Therapists in Anacortes, WA

I am a depth centered trauma psychotherapist that specializes in healing from trauma, anxieties, and abuse. I utilize somatic, psychoanalytic, Internal Family Systems, and person centered models as we work through all the ways we feel not ok. I specialize in ERP and DBT for anxiety disorders. Together we will explore your life and stories and create space to deepen your connection to your inner world, give meaning to past experiences, transform thinking patterns, calm and quiet the anxieties of your body and mind, and explore new styles of being and relating.

Are you feeling alone in navigating your mental health struggles? Are you struggling with depression, trauma, bipolar disorder, spiritual crisis, or another issue where you feel stuck? I offer sensitive and responsive therapy to help you understand yourself better and navigate through challenging times. I have expertise in mental illness and approach your issues from a gentle, non judgmental place. I’ve worked in severe mental health settings, trauma research, and with refugees. I’ve also facilitated support groups in bipolar disorder and depression.

As a Doctoral Candidate supervised by Jeff Grant, Ph.D., owner of Portage Bay Clinic, my practice has been reliably successful with individuals struggling with depression, anxiety, grief, anticipatory grief, trauma, and PTSD. I have extensive experience as a mental health advocate for disabled and underserved individuals. Informed by depth psychological and relational psychoanalytic approaches, my goal remains to act as a guide identifying strategies and highlighting solutions to access inner strength, and tap into sources including insight, courage, and resilience critical in making important mental health and lifestyle changes.

Seeking therapy can be a daunting process, while also being one step toward greater wholeness/healing. Relationship is where we are both wounded and healed. I work with individuals seeking relief from distressing symptoms such as; demanding too much of yourself, finding it hard to trust self, trust your own experience, self-soothing through addictive behaviors, pleasing others at your own expense, anxiety, depression, CPTSD. Our patterns of relating develop early within our first attachments, so our journey might include visiting some of those relationships to wonder how they impact you in the here and now.

Grappling with anxiety, depression, grief or a significant life transition can feel all consuming. Even if you have good support in your life, these experiences can exhaust your energies and feel isolating. It may be hard to see beyond a current painful time, or imagine things can feel different. In our therapy relationship, I will hold these challenges with care, and try to help you grow, find deeper meaning, peace, clarity, and ultimately more of yourself. It’s my belief that the therapy relationship invites more creative and authentic capacities to navigating life's inevitable changes and challenges.

I am a holistic, trauma-informed therapist and my focus is working with adolescents and adults on issues related to depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder and neurodivergence (ADHD and Autism Spectrum Disorders). I also work with issues such as spiritual trauma and abuse, childhood emotional neglect and family systems. My therapeutic approach is client-centered, relational, and depth-based. I incorporate psychoanalytic depth work, existential psychotherapy, as well as somatic and mindfulness practices incorporating the body and strengthening a body-mind connection as it feels safe to do so.

The Only Cure Is Strength. Our work together will focus on your needs. Psychoanalytic Therapy, integrated with other perspectives, is a powerful and effective way to help individuals and couples address life's most urgent issues. Together we can work through, overcome, or improve: Depression, stress and anxiety, Love and intimate relationships, Family conflict resolution, Sexuality and body image, Parent-child conflicts, Drug abuse and eating disorders, Balancing work and personal life, Managing emotions effectively, Strengthening the will/ego, Artistic and athletic creativity, and Creation of meaning. Every effort in therapy should be focused on achieving an aesthetic self-creation.

My healing begins from a place of connection and an appreciation of your potential and the power we have to impact each other. I will support you in your search for greater meaning, emotional awareness and empowerment in a world that can be overwhelming and isolating. We will begin a thoughtful exploration of how your past experiences and relationships impact you presently. Together we can uncover and co-create new meanings out of your experiences, and these new understandings can give you the power to relate differently to yourself and others.

I graduated from The Seattle School of Theology and Psychology in 2011 and have been working with children, teens, families and adults in a variety of settings ranging from church kids to registered sex offenders in the foster care system. The last three years, I have been in community mental health working with low income children and their families. I utilize PACE in therapy (Playfulness, Acceptance, Curiosity and Empathy) as my primary therapeutic stance and rely heavily on Narrative, Existential, and Relational Psychoanalytic therapies. Through Telos Transformational Therapy, I also provide Ketamine-Assisted psychotherapy.

