Today we’d like to introduce you to Destree Thompson.
Hi Destree, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
For more than twenty years, my work has lived at the intersection of healing, human resilience, and the quiet but powerful process of transformation. I began my professional journey in human services, working directly with children and adolescents who experienced intellectual and developmental disabilities. This may be the beginning where I was drawn to the deeper layers of people’s stories—particularly those shaped by early trauma. Over time, that calling grew into my first business, Enlighten Counseling & Consulting, where I built a practice dedicated to helping individuals understand their experiences not as brokenness, but as places where profound healing and growth are possible.
That work eventually expanded beyond traditional counseling into something more communal and expansive. I founded Then Enlighten Healing Collective, a space designed to bring practitioners and community members together around shared healing, learning, and connection. My philosophy has always been that healing rarely happens in isolation. It happens in spaces where people feel safe enough to be real, where they can reconnect with their own wisdom, and where community becomes part of the medicine.
Today, I continue to lead both businesses while holding a larger vision for what this work can become. I’m interested in the front-row seat to humanity—the patterns, the courage, the ways people learn to return to themselves after hardship. My hope is to continue expanding spaces for healing, writing and speaking about what I’ve witnessed along the way, and contributing to a broader movement that honors resilience, connection, and the possibility of transformation.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
There was a season in my life marked by deep challenge and quiet resilience. Following a traumatic divorce, I found myself navigating life as a single mother to two wonderful, active children, while simultaneously working full time, pursuing my master’s degree, and coaching girls basketball. Those years were defined by survival—holding everything together, showing up for my children, and continuing forward even when the path felt overwhelming. Beneath the surface, I was also beginning my own healing journey, stepping into personal therapy and slowly uncovering the layers of my own story with honesty and courage.
In 2016, my family experienced a profound loss when my youngest brother passed away from an opioid overdose. That grief added another dimension to my journey—one that deepened my understanding of pain, loss, and the complexities of the human experience. Through these seasons, I did not just endure; I began to transform. The lessons I gathered—about resilience, compassion, and the capacity for healing—have become foundational in my work today. They allow me to sit with others not only as a professional, but as someone who has walked through hardship and found a way forward, guiding others as they begin to navigate their own paths toward healing.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
What sets me apart as a therapist is the way I weave my lived experience and personal interests into the work I do. My path has not been separate from my profession, but has informed it. Expressive art, in particular, has been a powerful part of my own healing journey. It gave me a voice at a time when it didn’t feel safe to speak, and in claiming myself as an artist, I discovered an inner strength and light I didn’t know existed. Through that process, I also found community. Today, I bring that same spirit into my work with others, offering creative and experiential pathways for healing alongside traditional therapeutic approaches.
What I am most proud of is the life and work I have built in alignment with my values. I have created spaces where people can come as they are and be met with compassion, curiosity, and respect. I am proud of the communities that have formed, the individuals who have reconnected with themselves, and the ongoing evolution of work that honors both the science and the art of healing
Where we are in life is often partly because of others. Who/what else deserves credit for how your story turned out?
I wouldn’t be where I am today without the support and influence of many people and experiences along the way. My children have been a constant source of inspiration and grounding, and my husband has been a steady partner and encourager in both life and work. I’ve also been shaped by mentors, both in my professional path and in my development as an artist, who helped me see possibilities I couldn’t yet see for myself. Creative work, especially through Julia Cameron and The Artist’s Way, played a pivotal role in helping me reconnect with my voice. And the game of basketball, along with the many coaches and teammates I’ve had over the years, taught me discipline, teamwork, resilience, and how to show up fully—lessons that continue to influence how I lead, connect, and build community today.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.enlightenhealingcollective.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/enlightenhealingcollective/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/The-Enlighten-Healing-Collective/61560482136223/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/destree-thompson-lpc-crc-11b53aa
- Other: https://www.enlightencandc.com/
