Cheryl Dornfeld, MA, LPCC

About

About Cheryl Dornfeld, MA, LPCC

Cheryl Dornfeld is a well-regarded psychotherapist committed to life-long learning and provides high quality, holistic, and transformative support.  Cheryl is an assistant for the Somatic Experiencing® Practitioner training program with Somatic Experiencing® International, holds a Master’s degree in Psychology, and has a strong background in yoga and coaching for wellbeing.

Approach to Therapy

Cheryl specializes in weaving Somatic Experiencing®, Polyvagal and Flow Theories, along with Self Compassion, Growth Mindset, and Wellbeing research to support clients in transforming chronic and acute stress, trauma, anxiety, and depression into more of the thriving that matters to her clients. Cheryl provides a non-judgmental safe space, and brings gentle humor, curiosity, and steadiness that foster empowering neurosomatic shifts, insights, sense of self and agency.

Typical Clients    

You may be new to therapy, looking for a change in therapy, or returning to therapy. You may be a college or grad student or an adult in an overwhelming experience or life change. You may be struggling with feelings of shut down, disconnection, overwhelm & checked out (stuck on ‘off’; ‘dorsal vagal dominance’), or, the opposite, constriction, irritability, restlessness, hyper-alertness, & fear (stuck on ‘on’; ‘sympathetic arousal’). Wherever you are in your mental health, you may also be passionate, committed, perceptive, & caring. Positive shifts & meaningful healing are possible with therapeutic work that integrates the body, along with the mind, emotions, & spirit. If this sounds like a good fit for you, I welcome you!

 

EDUCATION, LICENSURE, and CERTIFICATIONS

Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor: License # cc0463

Masters of Arts, Counseling and Psychological Services – Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN.

Somatic Experiencing® Practitioner (SEP): a body-centered approach to healing trauma and stress disorders. For more information visit https://traumahealing.org/. Additionally, I am an Assistant for the Somatic Experiencing® Institute, helping train other clinicians how to utilize SE in their practice.

Certified Intrinsic Coach®: elicits new thinking based on an “asset approach” to learning. This focuses and builds on the positive qualities a person already possesses but either do not yet realize they have, or are not yet able to access. For more information visit https://isintl.com/

Yoga Instructor Trained, 200 and 500 hour levels – with Swami Swarupananda, C-IAYT, E-RYT

Bachelors of Science, Kinesiology – University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN.

PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS

• USABP, US Association of Body Psychotherapy @ https://usabp.org/
• SE, Somatic Experiencing International @ https://traumahealing.org/
• ACA, American Counseling Association @ https://www.counseling.org/

MnCA, Minnesota Counseling Association @ https://www.mnca.org/

Specialization

• Adults
• College Students – undergraduate and graduate students
• Anger and Conflict
• Abuse: sexual, physical, emotional
• Anger and Conflict
• Anxiety
• Boundary and Communication Issues
• Chronic Pain
• Depression
• Grief / Death
• Life Transitions
• PTSD
• Relationship Issues
• Self Esteem and Confidence
• Stress
• Trauma
• Emotional Dysregulation – including post high impact accidents e.g. MVA

Services

• Body-mind/Neurosomatic-based approaches
• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
• Compassion Focused Therapy
• Emotion Focused Therapy
• Mindfulness-based approaches
• Somatic Experiencing®
• Wellbeing-based approaches
• Individual Therapy
• In-Person and Online Therapy