My name is Tina Owens and I recently graduated February 15, 2023 from Grand Canyon University (GCU) in Master of Science in Christian Counseling of Substance Use and Addictive Disorders. I am currently completing my requirements for licensure for the State of Nebraska as a Provisional Licensed Alcohol and Drug Counselor (PLADC). For the past eight years, and continuing into the present, I have had extensive professional work experience in the area of both alcohol and substance abuse/use and direct interactions with detained juveniles, as well as adult offenders, helping them to overcome their struggles by helping them to find the professional resources and supports that they need. In addition, I have worked in the role of family support with adults, couples, families, and children who are at-high-risk within the metro communities.
I am ‘called’ to the field of addictions because I have personally endured the shackles of being bound-up by alcohol and substance abuse for many years, and I personally understand the inability to control the use of alcohol and substances that a person compulsively engages in and has difficulty controlling or stopping despite negative consequences. My journey in this field is about helping others develop an authentic and empathetic understanding not only of the process by which he or she can make an intentional change, but also of the support they can receive from themselves and others in making life long true changes for positive outcomes; for there is hope here.