WMU student, veteran pursues passion for mental health and counseling

KALAMAZOO, Mich.—After serving six years in the United States Army, Dwane Dabney doesn't want to be defined just by his service; instead, he wants to be known for supporting clients with mental health concerns.

Joining the Army after high school, Dabney simultaneously started his academic journey at Western Michigan University, pursuing his bachelor's degree in psychology. After graduating and being honorably discharged in 2022, he was inspired by his experiences and joined the College of Education and Human Development's counselor education program.

"There are a lot of mental health issues within the Army; but they also have training available about suicide, risk assessment and how to help," says Dabney. "The experience and training showed me that mental health is an actual thing; because, from my cultural background, we don't really talk about that a lot or put a spotlight on it." 

Interested in learning more about mental health, Dabney took advantage of further training offered by the Army. He learned more in-depth, about managing situations in the battlefield and working with individuals experiencing "dark thoughts" while possessing a weapon.

"There were a couple of times when somebody would to say to me in private they're dealing with these thoughts, and I would take their ammo and a pivotal part of the rifle so they couldn't touch it," explains Dabney. "I just wanted to make sure everyone in my unit was safe."

During one of these instances, he took further action and contacted the soldier's wife for additional support.

"When she answered, she was surprised that he had those thoughts to begin with. And where we were stationed she couldn't really help in-person; but I put her on FaceTime, and we all talked through it together," says Dabney.

FINDING HIS PROFESSIONAL IDENTITY AT WMU

Like others in Western's counselor education program, Dabney has been able to explore and develop his professional identity as a counselor. The umbrella term for a counselor's different approaches, developing an identity, is an integral part of the profession. His current mixture includes five different approaches, including multicultural and Adlerian.

"I got my multicultural approach when I first got to the program. I thought everything was just counseling but in the first class I had with Dr. Philip Johnson, it was super in-depth, like more in-depth than anything I've ever done in my entire life. And that was just day one!" says Dabney. "And I had the class for a whole semester and just understanding how culture impacts the person, that was something I hadn't really thought about before, even though I am Black."

"I learned about Adlerian from Dr. Gary Bischof, who is now my practicum supervisor. The way he talked about it in class of how it can truly connect a client, in their view, to their family and then you can work on that to bring the family into the session stuck with me. I now try to bring the family in figuratively when I'm talking to the client, and they keep bringing up a certain family member then asking them to go a little more in-depth. So we'll role play where I'll repeat what the client said to me, and I'll ask them to basically respond in how they think the family member would respond. And then we can talk about their concerns better." 

Dabney's other approaches include integrative, solution-focused and narrative therapy.

MULTICULTURAL APPROACH WITH CLIENTS

Coming from a marginalized community, Dabney says he experienced discrimination, oppression and poverty growing up. However, he believes these experiences give him the ability to approach multicultural clients with a basic level of understanding. 

"It makes it easier to have a client who might not be the same exact race or culture as myself," says Dabney. "As someone from a diverse background, I've learned to do research on my own before I actually see clients to avoid asking questions that can sound like microagressions."

Dabney describes how he prepared himself before meeting one of his new clients, who is also a Muslim mother.

"I did research on my own about the Islamic faith before I met her and asked certain questions in our session that helped me alleviate that stress on her end," explains Dabney. "When we met, she was having issues with her daughter being in an American school with American friends and seeing how they interacted with their parents; and it's not the same. So the daughter will come home and she'll be like, 'Mom, I don't think that's right'. And that's a culture shock because, in their faith, the mother is always right. The mother is in charge of raising the kids and keeping the household."

"And because I did my own research on it beforehand, the client was a lot more receptive to me and my ideas. I could tell she didn't feel she had to basically teach me about what it means to be Muslim."

COUNSELING SERVICES

Progressing in his program, Dabney is now starting his internship with the Kalamazoo Therapy Group, working with children, couples and families. Building his base of clients, he is offering his services for $20 a session.

"I grew up in a marginalized community and I know what poverty feels like. And I also know that usually people don't have a lot of hope when you're in poverty. So to have someone you can talk to for pretty cheap can be helpful," says Dabney.

To learn more about Dabney's counseling service, visit the Kalamazoo Therapy Group website.

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