Mental Health Counseling for Women

Women's Resource Center offers free mental health counseling sessions to uninsured and underinsured women from Catawba, Burke, Caldwell and Alexander counties.

We currently have 3 licensed counselor available, and all counseling sessions are BY APPOINTMENT ONLY.

Jennifer Shepherd, MA LCMHC has served the Foothills region of NC as a change agent, manager, and direct service professional in the mental health industry for over 16 years. She is licensed in North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Virginia as a professional counselor. She serves individuals through group, family, and one-on-one therapy. In addition to serving through the Women’s Resource Center, Jennifer contracts as a therapist through Teladoc and conducts trainings and workshops on topics including the 8 areas of wellness identified by SAMHSA and Stress First Aid.

Jennifer obtained her Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology with an emphasis in Industrial/Organizational Psychology from Davidson College and her Master of Arts in Mental Health Counseling with School Counseling Licensure from Lenoir Rhyne University. She is currently pursuing her MBA at Lenoir Rhyne University with a concentration on Executive Management. Personally, she identifies herself as an individual with lived experience and someone thriving in life despite challenges with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, ADHD, and Generalized Anxiety Disorder. She has presented locally and at the state level including at previous i2i conferences, 2019 NC NAMI Conference and NC TIDE in 2024. She has been recognized for excellence in collaboration with crisis services, for excellence in outpatient services and for service to the community. She has served North Carolina communities through the deliverables of three SAMHSA grants.

Sara Nafziger-Shelly, LCSW,BCD is a licensed clinical social worker with 30 years of experience working with individuals, families, children, and adolescents. Having been employed as a therapist in public and private settings, Sara has discovered many effective tools to work with her clientele. She combines traditional evidence-based methods such as psychodynamic, rational emotive therapy, cognitive-behavioral therapy, client-centered therapy, Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR), and Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) with non-traditional expressive modalities such as sand-tray therapy, dream work, and art therapy. Sara specializes in complex trauma, personality disorders, adjustment disorders, anxiety, spiritual direction, life transitions, and grief, to name a few. She believes that therapy is not a cure, but a guide to assist people through life’s journey. As a partner (co-facilitator) in her client’s healing, Sara believes that each client has the answer within themselves. Additionally, Sara treats the whole person - spirit, mind, and body. Sara believes we are whole people, that mind, body, and spirit are inseparable.

Dominique S. Hammonds, Ph.D., LCMHCS, NCC, BC-TMH is a Professor in the Clinical Professional Counseling program at the University of Maryland Global Campus. She earned her Ph.D. in Counselor Education and Supervision from The University of North Carolina at Charlotte and her master's in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from The University of North Carolina at Greensboro. She is a Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor Supervisor, National Certified Counselor, and Board Certified Telemental Health provider.

She is a Past President of the North Carolina Counseling Association, the Secretary Elect of the Southern Association for Counselor Education and Supervision, and is an active member of the counseling community. She is passionate about increasing mental health awareness and access to quality, culturally conscious mental health care in a global society. Her clinical, scholarship, and professional service activities center around a variety of subjects including: a) culturally conscious teaching, counseling and clinical supervision, b) creative teaching and supervision methods, c) technology in counseling, and d) sex therapy.

In addition to her work in education and research, she collaborates with community partners, engages in clinical work, and participates in community outreach. Dr. Hammonds has been featured by WRAL News, National Public Radio, The Shade Room, Counseling Today, and The Thoughtful Counselor Podcast - in addition to authoring scholarly publications and giving over 80 professional, statewide, regional, national, and international presentations.

If you would like to schedule a counseling appointment or to obtain additional information about this program, please call our front desk (828-322-6333) or click on the link below to send us an email.