Family Therapy in Elma, WA

Whether you're a teen navigating turbulent transitions, an adult grappling with life's complexities, or a family/ couple seeking harmony- I work with all stages. Teens may wrestle with identity, self-esteem, and peer pressure. Adults might confront relationship challenges, career transitions, or unresolved traumas. Families and couples may seek to mend communication, strengthen bonds, and thrive together. If this sounds like you, your child, or your family; I am here to help guide you through your therapeutic journey.

I am a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist who has a heart for empowering women to live joyfully inside their bodies through liberation-work and self-compassion. I approach therapy from a systemic, person-centered, feminist, sex-positive, and HAES lens that's rooted in social justice. I understand the ways that oppression and trauma influence how we connect with our bodies and I view coping mechanisms as survival strategies that develop in response to our experiences. I believe there is wisdom in our coping and I enjoy helping clients compassionately attune to their body’s needs and connect to their intuition.

I primarily work with people who are struggling with anxiety, depression, and distress in relationships (whether that is partners, family, or friends). My clients are mostly young adults or older, although I am happy to work with younger children in the context of family therapy. Additionally, specialize in working with those in the LGBTQ+, Ethical Non-Monogamy (ENM), sex worker, and Kink communities.

New Clients Warmly Welcomed! With a culturally responsive, client-centered, anti-racist, intersectional and liberation focused approach, I will respectfully come alongside you in exploring healing & growth for your wellbeing. My strengths include years of work with folx navigating relationships, anxiety, family dynamics, depression, ancestor work, grief of all kinds, life transitions, trauma processing (developmental, complex, sexual), creative blocks, attachment wounds, integration of psychedelic experiences, addiction, burnout, perfectionism, sexuality, gender expression, internalized oppression, spirituality and self discovery.

Our work will improve your relationships, communication, self esteem, and sense of overall well being. I believe in the inherent wisdom of clients in the healing process. I respect the lifestyles each person has chosen, and believe in the importance of confidentiality. I offer a safe place to explore concerns about relationships, parenting, marriage, transition, occupation, separation, depression, stress, and anxiety. I have treated individuals, couples, and families since 1995 specializing in internal families systems, human developments, and treating trauma.

I work with parents and caregivers of neurodiverse children to help them navigate raising their unique humans. I also work with individuals struggling with anxiety and depression brought on by chronic or sudden life stressors. This work is largely about identifying and examining old beliefs, coping mechanisms, and patterns of communication from the person's past that are no longer useful in current situations. In this way, people can learn and grow beyond their old habits.

—OPEN to NEW in-person & virtual CLIENTS— I have a passion for working with clients to heal the wounds of abuse, other traumas, or narcissism; work through family-of-origin and attachment issues; liberate from the confines of anxiety, panic, phobias, and OCD (or obsessive-compulsive tendencies); repair and/or heal from relational issues; develop effective boundary-drawing; transform self-concept/esteem; and grow to find peace, joy, purpose, and overall wellness.

Three decades in private practice has reinforced my belief that much of our struggles are rooted in some of our earliest formative experiences. Our thoughts, emotions, perceptions and behaviors are largely shaped by impactful conditions and experiences. Patterns and strategies often become unconscious, automatic and at times destructive. This is often what brings us to therapy. My goal is to create a therapeutic relationship that allows doors to open through connection and compassion. My approach draws on many years of experience in the art of somatic based psychotherapies and depth oriented psychology.

My specialties include low self-esteem, anxiety, trauma-related issues, insecurity, attachment styles, and FOO (Family of origin) issues. I tend to work well with clients who appreciate connection, honesty, and humor; who are interested in learning new things; who are into music and arts; who possess sensitivity, intuition, and a spiritual inclination. I particularly enjoy working with bilingual/bicultural individuals experiencing an identity crisis; college students or young professionals feeling stuck; and parents/couples who wish to improve their parenting/partnership by healing their own emotional wounds.

I love working with folks who are navigating a big life transition, who are wanting to understand themselves on a deeper level and who are open to creating more space for compassion and pleasure in their lives. Maybe you're coming out, maybe you're starting or ending a relationship, maybe you have experienced trauma in your life and want a better relationship with your body. I want to work with you! I am a collaborative therapist, meaning that we will work as a team to help you find your own best answers. While we will move at your pace, I will also compassionately and intentionally challenge you to expand your comfort zone.

I enjoy working with couples, intimate partners, and families from diverse backgrounds and relationship constellations. I seek to collaborate with my clients to explore their concerns and the experiences that have brought them to this moment in their lives. I believe that each of us already has a deep internal knowledge of what we need and what serves us, and my role is to help you uncover this knowledge for yourself and your relationships. From here, we can work together to find a path forward that feels authentic and in alignment with your values.

I have experience providing individual and group psychotherapy in private practice and University settings with adults between the ages of 17-65 since 2004. I have expertise regarding relationship & family dynamics, life transitions & identity, mood & anxiety, and stress & trauma. My approach to counseling is dynamic, collaborative, & Humanistic. I enjoy supporting people to learn new ways to relate through self-awareness and experiential exercises. I work with individuals to reduce symptoms that impact life, work, and relationships and encourage growth by exploring untapped potential and enhancing overall functioning.

Now accepting new in person in Bellevue, Washington as well as online. I see individuals and couples. Are you struggling to understand why you are the way you are? I can help you to see it clearly and then provide tangible tools to get you tools to get to a new healed place. I help with family of origin issues, codependency, menopause, all relationship issues, and have experience with plant medicine. Seeing me is a little like seeing Gaby from Shrinking, I believe deeply in compassion while also telling it like it is. I am honored to do this important work with you.

Working with individuals, couples and families struggling with interpersonal relationships, communication, boundaries, self-worth, anxiety, depression, trauma and grief and loss are my specialities. Many of the clients I see begin therapy with some insight into what's going on with them but feel uncertainty and confusion over how to address it and create the positive changes they desire. Many struggle in their social or romantic relationships, managing work related stress, or say they feel depressed, stressed, emotionally lonely, or sad.

Mei Sims is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor who has practiced Clinical Counseling/Psychotherapy in Seattle, Houston area and overseas for more than 15 years. She is also a certified clinical supervisor for her collaborative group. Her professional and life& work experiences enrich in relating to her clients' issues on work, family, and personal development. Mei also provides life &career coaching for professionals with diverse background, contracted by tech cooperation, such as Microsoft and Amazon. Mei strives to provide a safe place for hurting individuals to heal and to equip them to make life changes.

Are you an adolescent or young adult struggling to navigate an ever-changing life and world? Are you in the midst of transition, whether that includes school, work, relationships, life role changes, identity, aging, spirituality, or something entirely different? Do you find yourself stressed, overwhelmed, and stuck in patterns and habits that are no longer meeting your needs? Are you questioning the core values and beliefs that you grew up with? If you connect with any of these challenges I would love to be able to support you in cultivating a life that you are proud of and excited to live.

In an overly connected world, we sometimes just need to be heard. Meeting with someone who listens deeply can uncover the answers that live within our hearts. The therapeutic process allows you to navigate life's transitions (identity, relationships, career, relocation, retirement, grief and loss) with grace. In time, you can bring your whole self to all of your relationships (intimate, family, friends, colleagues). You can also pursue purposeful action in your education, career, community and spiritual life. Living is the process of enduring change. Building resilience allows us to be enriched by that ongoing change process.