Jeff Watson

Officer Jeff Watson has 11 years of civilian law enforcement experience with a Mid-sized Police Department in central Florida. Officer Watson has a wide range of experience ranging from Field Training Officer, Detective, Crime Suppression Unit, and Crisis Negotiator. Officer Watson is one of the founding members of his departments Crisis Negotiation Team and Peer Support Team. Officer Watson has a B.A. in Psychology with a Behavioral Forensics Certificate and Criminal Profiling Certificate from the University of Central Florida. Officer Watson instructs general and high liability classes at the Brevard Community College’s Department of Public Safety including Crisis Intervention Team Training. Prior to his career in Law Enforcement, Officer Watson served his country for 10 years in the U.S. Army including Military Police Officer and Apache Helicopter Crew Chief. Officer Watson recently assisted F.D.L.E. in re-writing the statewide C.I.T. Curriculum and Hostage Negotiation Team Curriculum. Officer Watson is currently completing his Masters of Science in Mental Health Counseling from Nova Southeastern University and plans on becoming a state licensed Mental Health Counselor specializing in counseling for law enforcement officers and first responders. Officer Watson is a member of The American Psychological Association, American Counseling Association, and the National Alliance on Mental Illness. I am a Licensed Mental Health Counselor in the States of Washington and Florida. I obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from the University of Central Florida in 2009. I earned my Master of Science degree in Psychology from Nova Southeastern University in 2011 and a Doctoral degree in Education from Nova Southeastern University in 2017. I have 13 years as a civilian law enforcement officer and gained experience as a Patrol Officer, Detective, and Crisis Negotiator. During my time as a Police Officer, I had years of success dealing with consumers experiencing a mental health crises and assisting consumers in need of services via Florida’s mental health and substance abuse acts. My clinical training included an internship at a crisis receiving facility in Central Florida where I provided psychotherapy and assessment services in inpatient and outpatient settings. I also provided therapy and social integration services at a private facility in Orlando. I also provided mental health counseling services to military service members as a Military and Family Life Counselor (MFLC) prior to joining Peninsula Psychological Center. I am experienced working couples, teens, first responders, and military service members and their families. I specialize in anxiety management, emotional regulation, PTSD, and trauma management. I work with clients to increase emotional health and to reduce their symptoms using brief therapy, EMDR, solution-focused therapy, and other interventions.

Articles:

First Responder Learned Calm from Grandmother

I was born in the mountains of North Carolina and grew up on a small farm with my grandparents. All of my family were members of the local Baptist Church.  […]

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