Meet Dr. Kari Rengo
I’m going to dive into this writing adventure by telling you more about me. Hello again! My name is Kari, and I’m the owner and psychiatric-mental health nurse practitioner at True North Psychiatry™.
I took the long road to get to where I am today with my career. I began my nursing career as a Certified Nursing Assistant. From there, I obtained my Licensed Practical Nursing certificate and an Associate’s Degree in Nursing from Lake Superior College. I went on to earn a Bachelor’s Degree in Nursing and a combined Master’s Degree in Nursing and Business Administration with an emphasis on Healthcare Administration from the University of Phoenix. I finished out my school career by obtaining a Family Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurse Practitioner Certificate and a Doctor of Nursing Practice from the College of St. Scholastica. It was so much school, but in the end, it gave me the tools I needed to help people and cool alphabet soup after my name – DNP, APRN, PMHNP-BC, CPAHA.
I’ve held a few different jobs in my role as a nurse practitioner. I started my career at The Human Development Center in Duluth, Minnesota, where I worked with clients across the lifespan for medication management needs. I transitioned into a role at Northwest Passage in Frederic and Webster, Wisconsin, where I worked with children and adolescents in a diagnostic assessment program and residential treatment programs. From there, I jumped with both feet into my practice at True North Psychiatry™, where I am back to seeing clients across the lifespan for medication management needs.
Outside of True North Psychiatry, I wear many different hats, including wife, human mamma, cat mamma, and dog mamma. My husband and I are sneaking up on 25 years of marriage. I have three kiddos, one is 21 years old, one is 17 years old, and my baby just turned 13 years old. We have one cat, Emmy, who is 15 years old. We also have two dogs, Jemma (German Shepard), who is 8 years old, and Oliver (Golden Retriever), who is inching up on 5 years old. Sometimes my house feels more like a zoo than an actual house!
I also am a person who has lived experience with mental health symptoms, specifically anxiety. One of my kiddos was born with significant medical issues and required transportation to a specialized NICU in the Twin Cities and many surgeries right after birth. This pulled me away from my other kiddo and left me with some BIG anxiety feelings. Just a few years ago, this same kiddo had another medical crisis that required transportation to a specialized ICU in the Twin Cities and a major surgery. This pulled me away from my other kiddos and left me with some BIG anxiety feels as well as some BIG memories from the past. The experiences led me to use medication as a tool to manage my anxiety symptoms as I worked with my therapy provider to learn some snazzy new coping skills. Although I’ve been off medication for years, the skills still carry me through hard situations today. I can honestly say that I am forever grateful for the medication and therapy services I received, and I love that I get to bring my personal experience into visits with my clients. I believe that my experiences bring a deeper level of empathy and a higher level of symptom understanding to all my client visits.
Now that you know more about me as a person, I’m hoping you’ll have the courage to take the next step and schedule an appointment for you and/or your family members. So…what are you waiting for?! There is no better time than now to take control of your path and begin moving in the direction of who you are at your deepest point…your True North.
Taking that first step toward mental health care isn’t easy, but I promise, it’s worth it. There’s no better time than now to take control of your path and begin moving in the direction of who you are at your deepest point… your True North.
Your True North Psychiatry™
Connect with Kari
If you’re seeking mental health services for yourself or someone you care about in Minnesota or Wisconsin, True North Psychiatry™ is here to help. You’re welcome to call or send a message to see if we might be a good fit.
If you or someone else is in crisis or an emergency, please call 911.
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