Caty Coffey
MAMFTC, LPC
Therapist for Complex Trauma, Anxiety, and Relationships in Jackson, Mississippi
“I know this doesn’t make sense, but…”
I hear some version of that sentence all the time.
Maybe you know you’re overreacting. You’ve told yourself to stop overreacting. Strangely enough, this has not made you stop overreacting.
Maybe you’re tired of getting hijacked by fight-or-flight mode. Maybe your mom is driving you insane. Maybe something from your childhood keeps showing up in your adult life, and you’re finally ready to deal with it.
Or maybe life just feels like too much, and you’re tired of feeling like you should be handling it better.
People make more sense than they think they do.
I’m Caty Coffey, a Licensed Professional Counselor in Jackson, Mississippi, with more than 20 years of clinical experience. I help people understand and work through the emotions, body responses, relationship patterns, and old wounds that keep interfering with the life they want to live.
We get curious, connect the dots, and put language around what has been hard to explain. Then we work with the emotions, experiences, and protective patterns underneath those reactions so you can develop a different way of responding.
Once something makes sense, we have somewhere to go.
Issues I frequently work with
I provide individual counseling for teens and adults ages 15+, as well as marriage, couples, and family counseling. I frequently work with:
Complex trauma and trauma
Anxiety and emotional overwhelm
Relationship problems and family conflict
Depression
Life transitions and stress
Grief and loss
Boundary and family-of-origin issues
Personal growth
Eating disorders and disordered eating
Personality disorders
Understanding is important. Change is the goal.
Don’t get me wrong. I like coping skills. Sometimes you need to calm your body, get grounded, set a boundary, or make it through a really hard Tuesday without completely losing your mind.
But I don’t want to stop there.
Why does one conversation with your mother ruin the rest of your day? Why does something that happened years ago still feel like it’s happening now? Why do you keep repeating a relationship pattern you know you don’t want?
Therapy can help you process what you’re still carrying, develop healthier responses, and build confidence that you can handle what comes your way.
The goal is freedom in the present, not permanent residence in the past.
Complex trauma, anxiety, and emotional overwhelm
Trauma doesn’t always look the way people expect.
Maybe you grew up walking on eggshells. Maybe you learned to be the responsible one, keep the peace, or make sure you didn’t need too much. Maybe nothing in your history seems “bad enough” to explain how you feel now, but something still isn’t adding up.
You know you’re safe, but your body is acting like a bear just walked into the room. You know your spouse isn’t your parent, but sometimes your nervous system appears unconvinced.
This is why I look at the whole mind-body system. Depending on what you need, our work may include psychoeducation, somatic practices, polyvagal theory, parts work, mindfulness, and family systems. We work with emotions, body responses, and protective patterns so your system can learn that what helped you survive may not be what you need now.
The goal isn’t just to get better at managing overwhelming emotions. It’s to heal what keeps triggering them in the first place, while becoming more capable of navigating the emotions that belong to the present.
That means confidence that you can handle what comes and the ability to show up grounded, present, and connected in your life and relationships.
Marriage and couples counseling
Have you ever had the same fight with your spouse 100 times?
The subject changes, but somehow you both know the script. One person says the thing, the other reacts, someone gets defensive, and someone gets louder or shuts down. Before long, you’re fighting about the fight.
I have completed Level 3 training in the Gottman Method, and I work with couples experiencing repetitive conflict, communication problems, emotional disconnection, attachment injuries, and premarital concerns.
I especially enjoy working with couples who are willing to look honestly at the cycle between them, take responsibility for their part, learn new skills, and stop repeating unhealthy patterns.
Christian counseling, if you want faith to be part of therapy
My Christian faith shapes how I understand people, relationships, suffering, responsibility, grace, healing, and hope. It also shapes my belief that people are worthy of dignity and respect, and that shame does not get the final word.
If you want faith to be part of counseling, we can talk about God, Scripture, prayer, doubt, shame, painful church experiences, and how faith intersects with your emotional and relational life.
I’m a licensed mental health professional, not a biblical counselor. I don’t use Scripture as a substitute for psychology, neuroscience, trauma research, or clinical treatment. I integrate Christian faith into therapy when clients want it, while welcoming people of all faiths or no faith. You don’t have to believe what I believe to work with me.
What’s it like to work with me?
I’m not going to sit silently and nod at you for 55 minutes, but I’m also not going to tell you how to live your life. I ask questions, explain why your brain and body may be responding the way they are, and help you respond to yourself with curiosity instead of shame.
Instead of asking, What is wrong with me?, we ask, What is happening here?
And yes, we laugh, too. Sometimes therapy is painful, sometimes being human is absurd, and sometimes both are true in the same session.
Experience, education, and training
I double-majored in music and psychology at Florida State University and earned my Master of Arts in Marriage and Family Therapy and Counseling from Reformed Theological Seminary in 2006. I’m an LPC in Mississippi and an LMHC in Florida.
My advanced training includes:
Gottman Method Level 3
Complex trauma, including completion of the educational requirements for the Clinical Complex Trauma Professional (CCTP-I) credential
Somatic and nervous-system-informed approaches, including polyvagal theory and parts work
Family systems and mindfulness
Eating disorders, including completion of the IAEDP educational coursework required for the Certified Eating Disorders Specialist (CEDS) credential
A little about me
I’m originally from Chattanooga, Tennessee, and I’ve called Mississippi home since 2009. I’ve been married since 2003, and I enjoy singing, hiking, and traveling.
Request an appointment with Caty
I work with clients in-person for therapy in Jackson, Mississippi and telehealth throughout Mississippi and Florida.
Office: Watershed Counseling, 1755 Lelia Drive, Suite 201, Jackson, MS 39216
Sessions: 55 minutes
Self-pay: $175
Insurance: Blue Cross Blue Shield and Aetna
To request an appointment, complete our online appointment request. Our Client Care Coordinator will contact you to schedule. You can also call 601-362-7020.
Bring the mess. We’ll make sense of it together.
The Emotion Solution
I’m also the creator of The Emotion Solution: Practical Relief for the Overwhelmed Believer, a self-paced educational course for adult Christians who find themselves thinking, “I know what’s true, so why can’t I make myself feel differently?”
The course brings together psychological education, practical tools, and biblical truth to help you better understand your emotions, make sense of patterns in how you respond, and practice responding differently when emotions feel overwhelming.
Click to learn more about The Emotion Solution.
The Emotion Solution is an educational course offered by CC Solutions, LLC, and is separate from the counseling services provided by Watershed Counseling Associates. It is not psychotherapy or counseling, and purchasing the course does not establish a counselor-client relationship with Caty Coffey or Watershed Counseling Associates.