Welcome. Are you looking for more joy and better relationships? My training has taught me to help people examine and describe the life they have, identifying areas in which they are "stuck," and reconnect to the life-goals that motivated them. Sometimes this stuckness has to do with certain feelings, sometimes it is about past traumas, often it shows up as repeating patterns in significant relationships, and sometimes it manifests as a malaise in which a direction in life seems impossible to find.

As your therapist, I will work with you in order to alleviate suffering and develop insight. Sessions take place in a confidential and safe space where you will be met with empathy, compassion, and acceptance. I believe people can change and that times of crisis may offer the opportunity to experience new ways of being in the world, new relationships, and a more authentic and meaningful life. Professional membership and affiliation: -The Alliance for Psychoanalytic Study: Member of the Education Committee - Northwestern Psychoanalytic Society & Institute - PSG Psychotherapy Network - The Center for Object Relations - Northwest Family Development Center

Life does not always flow smoothly. The past, the present, or the future can seem unclear or full of obstacles. People can get stuck, feel trapped, and the road forward is not always in plain sight. There is always a way forward. In my counseling work I am dedicated to helping people advance towards being their optimal selves, towards self-acceptance, and towards achieving their most impossible goals. With experience and specialized training in couples counseling, with mental health disorders, families, and in crisis situations, I utilize the therapeutic relationship in all of my work.

Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy is a collaborative process and a unique form of conversation. In this treatment modality we recognize the centrality of relationships in human development and explore constitutive effects that significant relationships have on our mind; how they guide our wishes, fears and conflicts. Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy also understands that our level of self-awareness is always limited and that our behaviors, choices, interests, and conscious beliefs are influenced by internal and external forces that we may not be fully aware of.

My style is warm, genuine and open. Together we will take the time to listen to your inner and outer experience in order to better understand and attend to your unspoken needs, injuries, fears, and uncertainties. I work with individuals experiencing anxiety, trauma, depression, relationship issues, relationship breakup, career and workplace issues, life transitions, abandonment, co-dependency, and loss and grief.

I am passionate about helping you reach your potential. We accomplish this together through a psychoanalytic, interpersonal, mind-body-spirit integration that draws on your strengths and resources. I believe psychoanalysis and psychotherapy are not about fixing what is wrong, but about using what is working well for you and deepening your skills to increase your health, well-being, and overall freedom and flexibility. I care deeply about providing excellent care, and trying out new ways of relating and understanding yourself that will lead you to optimize your health and connections with others.

Is there a part of you that feels like something is missing? Like you’re not in touch with your full self or even your ‘true’ self? Perhaps meaning feels distant and your emotional inner world feels difficult to put words to. When these troubling feelings and thoughts arise, life asks us to slow down and get to the root of the issue. In therapy we will do just that. Whether you are working through a difficult relationship, experiencing paralyzing existential dread, or emotional pain manifesting in your body, you deserve the space to get to know yourself on a deeper level and allow for a much needed deep emotional release.

Life is a constant battle and we do what we can to power through every day. We can't control everything that comes our way but we can learn to control how to process our environment in a way that is more constructive and less overwhelming. Is stress permeating your days? Are the smallest things causing anxiety? Do you feel easily attacked, targeted, on the defensive? When something bad happens around you, do you usually believe you are partially to blame? Difficult jobs, heavy workload, relationship struggles, family issues, and more concerns can be eased with talking it out in a safe and judgment-free space.

Hi. I'm Anna. I work with many different kinds of people, but I specialize in working with queer, trans, Jewish, and neurodivergent clients especially, as well as those who have experienced trauma. I currently have availability, so please reach out. I especially enjoy working with people who are seeking to understand themselves more deeply or who are struggling with their identity or the roles in their life. My approach incorporates all of your experiences, both recent and in the deeper past. During our work together I will encourage you to follow your thoughts and feelings wherever they may lead.