Carisa Bustillos Givens, LPC

I focus on clients presenting a wide range of concerns, including grief, loss, and life transitions. I also specialize in work and career-related stress, family-dynamic challenges, and perinatal mental health concerns.

My passion for mental health advocacy began parallel to my journey as a young widow in 2007, at the age of 26, when I lost my late husband in a tragic car accident. Not only did I lose my life partner, but I also lost a way of life. At the time, I searched high and low for resources and support groups for young widows, with very little luck. I spent so much time and energy looking for a community and a therapist that cared and that could relate to what I was going through during my grief journey. From this experience, I was determined to become a mental health resource and therapist for bereaved individuals, walking alongside them through their transition after loss.
After our world was turned upside down with the start of the COVID-19 pandemic and after my own experience of perinatal loss, I re-assessed my priorities and recognized the need for more compassionate counselors to help in our communities and, thus, decided to pursue private counseling with Finding Freedom Therapy.