything I have learned over many years of gathering the information and experience I need to meet the complex mental health needs and spiritual needs of my clients. I received a Master of Arts in Counseling (M.A.), from the Denver Seminary in 2009, graduating with Honors.
What Sets Me Apart From Other Therapists
I bring to my practice a rich history of life and professional experiences. I am committed to helping and healing people with mental health and spiritual concerns. My extensive helping background includes being a caring and compassionate therapist, psychiatric nurse in hospitals and residential treatment centers for adolescents, educator, researcher, and attorney.
I am devoted to adolescents and families struggling through the growing pains of impending adulthood, as well as adolescents and adults who have suffered extensive trauma and abuse. I have worked with national and international experts, and I have advanced trauma training aimed at bringing relief to this suffering.
My experience includes 20 years of providing intensive in-patient ant out-patient therapy with adolescents and adults. My therapeutic experience includes providing therapy for adults and adolescents with chronic psychological issues, sexual abuse issues, and criminal justice and delinquency concerns. I have extensive experience working with adolescents who have been, or are in, the foster care system, the criminal justice system, and the dependency and neglect system.