Beyond Today, there is hope.
Compassionate, evidence-based counseling for children, teens, adults, couples, and families. In-person in Cumming, Georgia and through secure telehealth across the state.
Compassionate intake team ready to match you with the right counselor.
In-Network Insurance
Most clinicians accept major insurance plans
Trauma-Informed Care
Safe, supportive, judgment-free space
Flexible Options
Cumming office or secure telehealth from home
Serving Since 2006
Over 20 years helping Forsyth County heal
Who We Serve
Care Tailored to Every Stage of Life
From playful support for young children to specialized care for seniors, our clinicians meet you exactly where you are.
Children (Under 12)
Children express thoughts and emotions naturally through play. Our child counselors provide a safe, nurturing environment to navigate big feelings.
Common Focus Areas:
- Play Therapy
- ADHD & Focus
- Anxiety & School Fears
- Autism Spectrum / Asperger's
- Behavioral Challenges
- Grief, Loss & Transitions
Teens & Adolescents
Adolescence brings intense emotional and social shifts. We partner with teens to build coping tools, resilience, and healthy identity.
Common Focus Areas:
- Significant Anxiety & Panic
- Depression & Low Mood
- Academic & Peer Stress
- Self-Harming Behaviors
- Eating Issues & Body Image
- Substance Concerns & Trauma
Adults & Seniors
Every life stage brings unique pressures. We help adults untangle anxiety, trauma, life transitions, grief, and chronic stress.
Common Focus Areas:
- Severe & Chronic Anxiety
- Depression & Mood Disorders
- PTSD & Past Trauma
- Stress Management
- ADHD & Executive Function
- OCD & Intrusive Thoughts
Couples & Families
When conflict strains relationships, our marriage and family therapists help you communicate clearly, rebuild trust, and restore closeness.
Common Focus Areas:
- Marriage Counseling
- Parent-Child Conflict
- Communication Breakdown
- Infidelity & Rebuilding Trust
- Blended Family Dynamics
- Life Stage Transitions
Evidence-Based Care
Treatment Models Designed for Real Change
We don't believe in one-size-fits-all counseling. Our clinicians are trained in multiple specialized modalities to match your unique needs.
Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing
A proven, evidence-based therapy that helps the brain reprocess traumatic memories and distress so they no longer disrupt your daily life.
Effective for: PTSD, past trauma, panic, phobias, grief
Accelerated Resolution Therapy
Uses rapid eye movements and image rescripting to provide fast relief from distressing memories and physical sensations, often in 1–5 sessions.
Effective for: Trauma, severe anxiety, intrusive thoughts, depression
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Identifies and reframes unhelpful thought patterns and behaviors, giving you practical, research-backed tools to manage distress.
Effective for: Anxiety disorders, depression, OCD, life stress
Dialectical Behavior Therapy
Builds skills in emotional regulation, mindfulness, distress tolerance, and interpersonal effectiveness.
Effective for: Intense emotions, mood swings, relationship distress
Acceptance & Commitment Therapy
Helps you accept what is out of your personal control and commit to action that enriches your life according to your core values.
Effective for: Chronic anxiety, life transitions, chronic pain/stress
Play Therapy & Family Systems
Developmentally tailored approaches for young children and systemic models that address the whole family dynamic together.
Effective for: Child behavior, parent-child conflict, family transitions
Gottman Method (Couples)
A research-based approach developed by Drs. John and Julie Gottman that helps couples strengthen friendship, manage conflict constructively, and build shared meaning together.
Effective for: Couples conflict, communication breakdown, rebuilding trust
Emotionally Focused Therapy
A structured approach for couples and families that identifies and reshapes negative interaction cycles, deepening emotional bonds and secure attachment.
Effective for: Relationship distress, attachment repair, emotional disconnection
Prepare & Enrich (Pre-Marital)
A customized couples assessment and guided program that helps engaged and pre-marital partners identify strengths, growth areas, and shared goals before marriage.
Effective for: Pre-marital prep, engaged couples, new relationship foundations
Somatic Processing
A body-centered, trauma-informed approach that helps release trauma stored in the nervous system, reconnecting mind and body through awareness of physical sensations.
