Our Team

Jessica Zimmerman

LMHC, Founder, Clinical Director/Supervisor, EMDRIA Approved Consultant

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How I Can Help You

I strongly believe in the connection between attachment, relationships, the mind, play, the body, and memory. When working with clients and viewing the world as a whole, I use a trauma-informed and attachment-based lens. You are the expert in your own life, and we all encounter adversity, hurt, disappointment, tragedy, and loss throughout our lives. My goal is to facilitate a counseling experience where you feel seen, heard, understood, nurtured, and cared for.

Having overcome much adversity in my own life and having been a client with a counselor who was not a good fit, I understand the importance of finding the right counselor for you. It's unrealistic to expect that every client who walks through our door will be a perfect fit, but we want to find the right fit for you. I always empower clients to let us know what kind of person they need as a counselor to feel emotionally safe.

My goal after each session is for you to feel calmer, better, and more hopeful than when you came in. Healing is a journey, similar to a long road trip. There is no reward for speed; you set the pace and make the big decisions. We are here to navigate and support you along the way.

  • Hello, I was born and raised in the greater Fort Wayne area and attended grade school at Fort Wayne Community Schools. After leaving the area for college and graduate school, I believed I would not return to Fort Wayne permanently. However, I found my way back home in the spring of 2003 after graduating from graduate school. Over time, I have come to love and appreciate northeast Indiana and the city of Fort Wayne.

    Having experienced a significant amount of adversity and trauma in my life, I have always been drawn to understanding how the mind and body work in response to overcoming hardship. I discovered the field of trauma and attachment years after graduating with my Master's degree and knew I had found my passion and purpose. Many people do not realize that the traumas experienced during childhood and adolescence are often the root cause of medical, physical, emotional, and mental struggles in adulthood and throughout life.

    While in graduate school, I had a dream of someday building a Healing Center. This dream became a reality in the winter of 2010 when I started working two evenings a week, renting a furnished office from a colleague after working a full day as an elementary school counselor. I also worked weekends at a local emergency room as a psychiatric emergency assessor. My little side hustle eventually grew into Willow Center For Healing. As the founder and clinical director, my passion is to make the world a better place by helping people heal one person at a time.

    When I'm not working, I enjoy traveling, especially to new places with different cultures and customs, reading, and spending time with my family. I live with my two school-age daughters who keep me on my toes in a house full of pets and plants. My favorite color is purple, and I make a pilgrimage for self-care every year to the ocean. The beach is my place.

  • Kids

    Tweens

    Teens

    Adults

    Families

    Parents

    Professionals

  • EMDR

    Internal Family Systems

    Existential

    Parts Work

    Sand Tray

    Person-Centered

    Humanistic

    LGBTQA + Affirming Care

  • PTSD/Complex PTSD

    Trauma

    Anxiety

    Depression

    Adoption

    Parent Coaching

    EMDR Intensives

    Retreats

    Relationships

    Childhood Developmental Trauma

    Dissociation

  • As the clinical director of Willow Center For Healing, Executive Director of Willow Center for Hope, and EMDRIA Approved Consultant and training coach, Jessica is no longer accepting new weekly clients. She does offer EMDR Consultation to colleagues, monthly EMDR Intensives and hosts retreats for healers. She also provides training, CE's and speaking engagements.

    As an EMDR Consultant Jessica teaches and collaborates with clinicians all across the country and Canada. She is passionate about supporting colleagues in the early learning stages of EMDR, increasing confidence, providing support and normalizing the learning curve. She is sought out for consultation on EMDR with children and teens, attachment disruptions, dissociation, complex PTSD and EMDR Intensives.

    Jessica is also the founder of Willow Center For Hope, a non-profit focused on trauma-informed consulting and education to the community.