Hi, I'm Allison.
I'm a somatic-based, trauma-informed, EMDR-trained, holistic psychotherapist located near the Jefferson Park and West Highlands neighborhoods in Denver, Colorado. I offer in-person and telehealth therapy sessions to individual adults and adolescents.
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I've always been invested in stories—first as a journalist telling people's stories, next working in marketing building brand stories, now as a therapist witnessing my client's stories. Being a therapist is the honor of my lifetime. And to come full circle, the part I love most about my work is getting to walk alongside my clients as they empower themselves to write what happens next in their story.
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My goal as a therapist is to help you create awareness around your unique lens and life experience, so you can live your life with more intention, enjoyment, and alignment to your highest Self. I specialize in helping you feel unstuck, so you can find the way back to a more connected, content and embodied life.
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Whether you’re seeking therapy for anxiety, relationships, or a life transition, my warm, holistic approach provides a non-judgmental space to seek refuge, process, (dare I say, LAUGH?), and heal. We will work together to mindfully observe your patterns, attachment wounding, dysregulation, self-limiting beliefs, and roadblocks. From there, we'll pave a path forward toward meaningful change using your strengths, resources, and what feels authentic to you.
Education
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BA in Journalism
The University of Georgia
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MA in Clinical Mental Health Counseling
Adams State University
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Credentials
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EMDR Trained
EMDR International Association
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Sensorimotor Level One
Sensorimotor Psychotherapy Institute
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"A bird doesn't sing because it has an answer, it sings because it has a song."
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MAYA ANGELOU
My Specialties
As a nationally board-certified therapist, I'm trained to work with clients who are experiencing all types of mental health difficulties. I specialize in helping my clients understand where they are getting stuck and find a connection back to what feels authentic and aligned. To do this, we'll first work together to identify, get curious about, then soften to any patterns or barriers holding you back from ease, enjoyment, and connection.
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These are some common areas of the human condition that I explore with my clients:
anxiety
Anxiety can show up in many different ways including rumination, worrying, obsessing, irritable mood, avoidance, phobias, and more. If anxiety is impacting your life, therapy is a beneficial way to build awareness around the underlying causes and learn techniques to find a quieter mind amidst the chaos. I use both a somatic and cognitive (parts-work) approach when exploring anxiety, to ensure we can identify where you are getting stuck and how we can enlist your nervous system and compassionate self to help in the healing process.
self criticism
The way you talk to yourself and about yourself matters. A harsh inner critic can activate the threat system in our brain, which is responsible for cortisol and other stress hormones. Self critics run a high risk of anxiety, depression, self-sabotage, stress, and low self-esteem. To dig into self criticism, we'll first engage in some parts work to identify where your critical self voice originated, then use somatic and cognitive interventions like resourcing and self compassion to work through your inner critic's fears, beliefs, and activation points.
perfectionism
Brené Brown said it best; "Perfectionism is not the same thing as striving to be your best. Perfectionism is the belief that if we live perfect, look perfect, and act perfect, we can minimize or avoid the pain of blame, judgement, and shame. It’s a shield. It’s a twenty-ton shield that we lug around thinking it will protect us when, in fact, it’s the thing that’s really preventing us from flight." Perfectionism can be linked to anxiety, depression, OCD, self criticism, disordered eating, and more. To approach perfectionism, we'll look at your connection to self using parts work, as well as other somatic interventions.
people pleasing
We are wired for connection. Oftentimes people pleasing (or fawning) tendencies grow in childhood as an automatic response to stay in connection with our caretakers. While this gives us an illusion of getting our needs met, people pleasing can lead to low self-worth, guilt, poor boundaries, lack of self-love, codependency, and more when it's not addressed in adulthood. Through parts work, boundary setting, and growing resources for self-connection, we can work to unpack where people pleasing tendencies began, how they impact your life, and how to safely move into a more authentic way of being in relationship with yourself and others.
life transitions
Feeling stuck or unsure on how to move forward in your life? Whether you're facing relationship issues, career uncertainty, a move, changes to your family, therapy can help you with the self-exploration needed to identify strengths, re-imagine your future, or learn what coping skills are helpful to add to your toolbox for stressful events. Together we'll work on increasing your window of tolerance for sitting with distress, uncertainty and change. With nervous system regulation, and other somatic interventions, we can co-create a plan that feels supportive to you through anything that life throws your way.
trauma
Trauma overwhelms our system's ability to emotionally digest an event or series of events. If proper coping strategies and resourcing isn't in place to process a traumatic event (and they rarely are without help!), one might struggle with depression, anxiety, low self-worth, physical pain, disassociating, hypervigilance, addiction, PTSD, and more. With training in two trauma-informed modalities, I am passionate about helping re-establish safety, connection, empowerment and nervous system regulation. As Bessel van der Kolk said in The Body Keeps The Score, "Once you start approaching your body with curiosity rather than with fear, everything shifts.”
