Challenging Minds originated as a group behavioral health practice in Torrington, CT. Over the first two years, the practice added clinical providers to treat the whole person rather than focusing only on a client’s primary issue. As this holistic approach is adopted, clients tend to improve more quickly as they can independently put into practice the many things they learn in therapy. We currently employ nine mental health therapists, including two telehealth therapists. We frequently work with interns who are motivated to finish their degree work and join the field.
We offer online and in-person mental health therapy groups that are meant to foster a different style of therapy and encourage like-minded clients to learn and grow from each other’s experiences. This approach to therapy is highly beneficial and we hope to do more of it in the future.
Challenging Minds is aware of the impact that trauma can have on a person’s nervous system and ability to thrive in life. Three of our providers are trained in Accelerated Resolution Therapy, an evidence-based therapeutic treatment that utilizes features of EMDR and Gestalt therapy to consolidate painful memories so that, over time, they have less effect on the central nervous system. Many of those who receive this therapy overcome years of troubling cycles of behavior in a much shorter time than with traditional methods of talk therapy only.
Research in mental and behavioral health recovery has shown a strong correlation of additional holistic support and an individual’s ability to heal and maintain healing over time. In 2021, Challenging Minds opened a Wellness Center in Bantam, CT, to offer a separate set of holistic services, many found to reverse the damage done by trauma and/or chronic stimulation of the nervous system. Our diverse professionals at the Wellness Center offer therapeutic massages, Reiki, reflexology, yoga, meditation, and breathwork programs, as well as an infrared sauna. Each modality is meant to encourage the body to release tension, especially as they’re also working with a licensed therapist.
The Wellness Center offers each medium in specific treatment rooms designed to reduce stress and enhance well-being. The converted Victorian home where the Center is located has a studio feature, allowing services to be received all in one place. For complex cases, this can be an invaluable resource, as it allows different providers to work with the same client in tandem to support best outcomes.
Along with honoring different therapeutic modalities in-house, over the past two years, Challenging Minds has offered on-site services to local agencies, including on-site yoga and meditation and mindfulness for local residential programs, schools, and sports teams. Co-owners and therapists Melissa Hurley and Andrew Matusiak have given presentations at a local Woman’s Club Symposium and Prime Time House in Torrington and supported Torrington Middle School to celebrate and educate their students for Mental Health Awareness Day.
Mental health features do not live in a vacuum. It is the genuine purpose of our agency to treat the whole person and provide easy, direct access to a menu of evidenced-based service options to support healing and recovery.
The Wellness Center offers weekly Yoga/Meditation Classes in our studio in Bantam. In the lower part of the building, Massage, Reiki, Reflexology, and an Infrared Sauna are also available. Clinical providers are available in Torrington, Bantam, and online!
Call 860.361.6204 or email: andrewm@challengingminds.net, and visit: www.challengingminds.net for more information.