MCS Counseling Center

09/03/2026

We’re happy to share that Marilyn Jones, LMHC, is now accepting Traditional Medicare at MCS Counseling Center!

She is not yet in-network with Medicare Advantage plans.

To learn more or schedule an appointment, visit www.mcsjax.com or call 904-701-4662.

08/20/2026

🎉 Please join us in welcoming Marilyn Jones, LMHC, to MCS Counseling Center!

Marilyn brings over 40 years of experience in behavioral health and human services to our team. She works with teens, adults, and older adults and has extensive experience supporting individuals navigating grief and loss, caregiver stress and burnout, trauma and PTSD, anxiety, depression, women's issues, and major life transitions.

Marilyn believes that healing has no timeline and that growth and meaningful change are possible at any age. Her warm, person-centered, and trauma-informed approach focuses on helping clients feel heard, recognize their strengths, and develop the tools they need to move forward.

We’re very excited to have Marilyn at MCS and to offer our community the benefit of her experience and compassionate approach to care. 💙

Marilyn is now accepting new clients.

To learn more or request an appointment, visit mcsjax.com or call 904-701-4662.

07/18/2026

That hard conversation you’ve been avoiding? Whether it goes well depends just as much on who’s sitting across from you as it does on what you say.

Some people are able to put the relationship ahead of the need to be right. They can tolerate discomfort without becoming defensive. They can hear feedback without immediately explaining it away or turning the conversation back on you.

Others aren’t there yet. Their own hurt, fear, or shame gets in the way of hearing what you’re trying to communicate.

No amount of perfect wording can make someone ready for a conversation they’re unwilling or unable to receive. Your words matter, but so does the other person’s capacity to stay present, regulate their emotions, and remain connected when things get uncomfortable.

Speak with honesty and kindness. Do your part well. But remember that healthy conversations require two people who are both willing to protect the relationship more than their own defenses.

07/13/2026

The strategies that helped us survive can make it difficult to fully live.

Growth begins when we no longer need to wear the same emotional armor that helped us survive.

07/11/2026

Keep this in mind and save it for whenever you need it most. ❤️

07/08/2026

Did you know that MCS Counseling Center now serves clients in Florida, Connecticut, and New Jersey?

When the practice opened in 2011, it was a single office on Jacksonville's Southside, shared with another therapist, and open just a few evenings a week. Since then, we've been fortunate to grow through relationships, trust, and the support of our community.

Because relationships are such an important part of what we do, we recently added an "Our Story" page to our website. It shares how the practice began, how we've grown over the years, and the values that continue to guide our work today.

We invite you to learn a little more about who we are, where we've come from, and what drives us.

Thank you for being part of our story.

🔗

Founded by Jacksonville native Steven Montesinos, MCS Counseling Center is a clinician-owned practice committed to personalized, high-quality mental health care for individuals, couples, and families.

07/01/2026

Many people don't enjoy stretching, but doing so can improve physical flexibility and help reduce the risk of injury.

Starting therapy can feel uncomfortable, too. Yet one of the most valuable things therapy can help develop is mental flexibility—the ability to adapt to change, consider different perspectives, manage difficult emotions, and respond more effectively to life's challenges.

Just as physical flexibility helps protect the body, mental flexibility helps support emotional well-being.

When we stay flexible, we stay healthy.

www.mcsjax.com

06/25/2026

🎉 Congratulations, April!

We're excited to celebrate April Nattinger, LMFT, on completing formal training in Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) through the International Centre for Excellence in Emotionally Focused Therapy (ICEEFT).

EFT is an evidence-based approach to couples therapy that helps partners strengthen emotional connection, better understand one another, and build more secure relationships.

This milestone brings April one step closer to becoming EFT Certified, and we're excited about what this means for the couples and families she serves.

Congratulations, April! 💙

06/24/2026

05/25/2026

Honoring the lives and sacrifices remembered this Memorial Day.