"The healer you have been looking for is your own courage to know and love yourself completely."
YUNG PUEBLO
HOLISTIC APPROACH
A highly emotional life event doesn't process in the brain the same way that our everyday events do. If we don't have coping strategies or the right outlets to help us re-process these events (no matter how big or small), they can get stuck in our system, and can cause negative cognitions, mental discomfort, stress, or even physical pain.
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Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is an evidence-based therapeutic modality, designed to relieve underlying distress and emotional charge connected to memories. It's complementary to somatic work and talk therapy. If you're curious how we could integrate EMDR into your sessions, let's connect!
sensorimotor & somatic
We experience and interpret much of our lives through our body and nervous system. If trauma has been stored in the body throughout your life, the pent-up tension can effect both your physical and mental wellbeing. Since you can't think your way out of a feeling problem, listening to your body's sensation can give you really useful information on what it needs to do to work towards healing.
Somatic therapy might be a good option for you if you're experiencing anxiety, stress, feeling stuck, depression, grief, or addiction. If you feel like you've gone as far as you can go with talk therapy, and you're interested in incorporating somatic therapy into your sessions, let's talk!
mindfulness
When we start to work together, it's imperative we take the mind and body connection into account as it plays such an important role in one's mental health and wellness.
Practicing mindfulness gives us the ability to observe our thoughts, emotions and body sensations objectively, without judgement. By incorporating mindfulness into your life you will learn what it feels like to live in the present moment instead of ruminating on what might happen in the future, or dwelling on what has happened in your past.
As a RYT-200 certified yoga teacher, I often incorporate nervous system regulation techniques and breath work into therapy sessions.
emdr
CARL JUNG
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
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Do you accept insurance?
I am currently a private pay, out-of-network provider. While I do not accept insurance, I can provide an out-of-network superbill if your insurance will reimburse you. I encourage you to check your out-of-network benefits before committing to working with me, as I cannot guarantee reimbursement from your insurance.
How do I know if I'm ready for therapy?
Every individual has a different reason for seeking therapy. While some might be seeking guidance while navigating a specific mental health concern or life transition, others might be on a broader journey to explore and understand themselves. You don't need to be able to name a presenting issue or identify a specific need to seek therapy. All I ask is that you're ready to work, and come with an open heart and mind. Therapy is a journey, and even if you come in with a specific agenda, we'll likely encounter some unexpected areas to get curious about!
What can I expect during my first counseling session?
If you decide to schedule a session with me after our initial consultation call, I will send over my practice paperwork, which includes an intake form. You will fill out the intake form prior to our first session, so we can discuss together. We will cover a very high overview of what brings you to therapy, things you want to work on together, therapeutic goals, and any known roadblocks. From there, I will create an ongoing (and fluid) plan for us to work together to help guide your progress and reach your goals. All you need to do is bring yourself and a commitment to doing the work.
What are your session rates?
My 50-minute individual counseling sessions are $150. The fee includes the time we spend together in session, as well as time spent outside of your session planning your treatment plan, support, scheduling, and keeping progress notes.
I reserve a few reduced rate spots for clients with financial hardships. When possible, I will work with you to find a way for therapy to be financially sustainable. Please contact me to discuss.
What can I expect during my free consultation call?
A consultation call is an informal way to see if working together would be a good fit before you commit to an initial therapy session. During our consultation call, I will tell you a little more about my therapeutic lens, the modalities I practice from, and suggest what our time together might entail. I will also ask you to give a brief introduction of yourself, and what brings you to therapy in this chapter of life. From there, we can talk in more detail about your therapeutic goals, and how I might be able to help.
What is your cancellation policy?
Since I have reserved your session time exclusively for you, it is my policy to receive at least a 24-hour cancellation notice or you will be subject to a full charge for the session. That said, I know emergencies and unforeseen events come up, so if you have to cancel within the 24-hour window, and I have availability to reschedule your session, I will offer that option to you first.
Still have questions about working together?
Get in Touch
Located in People House
3035 W. 25th Avenue, Denver, CO 80211
720.863.4799