Dawn Vollink, LMSW

Licensed Master’s Social Worker

We all experience difficult times in our lives. Perhaps this is from a loss, a broken relationship, a health challenge, a difficult decision or just feeling a loss of direction. At these times, it can be helpful to have an objective person with whom to explore options, obstacles and changes necessary to find our way. Often messages we’ve internalized through our lives get in the way of making progress — messages and beliefs about ourselves, life, relationships, trust, etc. And sometimes we don’t even know those beliefs lie within us. Part of our journey may be to find those messages that are unhealthy and replace them with more accurate ones. I feel honored to be invited into the journey with you to find direction for your life. I see the process of therapy as us being a team, working together to find what’s going to be best for you at this particular time in your life.

I attended Hope College and its Vienna Summer School in my undergraduate years. My first career was teaching high school English, which led me to become a therapist. From being involved in school extracurricular activities like sports (as a coach), theater, ski club and forensics, I realized that I was much more interested in how students were doing than in what they learned academically. So I pursued my Masters of Social Work from Western Michigan University, graduating in 1985. After working at a psychiatric hospital, I joined one of the psychiatrists in his private practice. I have taught a few classes at WMU in both the Social Work and Holistic Health departments and also worked in an outpatient community mental health facility before coming to CFPS in 1995.

Outside of work, I love my Lake Michigan cottage in Holland, where I spent summers as a child with my family. I also enjoy many outside activities including golf, bicycling, walking, photography and just watching a beautiful sunset.

Services

• Individual therapy
• Couples therapy (including same sex couples)
• Group therapy

Adults (age 18 and up)

Specialties

• Depression
• Anxiety
• Bipolarity
• Gay, lesbian and bisexual issues
• Grief and loss
• Health issues
• Relationship issues
• Self-esteem challenges
• Healing from a difficult past
• Psychodrama and action techniques
• Women’s issues

Please inquire about other specialty areas