by Mike McDonald
Photo courtesy Imani Khayyam
Dr. Megan Sones Sones Clapton, the owner and therapist at Ridgeland clinic Mindful Therapy, says she believes the mind and body are connected, influencing one another in a kind of symbiosis. That is an idea that became abundantly clear to her after she contracted a parasite on her honeymoon.
Dr. Megan Sones Clapton is the owner and therapist at clinic Mindful Therapy in Renaissance at Colony Park in Ridgeland. Photo courtesy Imani Khayyam Traditional attempts to treat her caused kidney failure and two hip replacements, and in the end, she nearly died. She eventually saw results when she began treatment at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., where she learned more about mindfulness meditation.
Ultimately, Sones Clapton learned a lot from experiencing both forms of treatment and has since brought that knowledge into her work at Mindful Therapy, she says.
"Western medicine teaches us that only the symptoms matter, casting aside the root of the problem," Sones Clapton says. "Here at the clinic, I provide evidence-based therapy, complete with outcome data, using various methods like art, music, podcasts and other forms of technology to help my patients. I try to speak their language."
Sones Clapton focuses on providing patients with the best care that she can give while avoiding medication unless a dire situation calls for it. Part of her strategy revolves around using alternative methods to produce high serotonin or dopamine.
"I see people who are so stressed out, ridden with anxiety, yet high-functioning," she says. "There are so many ways we can use our natural environment to (alleviate) our worries and strife. I participated in a conference recently that included a nature retreat, ways to use plants more effectively at home and at work."
Through Mindful Therapy, Sones Clapton also coordinates workplace crises workshops and workplace therapy sessions to improve business cultures and performance.
"People can be so stressed out at work; they need techniques to relax and focus," she says. "I try to use the five-senses model, both personally and professionally: stopping to pay attention to all around me with those senses. It makes me grounded."
Sones Clapton is a seventh-generation Mississippian. She grew up in Belhaven and attended St. Andrew's Episcopal School before going to the College of Charleston in South Carolina, where she earned bachelor's degrees in religion and art history in 2002.
She then got her master's degree in clinical psychology at The Citadel, a military college in South Carolina, in 2006. She returned to the Jackson metro area to attend Mississippi College in 2009 and received her doctorate in clinical counseling from MC in 2015.
Through conversations with friends and strangers, she says she found the traditional culture of the South and Mississippi to be closed and insular. She decided to open a clinic that fosters inclusiveness along with honesty and openness, and founded Mindful Therapy in August 2015.
"I see people who struggle with their identity, struggle with their place, so to speak, in this state and American culture more broadly," Sones Clapton says. "Individual consultations are my primary focus, but I do the occasional group family session, as well."
Sones Clapton says it is important for people to accept their true selves rather than what they portray for others. She also stresses the preventative aspect of mindfulness to counteract distractions, such as technology.
"We need to give our brains time to rest," she says. "We must be a human being, rather than a human doing."
For more information on Mindful Therapy (1000 Highland Colony Pkwy., Suite 7203, Ridgeland), visit mindfultherapyms.com.
Ultimately, Sones Clapton learned a lot from experiencing both forms of treatment and has since brought that knowledge into her work at Mindful Therapy, she says.
"Western medicine teaches us that only the symptoms matter, casting aside the root of the problem," Sones Clapton says. "Here at the clinic, I provide evidence-based therapy, complete with outcome data, using various methods like art, music, podcasts and other forms of technology to help my patients. I try to speak their language."
Sones Clapton focuses on providing patients with the best care that she can give while avoiding medication unless a dire situation calls for it. Part of her strategy revolves around using alternative methods to produce high serotonin or dopamine.
"I see people who are so stressed out, ridden with anxiety, yet high-functioning," she says. "There are so many ways we can use our natural environment to (alleviate) our worries and strife. I participated in a conference recently that included a nature retreat, ways to use plants more effectively at home and at work."
Through Mindful Therapy, Sones Clapton also coordinates workplace crises workshops and workplace therapy sessions to improve business cultures and performance.
"People can be so stressed out at work; they need techniques to relax and focus," she says. "I try to use the five-senses model, both personally and professionally: stopping to pay attention to all around me with those senses. It makes me grounded."
Sones Clapton is a seventh-generation Mississippian. She grew up in Belhaven and attended St. Andrew's Episcopal School before going to the College of Charleston in South Carolina, where she earned bachelor's degrees in religion and art history in 2002.
She then got her master's degree in clinical psychology at The Citadel, a military college in South Carolina, in 2006. She returned to the Jackson metro area to attend Mississippi College in 2009 and received her doctorate in clinical counseling from MC in 2015.
Through conversations with friends and strangers, she says she found the traditional culture of the South and Mississippi to be closed and insular. She decided to open a clinic that fosters inclusiveness along with honesty and openness, and founded Mindful Therapy in August 2015.
"I see people who struggle with their identity, struggle with their place, so to speak, in this state and American culture more broadly," Sones Clapton says. "Individual consultations are my primary focus, but I do the occasional group family session, as well."
Sones Clapton says it is important for people to accept their true selves rather than what they portray for others. She also stresses the preventative aspect of mindfulness to counteract distractions, such as technology.
"We need to give our brains time to rest," she says. "We must be a human being, rather than a human doing."
For more information on Mindful Therapy (1000 Highland Colony Pkwy., Suite 7203, Ridgeland), visit mindfultherapyms.com.
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