Press Release - Grand Opening
Friday, 09 October 2009 18:00
GRAND OPENING CELEBRATION FOR HOUSTON MIND-BODY COUNSELING, LLC
NOW HOUSTON HAS A CENTER DEVOTED TO MIND-BODY SCIENCE
HOUSTON, October 8, 2009 – “Houston Mind-Body Counseling will open its doors for business October 15, 2009 with a grand opening celebration from 6 pm to 10 pm and open to the general public,” explained Center President and Nurse-Psychotherapist Dr. Tom Rodriguez. The Center is devoted to Mind-Body techniques and is the private practice of Dr. Tom Rodriguez, an advanced-practice registered nurse, board certified as an adult primary healthcare nurse practitioner and psychiatric clinical nurse specialist. Houston Mind-Body Counseling is located at 3400 Montrose Blvd., in Suite 307.
Mind-Body techniques have grown greatly in appeal and use in America. A web search, for example, will yield pages upon pages of web sites. “Some web sites of course, claim to utilize mind-body techniques but really just borrow the name. However, there are numerous places where these techniques are being utilized by practitioners from varying disciplines in a way that complements modern medicine,” explained Dr. Rodriguez. Perhaps the best-known site (although we are not affiliated with them) is the Benson-Henry Institute at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School. Mind-Body techniques are helpful, powerful, and supported by scientific evidence (see Lehrer, Woolfolk, & Sime, 2007 for an excellent review of the stress-management field and research). They include techniques such as progressive muscle relaxation, hypnosis/autogenic training, cognitive therapy, biofeedback, meditation, and Yoga. These techniques are not voodoo! They work by making changes in the endocrine, immune, and nervous systems.
The Center’s services will include intensive workshops where small groups of people can receive training in mind-body techniques. Programs offered will target illness prevention and high-level wellness, blood pressure and heart health, diabetes mellitus, chronic pain, obesity, and smoking – some of the most common, troublesome, and costly ailments in the Western world! “As effective as modern medicine is today, I believe better outcomes can be obtained through a combination of medicine and complementary therapies,” said Dr. Rodriguez. Of course, psychiatric assessment, case formulation, counseling/life-coaching, as well as, individual, group, couples and family therapy will also be offered.
Although not exactly a rags to riches story, Dr. Rodriguez has overcome many obstacles and set a few precedents in his life. He achieved a doctoral education despite being of Hispanic descent and humble beginnings. Further, “I was probably the first nurse practitioner in Austin Texas to have his own prescription pad and prescribe medications,” he said. “Now nurse practitioners do this all the time.” He also did the unexpected by conducting a clinical trial for his dissertation research. Now, he is among the few nurses who own their own practices. “In Texas, the laws are not written in a way that promotes entrepreneurship by nurses,” he explained. [Reference: Lehrer, P. M., Woolfolk, R. L., & Sime, W. E (Eds). (2007). Principles and practice of stress management, (3rd ed). New York: Guilford Press.]
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Houston Mind-Body Counseling, LLC is independently owned by Dr. Tom Rodriguez, an advanced practice registered nurse. The Center focuses on utilizing the mind to create positive change in behavior and physiology. The company’s web site is being built as this release goes out and is available at www.houstonmindbodycounseling.com.