Sharjuan Burgos, Mental Health Services for Military Members & Family

Healing Charlotte Podcast

Sharjuan Burgos, Outreach Director at the Stephen A. Cohen Military Family Clinic at Centerstone in Fayetteville, NC is on this episode of the podcast. She spent 27 years of active duty service in the Army and is now responsible for linking the community to the services offered at the clinic. Once she retired from the military, Sharjuan was hired at the clinic and believes her understanding of military life(enlisted member, officer, spouse, & mother) enhances her ability to bring the community together.

"We want to break down the stigma behind mental health. We also want to make sure people will get comfortable and used to saying the words that need to be said when we are talking about helping someone."

Services are provided to all post-9/11 Veterans, active duty(with a Tricare referral), National Guard, Reserves and anyone they consider family. They accept ages 2+ and no exclusions for race, sexuality, or discharge status. For individual therapy, the clinicians use evidenced-based, client-centered care to help with challenges such as depression, anxiety, adjustment, anger, grief & loss, transition, and behavioral concerns with children. Some of the modalities used are CBT(cognitive-behavioral therapy), CBT-I(cognitive-behavioral therapy, insomnia), Gottman Method Therapy(for couples), EFT(emotionally focused therapy for couples), DBT(dialectical behavioral therapy), MI(motivational interviewing), ACT(acceptance and commitment therapy), and IFS(Internal Family Systems). For children, the clinicians use therapy models such as MATCH(modular approach to therapy with children), PCIT(parent-child interaction therapy), TF-CBT(trauma-focused, cognitive-behavioral therapy), and play therapy. The clinic also offers family and couples therapy. They also offer case management services for help with legal issues, education, housing, and more. They work with other agencies such as Veteran's Bridge Home, NCCARE360, and NC Works. The clinic recognizes that there may be barriers to receiving services and they are determined to break them down. They have partnered with the local YMCA to provide child care on site while a member is receiving services, they can provide ride-sharing for anyone in a 50-mile radius to get to the clinic, and financially they accept all insurances and can help with those who don't feel comfortable using their insurance or don't have health insurance. The Stephen A. Cohen Military Clinic at Centerstone in Fayetteville is part of the larger network of clinics(24 around the United States) and works closely with 2 other Centerstone clinics in Tennessee and Florida. By partnering closely with the other 2 clinics, they are able to accommodate the fluctuating needs to reduce wait times. Virtual clients can typically get started in a week and they also offer spanish-speaking services. This partnership also allows them to provide tele-therapy to their clients in North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Tennessee, and other states in the future. Some of their clients enjoy the additional confidentiality and accessibility that tele-therapy offers. They were also 1 of 4 clinics to receive a grant to be able to serve members and their families in the LGBTQI+ community. This gives them services free of charge and allows for their clinicians to take supplemental trainings to work specifically with this population. They offer group therapy for grief, substance use, parenting, and attachment. Many community events are hosted as well for movie nights, charcuterie boards, vision boards, flower arranging, and many more. Check out their events page for the latest.

"They {clinicians} understand military cultural competency and I think that's the most important part when you are trying to serve military veterans and their families."

All clinicians on staff are intimately connected to the military experience and understand the unique challenges that these people and their families experience especially during transition to civilian life as well as managing trauma.

"A lot of the times when people think about receiving mental health treatment, they think it's a scary thing and they don't really know who they are going to see. And when they see that the people look just like you and me, they are regular people, it's not so scary and it helps."

Sharjuan stays grounded by engaging in mindfulness, meditation, journaling and healthy eating. If interested in services with their clinic you can visit their website, call 910-500-1800, or visit them at 3505 Village Drive, Fayetteville, NC 28304. They are active on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn. If interested in the larger umbrella of clinics, visit the Cohen Veteran Network.

"I like to say when I got out of the military the one thing I learned to do was cry and it felt really good."