Leah McMillan, DPA, LMFT, EMDR-T, CFRC obtained her B.A. in Criminal Justice (2000), her M.S. in Marriage and Family Therapy (2004) and her Doctor in Public Administration with a concentration in Higher Education (2011) from Valdosta State University. While enrolled in the master's program she completed an internship and practicum at the Moore Street Clinic and at The Haven Rape Crisis Center in Valdosta, GA. After completing her Masters in Marriage and Family Therapy, Leah worked as a full-time Child & Adolescent therapist at Behavioral Health Services, a local community mental health service board, facilitating an intensive Day Treatment program for emotionally and behaviorally disturbed children and adolescents. In addition, she worked for over 9 years at the VSU Counseling Center; the university’s mental health clinic as a Senior Staff Counselor, then as an Assistant Director, and last the Interim Director. Currently, Dr. McMillan works full-time in private practice at EnSpire Counseling & Wellness, LLC (founder/owner) in Valdosta, Georgia. She has worked in private practice for over 10 years. In addition, Leah obtained her certifications as a Certified First Responder Counselor (the only CFRC in our area), Certified Grief Informed Professional, and is a QPR Trainer for suicide awareness and prevention. Dr. McMillan has extensive clinical experience ranging from being a rape crisis advocate/domestic violence assessor for The Haven, to a child & adolescent therapist for BHS, an Intensive Family Intervention (IFI) team leader/clinical supervisor for Child & Family Guidance, and Interim Director/Assistant Director/Licensed Clinician for the VSU Counseling Center. She has been clinically licensed as a LMFT since 2006 and is an active member (clinical fellow) of AAMFT and GAMFT. Currently, Dr. McMillan serves as Chair of the South Georgia GAMFT Chapter. Her clinical path has allowed her to gain significant knowledge and experience in the field of mental health and counseling and is identified as a trauma specialist. She provides ongoing counseling in the areas of individual (children, adolescents, and adults), family, marital/couple, and group treatments with a focus on the specialty areas and psychopathology of PTSD/trauma, intimate partner violence, sexual assault, child abuse, bereavement/loss, depression, anxiety, mood disorders, suicide prevention, couple/marital/pre-marital, and compassion fatigue/secondary traumatic stress with first responders. Dr. McMillan specializes in an eclectic modality of therapy utilizing eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) therapy, BLAST, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy (TF-CBT), solution-focused therapy, and mindfulness. In addition, Dr. McMillan trains, consults, and speaks to agencies and organizations on Compassion Fatigue and Burnout, Suicide Prevention, PTSD and Trauma, Workplace Violence, and the Importance of Wellness. She has been awarded multiple community awards from the American Counseling Association (ACA) for the Virginia Tech Pro-Boning Counseling Initiative after the Virginia Tech massacre in 2007, Service to VSU’s Division of Student Affairs in 2005, and the Rape Crisis Award in 2003. Dr. McMillan was elected as part of Leadership Lowndes in 2012 and recognized for her contributions to Leadership Lowndes in 2013. Currently, Leah serves as Board Member for United2Prevent, Board Member for Partnership for Health, and Member of the Lowndes County Sexual Assault Response Team (SART).