Mark Howell

I have been counseling individuals, families, and couples since 1996. At the beginning of my career, I worked in a group practice where I saw individuals, couples, and adolescents on an outpatient basis as well as served for two years as a chaplain at a local psychiatric hospital. Later, I decided to work with clients whose issues required intensive and strategic focus in an inpatient care facility. I worked with both the adult and adolescent units, helping people cope with a variety of issues, including depression, anxiety, self-mutilation, suicidal thoughts, anger, and more, eventually becoming the Lead Therapist on the adolescent unit.

In 2000, I was 1 of 9 counselors chosen to pioneer a contract with the Department of Defense that would provide marriage and family counseling to U.S. Army personnel stationed overseas. I spent three years in Germany counseling members of the U.S. Army and their dependents, focusing on marital issues that included communication, infidelity, and after 9/11 occurred in 2001, the stressors of imminent deployment. During my time there, I developed an anger management group and a couple’s communication group in addition to my clinical work. In 2005, I joined the Houston Center for Christian Counseling full-time and now split my practice between couples’ counseling and adolescent therapy (ages 15+).

These experiences have led me to develop a passion for helping individuals and couples in all stages of life. It is my goal to help each client develop the skills that they need to transition from dysfunctional/unhealthy patterns to more functional/healthy ones. As you are sitting in-session with me, you will discover that I incorporate a God-centered theology that draws people to connect with both God and each other. I believe this allows the client to not only move towards solutions that work well for their individual needs but also provides the necessary foundation for them to extend their work outside of the meetings.

However, I recognize that each person may be wounded in different areas of their life, including the spiritual dimension. I make a conscious effort to maintain a respectful balance within my sessions that permits everyone to expose what they believe without attempting to impose it on anyone. Therefore, the utilization of scripture and prayer is open to anyone who requests it.

I am a graduate of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (1995) and hold a Master of Arts degree in Marriage and Family Counseling and a Master of Arts degree in Religious Education. I am a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) and am an ordained Baptist minister. My wife, Elisabeth, and I have been married since 1996. We have two sons.