10/09/2017
Alumni Spotlight: Shannon Sampson Dawkins!
Shannon graduated in 2008 after completing her practicum training at UCSD Family Medicine. After graduation, she remained at UCSD Family Medicine as an intern through 2010. During this time, she regularly presented to medical students and residents on relevant behavioral health topics. She also conducted psycho-educational groups on topics such as mindfulness and stress management. In 2010, she moved to North Carolina with her husband, who had been accepted for fellowship training at Wake Forest University. She took the National Exam prior to the move, and became licensed in North Carolina. She obtained a clinical position with Family Services, a community mental health agency. The population served included clients with general mental health needs, as well as child physical and sexual abuse cases. This included significant collaboration with the local child welfare department. She concurrently conducted weekly support groups through Heartstrings, a local resource for parents grieving pregnancy and infant loss.
She returned to San Diego the following year, splitting her time as a licensed clinician between UCSD’s Departments of Family Medicine and Pediatrics. In 2012, she first opened her Private Practice. She taught the Child Abuse Intercession course at SOLES in the spring. In 2014, she obtained a full-time position with the Department of Defense as a Clinician in the Family Advocacy Program at MCAS Miramar. She worked predominantly with involuntary Active Duty Marines and their families with recent incidents of DV and child abuse. She resigned from this position upon the birth of her first child in 2015, and since then has maintained her part-time private practice in Sorrento Valley. She had her second child in 2016, and continues to maintain her practice part-time, specializing in anxiety disorders, grief & loss, maternal and adolescent mental health. More information can be found at www.shannonsampsonmft.com
In her personal time, Shannon and her husband John enjoy spending time with their two children, Dominic (age 2) and Harper (9 months). They are expecting their third child in late winter, so will soon be juggling three under three. In the little free time they have, they enjoy beach days with their kids, picnics in the park, walks with their chocolate lab Lucy, and the occasional movie or new Netflix series. Shannon’s days currently revolve around play dates, music classes, adventure and family fun around San Diego, and, right now, she wouldn’t want it any other way. She looks back fondly on her education and experience at USD, as well as the friendships formed and maintained a decade later. She feels grateful for the strong clinical foundation, training, supervision, and mentorship she received along the way and in the years since.
If you are interested in being featured in a future Alumni Spotlight, please email me at [email protected].
