Belinda Bliss, M.S. LMFT

“Transformation is possible, if we create the space for it to happen.” -Shaka Senghor * HOW WE WORK TOGETHER: I respect my clients for showing up and working hard, and I am committed to partnering with them on their journey. We will work together to explore your questions and address your goals. In the therapy room we work to make space for all of you – the parts you know and like, and the parts that create distress and pain. The more we can fully know and express ourselves the more able we are to live life with resilience, self-compassion, connection and vitality. My style is transparent, curious and warm; I stay actively engaged in the therapeutic relationship. I’m a highly trained therapist, but consider my ability to compassionately sit with my clients as they experience and explore their inner worlds to be my greatest strength. * THEORETICAL ORIENTATION & SPECIALITIES: I primarily use systemic theoretical models that are polyvagal and relational neuroscience informed, attachment and mindfulness based, somatic and compassion focused. I specialize in treating: -Anxiety -Traumatic stress and burnout -Grief and loss -Empaths, those with highly sensitive nervous systems, and big feelers -Feelings of shame, low self-worth, and a harsh inner critic -LGBTQIA+, racialized peoples, and the neurodiverse -Cultural and relationship issues -Spiritual and existential matters * WHO ARE MY CLIENTS: My clients are bright, hard-working women and men who find themselves feeling stuck in some area of their life – their relationships, their emotions, their work, their identity. They are often high-functioning individuals in their work, family, or community, but struggle internally or in intimate relationships. I work with individual adults 18 years on up. Many of my clients identify with one or more of these categories: -Men and women who appear to be doing well in their lives but grapple internally with self-worth, self-criticism, anxiety or shame. -Empaths, sensitive people, big feelers – women and men who tend to absorb the feelings of others and/or get overwhelmed by their own emotions. -Adults who grew up in complicated and/or painful households and want to understand how these early attachment experiences impact how they relate to themself and others. -Adults in caretaking jobs or caregiver roles who want care and connection for themselves but don’t know how to get it. People coping with romantic relationship distress. * MY THERAPEUTIC STYLE
: My primary training is in being a relational therapist. I care deeply about the quality of the therapeutic relationship we form and I strive to make it safe, collaborative and supportive of your growth. I pay special attention to your inner world, but also to your experiences in relationships with others both past and present. You will feel me in the room when your joke cracks me up and when your pain touches my heart. Although it’s probably my humanity and my own years of therapy that make me a good therapist, I also am a research nerd and have done tons of specialized training over the 15 years that I’ve been doing this work. We might work together a short time, or enter into a longer-term therapeutic process, depending on your needs. * EDUCATION: B.A. in Intercultural Studies, Northwestern College, 2002 M.S. in Marriage and Family Therapy, Seattle Pacific University, 2008 * ABOUT BELINDA: On other parts of this page you’ll find my stats – my education, my training, and my theoretical orientation. Those things certainly help me be a good therapist. But if you want to know a bit about who I am, read on: I’m a partner, step-mother, friend, sister, daughter, and client – which means I get lots of practice feeling vulnerable and imperfect. I work hard to make sense of my own life experiences and have a deep capacity to be with my clients as they experience the pain and joy in their own lives. I am equal parts emotional and cerebral. Cerebral side: Ideas excite me and I’m energized by learning something new. I’ve followed my curiosity down many paths in this profession and am a bit of a cross-pollinator when it comes to the theories and experiences that inform my work. Emotional side: I’m a noticer and a feeler. I naturally attune to the emotional experiences in my life and in those around me. I believe emotions deepen connection and provide a roadmap for healing. Podcasts, digging in my garden, spending time in forests, sharing meals with family and friends, and finishing a tough yoga class are some of my favorite things. Starting a tough yoga class is one of my least favorite things. I love being a therapist and deeply value the relationships I’ve formed with a wide variety of people in the 15 years I’ve been doing this work. Over the course of my life, I have lived and worked in over 23 countries, primarily in the developing world, and have a particular passion for serving racialized peoples and those with overlapping identities. * I’m available for a free 10 minute phone consultation to answer any questions, listen to what you need, and explore working together. I’d love to hear from you! Belinda