Leslie Royal Kralicek, MA, LMHC
About Leslie
I hold an MA in Counseling Psychology as well as a Certificate in Domestic Violence Advocacy from Mars Hill Graduate School. I am the mother of two children, and have over 20 years experience in counseling, ministry, advocacy, teaching and community service. The path that led me to counseling includes having grown through trauma and the disruption of divorce. I am passionate and equipped to help others successfully navigate the choppy waters of crisis, loss, and change to heal and grow.
My beliefs about the healing process in counseling
My foundation
— I believe Jesus Christ is the Wonderful Counselor, and I draw wisdom, discernment, compassion and strength from my relationship with Him.Created for love
— I believe we are all created for loving relationships.Pain and anger
— When we experience pain or anger in relationship, it is a signal that something is wrong.Getting needs met
— When we seek to have our needs met in relationship - especially as children - and do not have those needs met (because of abuse, neglect, fuzzy boundaries, inappropriate or inconsistent care), we may feel unloved or worse, unlovable.Performance based approval
— We may learn that our need for approval and acceptance is conditioned upon our successful performance, and, in such an environment, mistakes can be devastating threats to love instead of constructive opportunities for growth.Defenses for safety
— When adequate nurture is not available or harm occurs, we consciously or unconsciously construct a web of defenses to hide our desire for love and to keep from being hurt again.Past informs the present
— When a stable, healthy, loving relationship has not been established or consistently modeled in the past, it may be difficult to learn how to create and sustain loving relationships in the present.Resolving conflicts
— When conflicts arise (and they always do in relationship) we may not know how to successfully resolve them without withdrawing, resorting to overt or covert controlling behaviors, or silencing our needs altogether through compliance, dissociation or denial.Growth encouraged
— When we are seen and heard, comforted and protected, loved and encouraged, we can begin to heal, integrate and grow in healthy ways.Opening up
— As we experience competent and consistent care we can shift from a defended posture to a more open stance where we can begin to name abuse and address unhealthy patterns.Decisions for change
— Once the decision to make improvements occurs, there is support to develop good boundaries, process anger constructively, grieve losses, repent of harm we have done to others, forgive harm done to us by ourselves and others, learn to be wise and discerning, gain self confidence and move forward in freedom with energy to set and achieve future goals.What my clients are saying…
You are someone who is able to identify why it hurts. That’s important to me. You identified the betrayals or emotional assaults -- that I had just viewed as part of my personal history, and you helped me to understand why those things have been holding me back from being who I want to be. Now I can move on. Thank you. - V.B.
I really feel that you have been so right on with everything you have helped me with so far. I always feel so much better after I have talked to you. You are such a blessing to me and a great source of strength. - M.G.
Thank you for the light you have brought into my life. - A.G.
Because of your care, many hurting people will develop awareness or hope for a healthier future. - T.
Thank you for being on my side always. Also, thank you for listening to me and giving me knowledge of a better life. I really appreciate your kindness and warm-hearted words. - C.M.
Some people come into your life for a little while and leave a smile on your heart forever. You have touched my life in a special way because I can tell you care for the hurting and you love the Word. Thank you for your counsel and words of comfort that have challenged me to look deeper into my life. - B.G.
Your warmth encourages me. - R.T.
Thank you for your love and faith in Jesus Christ, for your encouragement, counsel and mercy. - A.S.
Thank you for all your love and support. I could never do the work you do, but I am glad that you have been here for me. - A.
You helped me to believe that God really is alive. - V.C.
Thank you for giving me a shoulder to cry on and sound advice. I thank God for you. - S.
I have never felt so cared for and supported. - M.
I didn’t know that I didn’t have to carry everything by myself. - H.
The path that led me to counseling
Nothing in life prepared me for the many trials I would encounter, and yet everything in my life prepared me for the work of being a counselor. Although I have held many jobs and served in many roles, it was the relationships with people I love that guided me to the work of counseling.
I worked as director of an elementary school art enrichment program, and that gave me the opportunity to work with many children and parents who did not always have words for their experiences - many were in transitional situations and did not easily conform to standard expectations. Making art gave them a voice.
I worked as leader and teacher of many enrichment and educational programs for kids and I learned that although all parents love their children, all families do not provide the same kind of nurturing environment where children learn to grow. I learned that some children grow up in very difficult situations - and most leaders do not receive formal training for how parental conflict or neglect injure children.
I worked as an investigative journalist uncovering abuses in regional governance that led to the work in advocacy, social justice and political activism and resulted in the incorporation of a city. The incorporation placed geographical and political boundaries around the community so it could address fiscal abuses and resolve infrastructure deficits. The formation of the city empowered residents and gave them a collective voice they had never before had in local and regional government affairs. I learned that I could stand up for what I believed was right, and have a positive impact.
I ran as a candidate for public office and I learned that although I could work for the greater good of the community, not everyone had to agree with my point of view in order to serve the public well.
As a mother, I served as a full-time graduate student, caregiver and editor as I put myself through school, taught two teenagers how to drive and ran a household following my divorce. Through that experience I learned that I could be resilient and remain a source of stability and encouragement for my children even as my entire life changed. And, I learned that when I made mistakes, I could be forgiven.I worked as a director of single parenting family ministry where families who were in crises - or just different from intact families - had a space to learn and grow with other families who were in similar situations. I learned you can draw strength from others, and you don't have to travel alone through difficult trials.
I worked as a family preservation counselor doing contract work with the Department of Social and Health Services, and I learned the tremendous pressures parents are under to provide for their children, and I learned the tremendous pressures children are faced with when they have experiences that are beyond their ability to control.