NW COUNSELOR
Welcome to Northwest Counseling, a private psychotherapy practice offering a supportive environment serving children and youth ages 5-17
WELCOME
The focus of my practice is to partner with families to provide parent coaching and child behavior support.
I practice attachment-based therapy which aims to build a trusting and supportive relationship between parent and child. While working with children, I utilize play therapy techniques that provide a safe and comfortable environment for children to meet their growth objectives. I offer parent coaching to provide caregivers with effective strategies to support their child. We work collaboratively as a team to resolve issues that are the source of familial distress. Through our partnership, I aim to provide parents with a toolbox of knowledge and strategies regarding specific developmental stages, appropriate behavior, attunement, positive responses, and caregiver self-regulation in response to a child’s interactions. Clients leave my practice with an increased sense of self, improved self-control, and a variety of coping skills to support their emotional growth.
“For a child or an adult, it’s extremely powerful to hear someone say, “I get you. I understand. I see why you feel this way.” This kind of empathy disarms us.”
Daniel J. Siegel
WHAT I HELP WITH
ADHD
Aggression
Anxiety
Attachment issues
Behavioral concerns
Depression
Giftedness
Grief
Learning differences
Low self-esteem
Self-harm
Sibling conflicts
Trauma
MEET DR. SUSAN
*I am a doctorate-level counseling psychotherapist specializing in children, youth, and parent support*
As a parent myself of two exceptionally unique adults, a grandmother, and a licensed mental health counselor, I have more than 30+ years of professional and personal life experience regarding parenting and child development. I know firsthand the intricacies and struggles of raising a family. I know what it’s like to want the very best for our children, to want to heal our own wounded childhood through them, to be anxious about their well-being, and to try to meet all of their psychological-social-emotional needs while also trying to keep them clean, fed, and educated. I was blessed with a wonderful parenting coach in my early years as a parent and my family would not be where we are today without her. My desire is to pass on the skills and strategies I have learned as both a parent and a professional. I have worked with children in various settings including schools, group homes, shelters, juvenile detention centers, with both foster and adoptive families. I have seen how crucial secure attachment is to healthy child development and have witnessed children’s deep need for acceptance, consistency, and understanding. My goal is to help you develop a manual for your individual child so you can identify and understand their specific needs regarding attachment, neuro-biology, mind/body connection, social-learning, communication style, and how to discipline so that your child can learn without fear or shame. In my professional practice, I have focused specifically on children with learning differences including ADHD, Anxiety, and Giftedness. Together we will work to meet your child’s needs to benefit your family’s well-being.
FOR FAMILIES
All of us behave the way we do for a reason, whether it is for the benefit of our well-being or not. We are all attempting to get our needs met. We come into this world with our own unique genetic make-up contributing to how we feel inside and how we express ourselves. The same goes for children/ youth. If a child/youth is experiencing undiagnosed learning differences including but not limited to giftedness, ADHD, or sensory processing problems, they might experience frustration, sadness, and/or confusion and behave in the best way they know how, whether for the benefit of their well-being or not. I walk with children and caregivers as we learn together what is contributing to the source of distress. Then we work together to acquire new skills that when used are for the benefit of well-being.
*Please note that I do not mediate or address concerns that children are going through as a result of divorce. I am not qualified to administer parent assessments for those involved in divorce proceedings.
THERAPEUTIC APPROACHES
CREATIVE EXPRESSIVE ARTS
Creative Expressive Arts Therapy uses various arts—movement, drawing, painting, sculpting, music, writing, sound, and improvisation—in a supportive setting to facilitate growth and healing. It is a process of discovery through any art form that comes from an emotional depth. I use art to help my clients to discover, to let go, to express, and to release. Also, we can gain insight by studying the symbolic and metaphoric messages that come forth in the artwork. Our art speaks back to us if we take the time to let in those messages.
PLAY THERAPY
Play is our first language. Play therapy is a powerful tool for addressing cognitive, behavioral, and emotional challenges. I use play therapeutically to help my clients better process their experiences and develop more effective strategies for managing their needs. When playing, my clients often express thoughts and feelings that might otherwise remain hidden. Play is a natural process that helps children build trust, promotes creative thinking and problem-solving, regulates emotions, and reduces anxiety.
EMDR
Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR) is psychotherapy that enables people to heal from the symptoms and emotional distress that are a result of disturbing life experiences. EMDR therapy shows that the mind can heal from psychological trauma much as the body recovers from physical trauma. Using the detailed protocols and procedures learned in EMDR therapy training sessions, I help clients activate their natural healing processes.