Emergent Counseling and Consulting LLC

2701 West Oakland Park Boulevard, 410-4, 400
Oakland Park, Florida, US
33311

Available By

In-Person
Video

Practice Specialties

Anger Management
EMDR
Grief and Bereavement Counseling
Marriage Counseling
Stress and Anxiety
Trauma and or PTSD

About

Emergent Counseling and Consulting is a trauma-specialty group practice based in Oakland Park, Florida, with a team of licensed and pre-licensed clinicians who care deeply about the people we serve. We work with adults navigating anxiety, depression, trauma, and the exhaustion of always having to hold it together just to push through.

Our approach honors the whole person: mind, body, relationships, and spirit. We draw from trauma-focused therapies including AEDP, Somatic Experiencing, IFS-informed parts work, and EFT Tapping to help clients understand and heal from the emotional and physical impact of difficult experiences.

We also welcome conversations about God, prayer, spiritual beliefs, questions, doubt, and the ways faith has shaped your story. We integrate Christian faith and spirituality into therapy as much or as little as feels right to you, without judgment or pressure.

Our practice offers specialized support through our Maternal Mental Health Program and the RESET Method, our anger management program.

Whether your faith feels strong, complicated, distant, or somewhere in between, you can come as you are. You don't have to have the right words or pretend you're okay here. Our hope is that you feel deeply understood, genuinely cared for, and supported as you reconnect with yourself, your relationships, and, when meaningful to you, your faith.

Why I Became a Professional Christian Therapist

At Emergent, we believe healing touches every part of a person: mind, body, relationships, and spirit. Many of the people who come to us have been carrying their pain quietly, sometimes feeling shame that their faith wasn't strong enough. Whatever you're carrying, the shame and the struggle included, you can bring it here, and we'll work through it together.

We see our work as an act of stewardship. People trust us with their stories, their hurt, and their hope, and we treat that vulnerability as a sacred responsibility. We show up with compassion, patience, and the belief that no one is beyond restoration.

We also know that faith journeys are rarely a straight line. Some people come to us deeply rooted in their beliefs. Others are wrestling with questions, carrying church hurt, or wondering whether the faith they grew up with still fits who they're becoming. Some still feel deeply spiritual but are unsure whether "Christian" is a word they want to claim anymore. Wherever you are, you're welcome here. Doubt and questioning are part of many people's spiritual lives, and you won't be judged, pressured, or steered toward any particular answer.

Your relationship with faith belongs to you. We'll integrate spirituality into therapy as much or as little as you'd like, alongside evidence-based, trauma-focused approaches that help both your mind and body heal.

Client Payment Information

Accepts insurance

Therapists on Staff

Laronda Thomas

Mernelle Saint Jean

Ashanti Shakespeare

Jessica Oladumiye

Tania Jacques

Laronda Thomas

MSW

Laronda helps couples move past the surface argument to understand the hurt, unmet needs, and relationship patterns underneath it. Whether partners feel unheard, stuck in the same fights, or disconnected emotionally or physically, she creates space for the conversations that have felt too hard to have alone.

Drawing on AEDP, EMDR, Gottman Method (Level 1), and PREPARE/ENRICH, Laronda pays close attention to how past trauma can shape present relationships while keeping each partner accountable for how they show up now. She also works individually with women navigating major life transitions and offers LGBTQ+ affirming care.

With more than a decade of experience in therapy and life coaching, including work in child welfare, juvenile justice, hospice care, and with veterans, Laronda brings warmth, creativity, and genuine care to every session. She sees clients in person in Oakland Park and via teletherapy throughout Florida.

Mernelle Saint Jean

LCSW

Mernelle Saint Jean, LCSW
Lead Trauma Recovery Therapist

Mernelle helps adults and teens heal from trauma and find relief from anxiety, so they can stop surviving and start living with more peace and self-compassion. She believes healing begins when people stop fighting themselves and start honoring who they already are, and she partners with clients every step of the way on that journey toward self-love.

A Licensed Clinical Social Worker and graduate of Barry University, Mernelle offers individual and family therapy and holds herself to the highest standards of care, continually building on her clinical skills. She speaks Creole, which allows her to serve Haitian and Creole-speaking families in their own language.

Mernelle sees her role as a healer, a supporter, and a cheerleader, and clients feel that warmth from the very first session. Outside the therapy room, she's a blogger who loves to travel and have fun.

Ashanti Shakespeare

LCSW

Trauma-Informed Maternal Mental Health Therapist

Ashanti's heart is in helping people find healing, clarity, and hope, especially expectant and new mothers navigating pregnancy, postpartum, and everything motherhood brings. She works with people who show up for everyone else but feel like no one sees what they're carrying, and she leads Emergent's Maternal Mental Health program.

Born in the United Kingdom with Jamaican roots, Ashanti brings a rich cultural perspective and more than a decade of experience across mental health settings. Her approach is gentle but direct, blending clinical training with spiritual insight. She draws on EMDR, CBT, and somatic and mindfulness-based practices, and also supports clients working through complex trauma, grief, anxiety, depression, and recovery from addiction.

Ashanti offers Christian counseling to help clients reconnect with their faith during difficult seasons. She sees clients both in person and virtually.

Jessica Oladumiye

LCSW

Couples Therapist

Jessica knows the helplessness and longing that come when a relationship starts to break down, both from the therapy room and from her own life. Going through the end of her first marriage led her to couples work, and today, remarried and thriving, she practices what she teaches.

With more than nine years of clinical experience, Jessica helps couples work through conflict, resentment, disconnection, infidelity, and trauma that's showing up in the relationship. She also supports individuals navigating anxiety, depression, divorce, and major life transitions. She draws on AEDP, Emotionally Focused Therapy, CBT, and Trauma-Focused CBT, and offers Christian counseling for clients who want faith woven into their care.

Jessica is also an author, speaker, and mentor. Her book, As The Walls Came Crumbling Down, supports people healing after divorce or a broken engagement. She sees clients online throughout Florida and Illinois

Tania Jacques

LCSW

Anxiety & Depression Therapist

Tania is especially passionate about helping people who have spent their lives being the strong one: the family rescuer, peacemaker, or caretaker who carries everyone else's weight while their own needs go unmet. She supports adults working through anxiety, depression, trauma, relationship challenges, burnout, and major life transitions, and helps clients set boundaries and put themselves first without guilt.

A proud native of Haiti and a Barry University graduate, Tania offers therapy in English and Haitian Creole and brings a nurturing, culturally responsive presence to her work, including with immigrants navigating cultural identity and family expectations. She draws on AEDP, Brainspotting, CBT, EFT Tapping, Motivational Interviewing, and Solution-Focused Therapy, and welcomes faith into sessions for clients who want it.

Tania sees clients in person in Oakland Park and via teletherapy throughout Florida.

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