Effective for: Stored trauma, body tension, nervous system regulation
Progressive Counting
An evidence-based trauma technique that uses guided counting to help the brain process distressing memories—often without fully reliving the original experience.
Effective for: Trauma memories, PTSD, distressing life events
FLASH (Trauma)
A rapid, low-distress trauma therapy that uses brief focusing tasks to reduce the emotional charge of painful memories, often with minimal discomfort during sessions.
Effective for: Quick trauma relief, sensitive memories, low-distress processing
Meet Our Owner & Founder
Guided by a vision of accessible, compassionate mental healthcare in Forsyth County and across Georgia.
Kendra Gilbert
Owner & Founder | Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC, CPCS)
Kendra Gilbert founded Beyond Today Counseling Center with a dedicated mission: to build a warm, supportive refuge in Cumming, GA where individuals and families can discover resilience, heal from emotional pain, and step confidently into their future.
With extensive experience in clinical therapy and professional counselor supervision, Kendra specializes in adult and adolescent counseling, anxiety management, stress reduction, and trauma-informed recovery. Her therapeutic leadership sets the standard for evidence-based, compassionate care across all practice services.
Focus
Anxiety & Trauma
Clients
Teens & Adults
Location
Cumming & Telehealth
Our Care Team
Meet Our Compassionate Counselors
Every clinician at Beyond Today is credentialed, thoroughly trained in evidence-based modalities, and dedicated to providing a safe, non-judgmental therapeutic environment.
15 Years ExperienceHeather Bearden
LPC, CPCSLicensed Professional Counselor
15+ years of clinical experience specializing in teens and adults facing anxiety, OCD, trauma, grief, depression, and self-harm. Specially trained in CBT, DBT, and Progressive Counting.
Models: CBT, DBT, Progressive Counting
Stacy Avila
MSW, APCBilingual Associate Professional Counselor
Warm, bilingual clinician (English & Spanish) providing trauma-informed therapy, DBT skills, emotional regulation, and self-esteem support for adolescents and adults.
Ben Barrett
APCAssociate Professional Counselor
Specializing in trauma recovery, anxiety, addiction, men's counseling, and SYMBIS-certified premarital therapy integrating IFS (Internal Family Systems) and EFT.
Debbie Turner
LPCLicensed Professional Counselor
Expertise in marriage therapy, couples conflict resolution, life transitions, and adult emotional health.
Kim North
AMFTAssociate Marriage & Family Therapist
Specializing in couples, Christian marriage counseling, family systems, and relationship transformation.
Carson Shock
MS, LPCLicensed Professional Counselor
Providing empathetic care for anxiety, personal growth, emotional well-being, teens, and adults in Cumming.
Mary Ellis
LPCLicensed Professional Counselor
Specializing in adult individual counseling, marriage and couples therapy, anxiety management, and relationship dynamics.
Sha Wortman
MEd, LPCLicensed Professional Counselor
Extensive background in individual adult therapy, life transitions, stress management, and emotional healing.
Susana Willoughby-Negrete
InternCounseling Intern
Dedicated to adolescent and teen counseling, emotional regulation, self-esteem, and youth mental wellness.
Not sure which counselor is the right fit?
Our intake coordinators listen carefully to your needs, goals, and insurance to match you with the right clinician.
Affordable & Accessible Care
Insurance Friendly. Transparent Pricing.
We believe quality mental health care should be accessible and straightforward. Unlike many private practices that only take cash, most of our clinicians are credentialed with major insurance networks.
Insurance & Payment
What to expect at Beyond Today
Ready to check your benefits?
Our coordinators respond quickly during normal business hours.
Visit or Connect
Our Cumming Office
Conveniently located off Dahlonega Street in Cumming, Georgia — serving Forsyth, Dawson, Cherokee, Fulton, and surrounding communities.
Cumming, GA 30040
Begin your path toward hope and healing today.
Whether you are facing overwhelming anxiety, family tension, or past trauma, our counselors in Cumming are here to walk with you.
In-person sessions in Cumming, GA & secure telehealth statewide · Most insurance accepted