Amy Blessing, LMSW

Biography

After many years providing direct employment services a range of individuals with disabilities, from young adults to old, Amy made the decision to return to school for an MSW degree. While in school, she developed background in policy development and research including completion of a year-long study on the connection between housing insecurity and loneliness in older adults in Keokuk, Iowa as part of the Iowa Initiative for Sustainable Communities. Amy has always enjoyed working with older adults and completing her MSW degree propelled her towards providing counseling services to some of the most vulnerable and neglected individuals in our society today, older adults. As a Senior Outreach Counseling Program Therapist at Eyerly Ball, Amy provides in-home and group counseling services to older adults in Polk County, IA. Therapeutic partnerships using a strengths-based perspective are important to her. In Amy's practice, she utilizes elements of motivational interviewing, solution-focused therapy, trauma-informed practice, mindfulness, and the PEARLS / Program to Encourage Active and Rewarding Lives for Seniors. She believes it’s never too late to improve the quality of our lives

Older adults / aging, LGBTQ issues, grief and loss, end of life, substance use disorders, and issues facing individuals leaving long-term incarceration.