Hello! I’m Tara
I’m a licensed, board certified therapist in Missouri and Kansas.
If you’ve never been to a counselor before, I want you to know that you connect with some and don’t with others. It’s not personal for therapists (it shouldn’t be), but it is for you.
For therapy to be effective, you need to feel comfortable and safe. If you have been in therapy before and it wasn’t a good experience, I’m thrilled that you’re giving it another try. And, I take your previous experiences with therapy seriously. I will ask you about it so I can learn from it and avoid what didn’t work for you (if you want to share the experience).
In addition to the information on this page, I offer a free 15-minute phone consultation. Please feel free to take that time. You are worth it.
My Approach & Values
Finding the right therapist can be a trying process. You want someone knowledgeable but also one who will genuinely listen to you, validate your experiences, and work to understand what you’re going through. I don’t even know you but I can tell you I care. I genuinely do.
My approach is to listen with compassion and without judgement. My goals are also to hear you, to understand what you’re going through, and to be clear about what you want to change. Only then do I bring intherapeutic strategies and tools to help you reach those goals. It is very much a collaborative process.
It is collaborative, but you’re in charge. It’s your life, and I respect your choices. I am here to help you make the changes you want to make. Those changes could be to sleep better, feel happier, reduce anxiety, free yourself from nightmares and/or flashbacks, build self-esteem, reduce shame, stop yelling at your child, learn how to cope, heal from trauma, or even just work to understand what is going on in your brain. These are but a few examples.
Holistic Approach
I believe in a holistic approach to therapy. What does that mean? Well, the mind does not exist without the body. The mind-body connection feels like an overused phrase but there it is. It’s true. What we do to our bodies (e.g., don’t sleep, eat an unhealthy diet) absolutely affects our mental health. So, I’ll ask about it, and we’ll talk about the possible impacts.
Professional Certifications
NCC – National Certified Counselor
ADHD-CCSP – ADHD Certified Clinical Service Professional
CCATP – Certified Clinical Anxiety Treatment Professional
I am also a trained Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapist.
Teletherapy
My office is 100% teletherapy. For you to have the best therapy experience, please read more about my teletherapy information here.