Anxiety Therapists in Northwest, Portland, OR

As a therapist I’m drawn to those places of breakdown that so often have the potential to become breakthroughs. Usually these are discovered in the midst of broader life-cycle transitions, moments of grief and loss, seasons of depression or anxiety, or in response to the myriad of social and cultural pressures we face. These experiences can be disorienting, frightening and isolating, but with the support of a trusted companion to help us face the journey they can also reveal our own innate wisdom and strength and serve as the gateway to deeper healing and wholeness.

Thank you for taking the time to consider me as a therapeutic support for you. I work with a wide range of clients wanting to focus on self-exploration, healing, and growth, with specialty in helping individuals struggling with eating disorders and LGBTQIA+ related issues. I also help individuals struggling with low self-esteem, depression, anxiety, grief, life transitions, and establishing new coping skills. I practice through a humanistic lens with a trauma-informed, neurodiverse affirming, and strengths-based foundation.

I am deeply passionate about helping individuals who find themselves experiencing challenging life changes and transitions. They may be grappling with issues related to trauma, addiction, anxiety, depression, or the complexities of grief. As a second-generation immigrant, I am also passionate about helping individuals navigate multi-generational family dynamics and commitments, while also deepening their understanding of their own identity and experiences.

Are you being adversely affected by everyday life stress? In today's fast-paced, high demand society, with little time for self-care, you may feel anxious and/or depressed. You may have challenges in relationships, or be dealing with substance use and possibly abuse. If you can relate to any of the above, then you have come to the right place. Here at Bridgeways Counseling, you will experience a highly qualified, respectful and supportive therapist who offers a compassionate, solution-focused and direct approach in helping you reach your therapeutic goals.

Not Accepting Clients At This Time-My name is Pauline Botchway, and I strongly believe that, as human beings, we have the ability to change and transform our lives through choice. Since no single theory can capture our experiences as human beings, I utilize an integrated approach that allows me to use some aspects of Gestalt, Existential, and Solution Focused, as well as high utilization of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and EMDR. In addition to my community mental health, I am including private practice in my line of work. My main goal as a clinician is to help and guide individuals to change their lives to improve everyday living.

Therapy is writing your own story as we embrace the ‘self as inherently fluid’ and that all individuals are capable of crafting new and empowering stories that include a new sense of self. This is a healing journey, and I'm here to connect with you to explore together the trauma, grief, and other challenging life experiences that prevent you from healing, growing and living the fulfilling life you are seeking.

All of us face experiences in our lives where we can benefit from the support and connection that therapy provides. Scientific evidence demonstrates that a strong and consistent therapeutic relationship is restorative, healing and emotionally regulating. As a therapist, I believe in connecting with clients, human-to-human, and I regularly feel a deep sense of understanding for those with whom I work. There is so much noise around us that it is often difficult for us to hear our own truth. I offer a compassionate, heart-centered space to help you to deeply trust your own inner strength and core values.

Have growing anxiety and stress that is becoming unmanageable? Feeling angry? Feeling stuck in the past or numb in the present? Having trouble sleeping? Find yourself being over critical of yourself? In a messy relationship and unsure what you can or want to do? Maybe frustrated with work and curious about a new career path but not sure where to start? It is not hard to find people around us who want to tell us what to think and how to act. What is hard to find is a space that is quiet and safe, that allows us the ability to recognize our own feelings and align them with our own thoughts.

I consider it a true privilege to sit with folx in the processing of life’s complexities and approach the therapeutic process with the perspective that we are all doing the very best that we can with the tools that we’ve been given. It is my belief that each of us has the capacity to hone new skills, heal from the past, and find greater alignment within our bodies and our lives. I operate from a person-centered lens, utilizing empathic connection and unconditional positive regard to provide a safe space for personal healing.

I serve diverse adults (age 20+), specifically those who have alternative identities (artists, creatives, counter-culture, & minorities of all types) as well as other therapists. I provide a non-judgmental and understanding space for people who may have struggled engaging in therapy in the past due to feeling judged for being “weird” or “different”. My clients typically feel stuck in one or more areas of life (relationship, family, career, holistic health, identity, personal happiness, etc.) and are sometimes struggling with mood and/or anxiety disorders, substance abuse, maladaptive coping behaviors, unresolved traumas, etc.

