John Berrens 

John Berrens recently retired as a PhD level School Psychologist and certified School Counselor. He earned his Master’s Degree in Clinical Psychology from Oakland University and his PhD from the University of Cincinnati. John did additional training in counseling at Xavier University and worked as an adjunct professor at The College of Mt. St. Joseph. John spent the majority of his career in the counseling departments at middle and junior high schools where he accumulated extensive experience in both individual and group counseling. It had become apparent over the years that a disproportionally large number teens who experience anxiety, depression, substance abuse, self-injury, run aways and more came from divorced, separated or single parent families.

The writing of My Name Is… was based hundreds of stories shared with John in group or individual counseling. Hopefully these stories might provide some comfort for the teens who read them. As many students who have been in a group have said, “I always thought I was alone in what I had gone through in my family.” Hopefully these stories will encourage parents to pause and consider what their children might be experiencing. Hopefully these stories might open the eyes for many educators and provide perspective to the challenges many young people are dealing with today. Hopefully, My Name Is…. can be another tool in the toolbox for helping professionals. The stories are nobody’s story, they are everybody’s story.