Today we’d like to introduce you to Britain Shaw.
Hi Britain, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I didn’t know I wanted to be a Licensed Professional Counselor until after I received my BA in Psychology. When I chose that major, I had dreams of being a Doctor of Psychology and working in prisons for prisoners’ rights and advocacy. After working in a few different fields in mental health, I narrowed what I wanted to do down to being a mental health counselor of some kind, and for that, I had to take that next step into my Master’s Program; however, having a 2.4 GPA, I knew I was going to have to accept a lot of rejections and took the jump anyway. I landed an internship position under the scope of Cary Scott, LPC-S, and she was really the driving force to become the counselor I am today. I was pushed out of my comfort zone and given opportunities to build my confidence as I continued under her into my LPC Associate license. I earned my certificate in Therapeutic Tabletop Gaming, got into public speaking, and learned more about who I was as a counselor and a professional. Through that confidence, after I received my Licensed Professional Counselor license, I leaped into building Ouroboros Counseling LLC where we focus on storytelling, making meaning out of myths, and constructing who we are through the words we use to write our stories.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It’s had its bumps along the way, but each one has been a valuable lesson for the next. I was in my master’s program when COVID hit, and I had to take an extra semester because no one was letting new interns in because of the switch to online platforms. As a counselor, I had to face myself and face my fears of looking like I wasn’t intelligent. I put myself on a platform below my colleagues because I was fresh out of college. Using Tabletop Gaming as a mode of therapy is also something many don’t take seriously, and I had to learn to advocate for the legitimacy of who I was as a counselor, including just being able to talk about it! Then, when I opened Ouroboros Counseling, all the learning curves come with starting a business and what that looks like for the future.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Ouroboros Counseling was named after the myth of Ouroboros, the snake that eats itself. I got some of the inspiration from a few art pieces I saw that had the snake biting its own tail off to break the cycle, with the quote “When will you finally get sick of the taste of your own blood in your mouth?” I have always loved the stories and myths behind constellations, and when I saw that, I realized the Ouroboros can be a powerful symbol to show the breaking of cycles.
Ouroboros Counseling is, at its heart, a place where clients can come in and share their story with us, knowing that it’s going to be heard and honored by either me or by our Certified Professional Life Coach, Thomas Shuman. As writers, we understand the power of words and how they are used to evoke emotions and action, so in turn, we offer our clients a safe place to rewrite the narratives they tell themselves and help them continue to create that story in a way that is constructive to them. Some of this is through more traditional styles of therapy and life coaching, but this really comes out in the tabletop role-playing therapy we use!
Through this method, we are able to offer a new space for clients beyond the therapy room and into a world that we create together with our clients. We use a variety of games with a variety of settings to help best fit our clients needs, both individual and group. This allows them to create a character and a story that is meaningful to them both in and out of the therapy room. They are free to write and rewrite as many versions of themselves as they want to practice skills, learn new things about themselves, and figure out who they are.
Outside of therapy and coaching, we also offer presentations on the subjects of tabletop gaming and tabletop therapy. Both Thomas and myself have a number of years under our belt playing, using, and writing tabletop gaming and it’s uses in therapy and coaching settings.
Can you talk to us a bit about happiness and what makes you happy?
On a professional level? Seeing my clients growth, no matter how small. It’s all those little “AH-HA” moments when the work finally clicks with them in a meaningful way.
On a personal level? I love going to festivals and metal concerts, anything with big energy. I also love playing games of all kinds with my partners and spending time with them in a cozy space.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://ouroboroscounseling.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ouroboroscounseling/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/Ouroboros-Counseling/61565365571758/
