MEET ELEONORE
Eleonore Briones, BA, PWS
Peer Wellness Specialist
approach
I utilize humanistic and collaborative approaches that are individually focused, implementing person-centered therapeutic support, while offering each person the compassion, respect, and dignity deserving to them. I utilize trauma-informed care and motivational interviewing techniques to encourage self-awareness and personal growth while integrating elements of Cognitive Behavior Therapy and Interpersonal Therapy. It is my goal to create a safe and supportive space in which you feel secure to share your journey with me. The work we do together during our shared time and space will be emphasized by goals set by you along with your care team. I look forward to listening to and hearing you as well as supporting and walking beside you through this part of your journey.
I started a career path in Social Services many years ago while still in college in Oakland, California. During that time, I was an Assistant Counselor for a residential facility for incarcerated women, where I worked under two reentry programs: a Work Furlough Program, which helped participants gain employment in the community prior to their official custody release, and a Mother/Infant program, which fostered and strengthened parent-child relations as well as life skills. While an Assistant Counselor for the programs, I created several support groups and facilitated a cinema therapy approach. Since then, I have moved to the Portland Metro area and have gained experiences in property management, focusing on residential and retention services, as well as in the non-profit sector, focusing on obtaining and sustaining housing stability for participants.
My mission, even prior to my role as an Assistant Counselor those many years ago, has been to provide support to the most vulnerable populations, whether that is a houseless individual, a person in crisis, a Veteran living with trauma, a Senior Citizen on a fixed income, or individuals as well as communities navigating through social injustices. Through observations of the world around me as a youth and through my own lived experiences throughout life, I have gained skills outside of a classroom or office building and the understanding that this work we do matters. The tiniest impact can and does make a difference, even on the days when it seems like it isn't doing so.
experience
It is my belief that through compassion and encouragement, we can become empowered to make positive choices at our own pace, in our safe space. We can define how we navigate through life with and in spite of our experiences instead of allowing past experiences to define us or our lives. No GPS needed if we create our own map. Let's navigate to the next destination on this journey.