Hi, I’m Amanda (she/her)

I identify as a white, cis gendered, straight, middle class person. As someone with a great deal of privilege, I believe it is my job to make sure I understand my privilege through humble learning, and unlearning as I holding space for others.

I believe that we all have access to an inner knowledge that helps us overcome our challenges. I use several tools to help clients access this knowledge including talk therapy, art therapy, and regulation strategies, mindfulness and meditation practices based off client need and comfort level. My approach is relational, trauma-informed and strength-based. I work with clients where they are at on any given day. From there, we collaborate to build skills and resiliency. I work adults to help find resources within themselves. I work with many clients who have experienced trauma, anxiety, depression and or difficulty in transition.

Growing up I could make art for hours getting lost in drawings and creative projects. Art making nurtured something within me and became a channel for expression and processing. As challenges in my life arose, I turned to art for answers, and for a space to play. Creating helped me make sense of my experiences and brought me great joy. This remains true today. 

I am also fascinated by the way our body holds our stories and way we can access our deeper knowledge through our embodied experience. I have studied yoga and meditation, becoming a certified yoga instructor in 2010. More recently, I have become interested in the nervous system and how our body responds to stressors and safe connection. I graduated with a BA in art education and child psychology from University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, Minnesota in 2008. I moved to the east coast and worked on curriculum for mentoring programs, incorporating art and support for teens to express and connect around their individual and collective experiences. For me, this was a bridge to art therapy. I attended and graduated from School of Visual Arts, in New York City, with a masters in Art Therapy in 2011. While in New York, I worked in schools, community centers and health clinics. I also started a private practice part-time working with youth and adults. After living on the east coast for eight years, I moved to Portland a place that felt like home, before it was. I worked with indigenous teens in a school setting, and started Awaken Art Therapy, LLC, which is now my full-time passion work.

I look forward to connecting with you.