Today we’d like to introduce you to Faith Perez.
Hi Faith, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I would say the why of what I do started when I joined the United Stated Army. I served over 14 years with three combat tours, twice to Afghanistan and once to Iraq. I was trained as a combat medic where I learned, saw, and endured much throughout my time as a soldier and as a leader. As I climbed the ranks to leadership, I experienced and learned what it meant to have empathy for others and their situations. I learned about my soldiers, their families and the struggles they face both in and out of combat. When I was confronted with a medical retirement, I was also faced with what to do next with a potential career. I looked at many options and it all came back to my desire to continue to be a support for others. I worked hard to complete all the required trainings and graduated from St Mary’s University in San Antonio, gaining my licensure in 2018. Since then, I have been privileged to work with a variety of clientele from those who suffer from severe mental health disorder to those who seek support with trauma, post-traumatic stress and other struggles of life. I have worked with and learned from mentors who have helped guide me all the way from internship through making the choice to start my own practice in January 2025. I have taken the knowledge and experiences from my time in the military as well as the time spent working with other practitioners and applied it to how I show up for my clients every day.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I would say that everything we do comes with its own set of challenges and the road to where I am now is no different. My retirement from the military was probably one the biggest challenges for me because I had to come face to face with a shift in the identity I once had to the one I was to pursue. Shifting a career mindsets can definitely be challenging and cause a few existential moments of questioning if you have made the right decisions.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
I own and operate Aurora’s Hope Counseling, a private practice currently run solely through a virtual platform. I wanted to have a practice that was accessible for clients who have busy lives and my not be able to drive to an office or take time off work to find support through counseling. Being virtual allows them the flexibility to meet when and where they are able, like on their lunch breaks or before they pick up their children from school. I work with client to take insurance as well as offer a private pay and sliding scale based on what a client is feasibly able to afford without causing financial hardship. I feel that counseling should be accessible for anyone who is seeking such support and I aim to support my client in whatever I am able.
I work with clients who face issues like anxiety, depression, ADHD, PTSD/trauma, sexual identity and other sexual related topics. I see both individuals and couples for sessions and allied and affirming to the LGBTQIA+, Polyamorous, and Kink community. I believe that working to find the disconnect in how we are communicating with either ourself or with our partner(s) is often the best place to start.
By providing a safe and welcoming environment for my clients, it is a space to focus on healing and renewal of one’s self while continuing to move through daily life. My heart and my passion lies in helping my community thrive and this how I feel I can best serve it.
Can you talk to us about how you think about risk?
Well, I would say that as someone that joined the military at the age of eighteen, I am not opposed to risk in my life. In the case of taking the leap into starting into private practice, there is always going to be some risk involved. I think, however, that I took my time and learned all I could from those who were there to mentor me before making the decision to set out on my own in order in minimize that risk for my business.
As for the niche topics I choose to focus on with my clients, one might say that can be a risk due to the nature of such discussion. I work to serve a community that I feel is often stigmatized and underserved due to misinformation or undereducation. I serve those who live their lives in a lifestyle that aligns with their needs, values and identity. To some in the field, that can be an uncomfortable topic, for me, it is just a Tuesday support session.
Risk comes in many forms, it is in how you face it that matters.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.aurorashopecounseling.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/faith-perez-b1013280/
- Other: https://www.psychologytoday.com/profile/1114327
