Our mission is to provide high quality, holistic therapy services for people across North Carolina and surrounding communities, from Watauga, Ashe, and Avery counties to Pitt, Beaufort, and Craven counties.
Our Team
Dr. Erin Sesemann, PhD, LMFT, CBIS
(she/her/hers)
Founder, Owner
Location: Boone office and online therapy
I take a holistic approach to therapy with the aim of helping my clients improve their overall well-being by bridging the mind-body connection. With specialized training in Medical Family Therapy, EMDR therapy, and certification as a brain injury specialist, I actively integrate brain and body health into therapy through a variety of different approaches. I strive to create an open, non-judgmental space for people from diverse backgrounds and identities.
I am a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in North Carolina and Virginia. I am also an approved Professional Counselor Telehealth Provider in South Carolina, AAMFT Clinical Fellow, and AAMFT Approved Supervisor. Confirm licenses at NCBMFT, VADHP, and SC Board of Examiners.
Dr. Erin’s Background
My journey in holistic health began during my undergraduate education as I competed as a collegiate athlete. As an student-athlete, I was interested in how my body and mind affected my athletic performance. I came away from this experience appreciating just how closely the mind and body are connected.
Through my graduate education, I specialized in assessing and treating individuals, couples, and families with consideration of how their culture, societal norms, community, schools, and the environment affect them. This includes paying specific attention to how the healthcare system plays a pivotal role in many people’s well-being.
I completed my Medical Family Therapy Pre-Doctoral Internship at the C.A.R.F Accredited Rehabilitation Center in Vidant Medical Center, a 900-bed academic medical center in Greenville, North Carolina. Here, I helped start the Medical Family Therapy program for the Rehabilitation Center that provided family therapy to individuals and families who recently experienced life-altering illness or injury that often resulted in new disability. I worked on issues like relationship conflict, family stress, coping, depression, anxiety, grief/loss, adjustment, and PTSD with people who experienced traumatic brain injury, spinal cord injuries or back surgeries, stroke, cancer, amputation, heart failure, and other types of health conditions or medical traumas.
To me, holistic health also means good communication within your healthcare team. At the rehab center, I collaborated with healthcare professionals from a variety of different disciplines: physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech language pathology, recreation therapy, social work, physical medicine and rehabilitation, rehabilitation nursing. Now, in my own practice, I want to discuss what your healthcare team means to you and I am invested in helping you work better with your team.
The last thing I want to mention about holistic health is that it includes the health of the team members too. Healthy professionals are important to building the foundation of an effective healthcare team. Therefore, I want to give a shout out to all employees within the healthcare system! I witnessed the immense toll it takes on people to be employees within this system. As such, I focused my dissertation on developing recommendations for actions that organizations could take to reduce burnout and improve health through addressing employees’ job stress and social connectedness at work. The results of my dissertation titled, “Healthcare Employees Burnout, Job Stress, Health, and Workplace Social Networks: Addressing the Quadruple Aim,” was published in the peer reviewed journal Families, Systems, & Health and continues to inform my work with clients today.
Education
- PhD in Medical Family Therapy from East Carolina University
- MS in Marriage and Family Therapy from Oklahoma State University
Credentials
- Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (NC LMFT #2067, VA LMFT #0717002199)
- Professional Counselor Telehealth Provider (SC TLC #257)
- Fully-trained in Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) Therapy
- Certified Brain Injury Specialist
- Certified in Prepare & Enrich Inventory Assessment
- AAMFT Clinical Fellow
- American Association for Marriage and Family Approved Supervisor
- Certified in safeTALK Suicide Prevention
Training in
- Trauma-focused Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy
- Mindfulness-based Stress Reduction
- Dialectical Behavior Therapy
- Filial Therapy
Dr. Frandrea Brown, PhD, LMFT
(she/her/hers)
Medical Family Therapist
Location: Online therapy
I have over 15 years of experience in the mental health field, working with individuals and families in both medical and community settings. Pursuing my passion and commitment to serving others led me to specialized training. I hold dual master’s degrees in Youth and Family Community Sciences and Marriage and Family Therapy. Then, wanting additional education and training to help communities impacted by chronic health conditions and medical systems, I earned my PhD in Medical Family Therapy with a certification in Rural Health Disparities. I am also a AAMFT approved supervisor and supervise the integration of the Medical Family Therapy team into ECU Health Medical Center’s Rehabilitation program in Greenville, NC.
Dr. Brown's Background & Approach
As a medical family therapist, I take a holistic approach to mental health, honoring the complex interplay between biological, psychological, social, and spiritual factors in each client’s life. I ground my therapy in the belief that sustainable change happens when we consider the whole person—not just symptoms.
My therapeutic style is collaborative and patient-centered, with a strong emphasis on creating a safe, supportive space where clients can explore their stories and strengths at their own pace. I utilize Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) as my primary theory of change, helping clients identify and shift unhelpful thought patterns, build healthier behaviors, and promote emotional resilience.
Through a trauma-focused lens, I strive to meet clients where they are, honoring their lived experiences while gently guiding them toward healing and growth. I’m trained in EMDR therapy and use this treatment to help clients with issues like PTSD, medical trauma, intimate partner violence or domestic violence, and intimacy problems.
NC LMFT # 00558