This healthcare professional says stress associated with work, family are today’s top stressors.
Sally Tixier realized in high school that she wanted to spend her career helping others feel better.
“It started when I took my first psychology class,” Tixier told Beneath the Surface News. “When I was looking at undergrad programs, I chose a school with a good psychology program and I just kind of fell in love with helping people find solutions to whatever is affecting them.”
Tixier is a licensed professional counselor at Hamilton General Hospital’s Solutions Behavioral Health Department.
She is certified in anger resolution, anxiety and trauma and treats patients as young as 10 years old.
Tixier began counseling in 2017 after earning a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Sociology from Florida Atlantic University and a Master of Art in Forensic Psychology from the University of Houston-Victoria.
Today, she lives in Stephenville, but works in Hamilton.
Tixier said her chosen line of profession is fulfilling, especially when she sees positive changes in her clients. One of her mentors called those moments “pay days.”
“It feels good to watch clients make that breakthrough and start feeling better,” she said. “When they no longer need me and can be discharged… those are pay days.”
Tixier says anxiety associated with family conflict or unhappiness with their job are the most common problems her clients face.
“Everybody needs help. Sometimes talking a stranger is easier that talking to a friend or family member,” she said.
And seeking help in a setting like the one in Hamilton is conducive to a more personalized way of care.
“This department has a completely different atmosphere than what I have worked in before,” she said “It’s welcoming and inviting; like family.”
Tixier sees patients from 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. on Tuesdays and Wednesdays and from 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. on Thursdays and Fridays.
For more information or to schedule an appointment, call 254-386-1800.
