Hannah Fordham, Counselor

01/04/2021

Thank you to all who have supported me and trusted me to provide counseling services for you or a loved one in 2020. I am excited to announce that the new year has brought in some changes for me. I will now be providing counseling services at Leigh Anne White and Company in Vidalia. If you are interested in the services that we provide you can check out our website at https://lawhite.net/. Looking forward to all that this year has in store!

Leigh-Anne White & Company

10/13/2020

I asked this question of parents yesterday and within one hour I had over 50 responses from parents confirming that they used to or still do have disturbing visualizations of harm coming to their children.

I learned a a few things from this post:

- After having children, many/most parents develop a new gift (or curse) that allows them to anticipate nearly any and everything that could go wrong as it relates to their child

- This "gift" can be very disturbing at times as it often manifests as very vivid scenarios played out visually as opposed to uncomfortable mental thoughts that come and go in passing

- This experience is often more intense when the children are first born but does not seem to ever fully "go away" no matter how old the children are

- The visualizations are often of things that would be very unlikely to happen but are still scary because there is the slightest chance that it could

- Many parents (especially mothers) are critical of themselves or receive criticism from others because they have had these intense fears

- Having experienced a trauma with a loved one in the past can intensify these fears

- Parents respond differently to these visualizations resulting in varied styles of parenting that can include "helicopter parenting" that has the potential to create conflict in the family

- Many parents report that prayer has helped to respond more effectively to these scary scenarios

- This experience appears to be completely normal though many parents suffer with these fears alone thinking they are the only ones who have experienced them

- If you have these fears you are not "weird", "crazy", or "overreacting." You are a parent who loves your child and would do anything to protect them, which is completely normal in my book.

*While these concerns are completely normal as a parent, if you are experiencing crippling fear and anxiety that is preventing you from completing normal day to day tasks, you may benefit from counseling to help you process these feelings. Let me know if I can help!

09/16/2020

Sometimes you just need a few safari animal hand puppets to get to the “good stuff.”
Lately I’ve been pleasantly surprised at how many kids have picked up the one elephant hand puppet I had in my play room and urged me to bring him to life. There’s just something about a fluffy little imagined personality that makes it easier to communicate the things that seem unspeakable. Needless to say I quickly realized that my elephant needed some friends.

09/09/2020

Faith and Finances course available soon in Lyons.

08/31/2020

If you have Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield insurance now is a great time to take advantage of telemental health services. If you choose to meet virtually there will be no co-pay and 100% of your cost will be covered. Sounds like a no-brainer to me! Let me know if I can help!

08/19/2020

If you’ve ever wondered if you’re being affected by depression, anxiety or stress this is a simple questionnaire you can take to get an idea of how severe your symptoms may be.

If you find that your results are concerning I’ll be happy to provide some support as you work to regain some balance and control in your life. We accept insurance and self-pay services. My office is in Vidalia but I can meet in-person, on the phone or video conference so don’t let distance stop you from taking care of yourself.

Psychological test measuring Depression Anxiety Stress.

06/09/2020

Don't be a personal space invader! So cute!

06/08/2020

And if these things don't help maybe you could use someone to talk to. 🙋🏼‍♀️

As of June 1st we are back in the office providing services while also continuing to offer telehealth services if you're not quite ready to venture back out yet. Let me know if I can help!

06/05/2020

Just want to take a moment to tell everyone how grateful I am for your support and let you know that I haven't been posting very much because I am staying busy with sessions. I am so happy that I decided to trust that God would provide if I took this step. The practice that I work for continues to flourish and I give Him all the glory!

05/30/2020

Looking forward to officially resuming in-office services June 1st! I will continue to offer telehealth services if you wish to continue social distancing while taking care of your mental health needs. Let me know if I can help!