It feels like no matter how hard you try, that somehow you always end up right back where you started. Whether it is trauma, anxiety, depression, being plagued by nagging self-doubts, or life just feeling hard, it is taking a toll. The bending and contorting yourself to be what others think you should be leaves you feeling anxious or depressed and disconnected from yourself. And then there are those experiences that you just don’t talk about. The shame and guilt feel like too much. Every day feels harder than the last and you are so ready for that to change. Ready for healing and reclaiming yourself.

Whether you are struggling with stress, anxiety, depression, relationship issues, or any other concerns, you deserve a therapist who will be open and supportive yet willing to challenge you gently when needed.  With an approach that combines connection and boundaries, we can work together to help you find the agency you need to move through life with pleasure. I specialize in working with BIPOC, LGTBQIA, Polyamory/Non-Monogamous, and Kink/BDSM communities to provide comprehensive, evidence based, trauma informed, sex positive therapy, that meets the needs of sexual marginalized populations.

I offer psychological and neuropsychological evaluations to children, adolescents, and adults and I provide therapy for adolescents and adults. I evaluate learning and neurocognitive differences, including ADHD and depression and anxiety. My goal is to provide resources and support services for students with unique academic needs, help clients develop executive functioning strategies, and offer therapeutic services for neurodivergent individuals. If you are seeking to understand your unique ways of learning and living in the world, I want to help you on this path to greater contentment and fulfillment.

I firmly believe that growth has two paths. To truly flourish, one must balance a desire for change with a true willingness to accept oneselve for who you are. A treatment that embraces this idea is Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), and it's the core philosophy I use with my patients every day. In treatment, DBT concepts focus on changing things that are getting in the way of living the life you want, while accepting yourself unconditionally. The focus is to develop a life worth living. My program offers a full finality DBT which includes individual therapy, group skills training, and phone consultation.

Much of what stands in the way of growth is our own self-judgment. We are all imperfect and our greatest hope for growth, contentment and fulfilling connection to others, comes through recognizing this truth and accepting the natural ebb and flow of emotion and circumstance. My job as your counselor is to help you figure out your goals, learn how your old habits and coping strategies no longer serve you, and help you access your inner wisdom.

Therapy provides a supportive framework to be present with life's ups and downs and examine life experiences in a new way. This exploration can help you understand yourself better, break old patterns, accept yourself radically, enrich your relationships, and grow. Regardless of your unique process, I believe you have the inherent wisdom and resilience to be present, heal, find joy & ease, and love yourself more. My approach is collaborative, relational, and emotion-focused, with a little humor thrown in. I have over 15 years experience as a social worker and therapist in various settings including hospitals and integrative health.

Hello! My name is Ella (she/her) and I’m happy you’re here! I believe that people have the capacity and right to access healing. Therapy is a great opportunity to share and explore your story as we journey toward healing. I feel strongly connected to the needs of my community, from those I grew up around to folks new to me. I am happy to work individually with teens and adults across identities, experiences, and wants from therapy.

I work within a wide range of therapy issues. If you are suffering in an unsatisfying relationship or career, or are hungry to understand yourself better therapy can be beneficial. By utilizing the therapeutic skills I've developed you may find hope and possibly a shift in perspective. Feeling better is possible. I bring a supportive approach and have enormous compassion for the human experience, life can be difficult. I offer Telehealth or in person therapy sessions.

At Connections First we have faith in the power of connection: with your inner life and to the outer world through meaningful relationships. We believe that mental health is an effect of feeling more deeply connected to ourselves and to others through the safety of transparent, emotionally honest relationships. How we communicate with ourselves and those we care about determines whether we possess integrity and feel empowered to express ourselves as human beings. Much of our symptoms are the effects of emotional, psychological, and physical isolation and self-alienation which can even happen when we are surrounded by other people.