Zully García-Díaz was recently named the Residential Unit Coordinator for the Central Wyoming Counseling Center.
In this position, Ms. García-Díaz continues to utilize her skills, experience, and knowledge to provide exceptional care to CWCC clients.
Ms. García-Díaz has always had an interest in the field of mental health. At university, she majored in psychology, and while her interest was piqued, she wasn’t sure whether she wanted to be a psychologist. So, after she finished her undergraduate degree, she began working for a mental health hospital in the acute unit.
Anyone who has worked in an acute unit for a mental health hospital knows that it is not the job for everyone. One needs to be patient, diligent, and aware of their surroundings. More than anything else, they need to have compassion. Ms. García-Díaz is a compassionate person, and it was in this acute inpatient setting that she realized she wanted to work in the mental health field.
“It was a big hospital,” she said, “I used to live in New Orleans. There were a lot of people diagnosed with schizophrenia and other psychotic conditions. And I said, ‘I want to do this. I can do this.’” So, she did.
Ms. García-Díaz graduated from Tulane University in New Orleans with a master’s degree in social work. She is also an LCSW (Licensed Clinical Social Worker). For a number of years, she worked with families and children in New Orleans before moving to Salt Lake City, Utah. While there, she served as the Clinical Supervisor for the House of Hope, a non-profit organization that provides treatment for mothers with substance use disorders and their children.
After living in Salt Lake City, Ms. García-Díaz and her husband decided to move to Wyoming. They chose to move to a smaller town that offered enough services to meet their needs. They found it in Casper, Wyoming.
For the last nine years, Ms. García-Díaz has served Central Wyoming Counseling Center in various roles. She started in the Substance Use Disorder unit and has also worked in the Psychiatric Rehabilitation Program, the Crisis Unit, and other roles at CWCC.
In her new position, she oversees a treatment team who are dedicated to providing a safe place for their clients to find sobriety, to live in peace, and to become who they are.
“Many clients who come to the residential program have never been able to maintain sobriety in the community. They don’t have the necessary sober support systems in place when they want to get help because they still have access to different substances. Many of our clients are homeless, so they don’t have a place to go to be safe. We have clients coming from domestic violence situations who are financially scrapped.”
CWCC serves a wide variety of clientele from different walks of life. Ms. García-Díaz understands that not every plan works for every individual. She knows that treatment offers sobriety, along with the peace that comes with it.
“Our job is to assist our clients to be in a safe place to gain skills to develop sobriety.” She states it is also important to acknowledge that many of our clients with substance use disorders are also survivors of trauma.
CWCC is dedicated to addressing all areas of mental health and substance use disorders. This may be one of the big reasons that Ms. García-Díaz has spent the better part of a decade working at CWCC. She said she is proud to be a part of an organization that views clients holistically and CWCC provides real solutions.
“When we look at all these circumstances with men and women, we need to remove them from those environments,” she said. “We need to help them find housing. We need to help them find employment. Some of them don’t even have IDs, so we help them with that – all simple things that so many of us take for granted.”
“We serve so many populations. And we use a team approach with each client. We help them to be reacquainted in the community. We help them find housing and find jobs that make them feel productive. We help them with disability benefits. We help them find their purpose.”
That is the mission of the Central Wyoming Counseling Center – to help their clients find their purpose. Years ago, Zully Garcia-Diaz found hers, and she hasn’t looked back. To learn more about the team at the Central Wyoming Counseling Center and the services they provide, visit the CWCC website or follow them on Facebook.
