Meet Jea Theis a 2022 graduate of our Certificate Training Program. We are excited to feature her as our monthly Alumni Spotlight! We think you will be inspired by her work as a Licensed Independent Mental Health Practitioner, Clinical Social Worker and co-founder of the Omaha Therapy & Arts Collaborative and the NExT Foundation (Nebraska Expressive Arts Therapy Foundation)! |
Taken at the opening of OTAC
(Omaha Therapy and Arts Collaborative) 2016 Jea Theis LCSW, LIMHP Omaha, NE www.otac.space/events |
Jea Theis is a Licensed Independent Mental Health Practitioner and Clinical Social Worker in Nebraska. She has been working in the social services and mental health field for twenty years, starting out in the area of family violence, as a men's domestic
violence counselor and CPS worker. After completing her MSW degree, Jea practiced in a community mental health counseling center, worked as a social worker and grief counselor for a home and hospice agency, and has spent many years working with children and families impacted by sexual abuse and other trauma. Jea
has received specialized training in Expressive Arts Therapy, EMDR (Eye-Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing), Brainspotting, CPP (Child-Parent Psychotherapy), TFCBT (Trauma-focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy), Parent-child Interaction Therapy (PCIT), Teacher-Child Interaction Training (TCIT), Reflective Practice Consultation and Compassion Fatigue. She is passionate about increasing awareness around compassion fatigue - providing education and consultation to agencies and supporting
those working in helping professions in our community so they can continue to make a difference for the individuals and families they work with. Jea has worked in private practice for the last nine years and is the co-founder of an innovative mental health practice, Omaha Therapy and Arts Collaborative (OTAC), which opened in April of 2016. Jea also recently co-founded the NExT Foundation (Nebraska Expressive Arts Therapy Foundation), a non-profit organization in Omaha with a mission of bringing Expressive Arts and Mental Health Care to marginalized and underserved members of the community. |
Jea, what drew you to the field of Expressive Arts, or motivated you to get Expressive Arts training? |
I have been trained in and used many different types of therapeutic interventions over the past twenty years, from Cognitive-Behavioral and Solution-focused Therapy to Trauma-Sensitive Yoga and brain-based interventions such as EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization) and most
recently, Brainspotting. During my years of working as a therapist with clients who have experienced trauma, I kept coming up against the same challenge – clients would say that they “KNOW” with their logic brain that the trauma was not their fault or that they should not have to feel shameful or scared any longer, but that they still “FEEL” these things in their bodies. My more recent training in the brain and body-based and creative interventions is where I feel compelled to
continue to move towards so that I can most effectively help my clients heal not just their cognitions, but also their brains and bodies as well. I was introduced to the Expressive Arts by my dear friend and colleague, Betsy Funk, who was in the process of completing the Certificate Training
Program at Expressive Arts Florida Institute when she and I first began to share office space in private practice in 2015. One positive of the adaptations required during COVID, is that many educational and training programs transitioned to online and hybrid options to continue to operate and provide services to learners throughout the pandemic. I had fully bought in to the importance and efficacy of the Expressive Arts as a therapeutic intervention when I learned that Expressive
Arts Florida Institute would be offering their curriculum online. It was clear to me at the time that the stars had aligned! I began the amazing journey into their Expressive Arts Certificate program in December 2020, and finished the program in Fall of 2022. I realized that as
a visual artist and poet/writer, I could not just stick to one modality. The same holds true for clients. Expressive Arts appealed to me precisely because it embraces more than one healing modality and incorporates embodied practices which are essential to healing deep-seated trauma. The field was international in scope as well and given my exposure to different cultures it aligned with my global approach to healing practices. |
As you began to immerse yourself in this work, were there any unexpected gifts or surprises? |
Every process is a gift! I had no idea what this journey would bring to me in terms of my relationship with my art and my relationships with others in this field.
How are you currently implementing expressive arts in your personal and/or professional life?
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I use expressive arts with my clients on a daily basis, incorporating mindfulness, meditation, visual journals, collage, music, movement and painting. I am invested in sharing this work with other professionals so they can stay healthy in their journey in helping clients heal. I also actively participate in a personal process. I hope to bring Expressive Arts to the broader community so that more people can experience the connection, belonging and healing that comes with using our creativity as a voice and vehicle for better understanding of ourselves. My goal is to restore the connection among our children,
teens and families that was eroded, and then completely severed, after the global pandemic. I also have a goal of facilitating and standardizing a 10-week EXA group curriculum to support women through transitions (into sobriety, through mental health treatment, etc.). |
Zen Garden workshop 2022 How has Expressive Arts enriched or expanded your
career path? |
EXA gave me a whole new way to engage clients, put them at the helm of their "knowing" and create new ways for people to connect with their authentic selves and their experiences. |
What is your current personal practice and how does it enrich your life? |
I am currently working on a series of "container activities" that are also response pieces to each other. I started the first piece in 2015 when I embarked on my private practice journey and we formed OTAC. I completed the second as part of my final consultation hours after my education at EAFI. Now I feel like I am in a whole new chapter of my life and am starting a piece to hold all the beautiful and challenging things coming out of
this.
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Staff Expressive Arts Retreat for a local agency What do you wish you could tell the world about Expressive Arts? It is for EVERYONE! What are you currently offering, and what are the ways that people can work with
you? I primarily offer therapy to individuals, families and groups. Through OTAC and NExT Foundation, we also offer many opportunities for workshops and retreats to other helping professionals and members of the community. Anything else you would like to say? Please visit our website for events! |
Watch for our Alumni Spotlight on the 1st of each month. We feature graduates of our Certificate Training Program - Expressive Arts Facilitators, Therapists, and Educators. We hope this series will inspire you, help spread the work of our alumni, and demonstrate the scope of practice
of the expressive arts field. For more information about our Certificate Training Program, Professional Development, and Workshops - both online and in-person, visit us at www.expressiveartsflorida.com Tamara Teeter Knapp MA, NCC, MHC Intern, REACE® Kathleen Horne MA, LMHC(S), REACE®, REAT® |
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