Daphne Wiggins, a Licensed Clinical Mental Health Associate, completed the MA
in Mental Health Counseling “Summa Cum Laude” at North Carolina Central in 2018. She also earned
a specialization in Addictions Counseling. She has counseled persons with
substance use disorder, anxiety, depression, bereavement, career transitions,
marriage and interpersonal stress, and spiritual and cultural challenges. She
utilizes Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Motivational Interviewing, Solution
Focused Therapy and Reality Therapy as theoretical starting points with a
commitment to adapt interventions to be culturally relevant to the client. Dr.
Wiggins is also a licensed substance abuse counselor (LCASA) and worked as a
clinician at Recovery Innovations, Inc., a facility-based crisis center for three
years.
Dr. Wiggins believes that we all have untapped strengths and resilience.
“Counseling is not about being “broken” and having an expert fix you. It is a
process where the client identifies a problem/goal to address, identifies his/her
strengths and resources, and confronts their stumbling blocks with support .
Counseling can be for when we feel like we’re running on “E” or when we need a
wellness tune-up.” Her passion for counseling was ignited while working with
college students as Associate Chaplain at Brown University many years ago.
She gleaned more insight into the challenges youth face as a volunteer for an
“at-risk” youth program in Atlanta GA. Since then, she has worked with students
– mature adults and couples. She has particular interests in imposter syndrome,
the familial impact of substance abuse, racial trauma, and spirituality as a mental
health resource/impediment.
Dr. Wiggins clinical training builds upon over 30 years in Christian ministry
including pastoral ministry, university chaplaincy, and teaching. She earned her
M. Divinity degree from Eastern Baptist Theological Seminary and her PHD from
Emory University in Liberal Arts. She has been on the faculties of Texas
Christian University and Duke Divinity School. She is the author of Righteous
Content: Black Women’s Perspectives of Church and Faith (NYU Press, 2004).
In her self-care time she is an avid walker, loves to crochet and is hooked on
audiobooks.
