About Me
I specialize in the treatment of trauma, dissociation, depression, and anxiety in adults using Sensorimotor Psychotherapy and DBT.
Hi, I’m Brittany Smith
I’m excited at the possibility of working with you! I specialize in treating depression and anxiety as well as the effects of trauma, including post-traumatic stress, complex trauma, and dissociation using a somatic, DBT, and attachment-based approach. If you’re an adult (18+) experiencing depression, anxiety, or the effects of trauma I might be a good fit for you.
I am a Professional Counselor Associate being supervised by K Hixson, PhD, LPC. I am now accepting new clients for in person sessions while masked or for telehealth sessions.
My Approach & Values
I believe that everyone deserves the opportunity to thrive, and that trauma underlies many of the issues that cause people to seek counseling. I also believe that the best outcomes in counseling happen in a supportive and collaborative relationship. My initial work with clients involves establishing safety and creating trust so that all parts of you can show up in the therapeutic relationship and experience healing.
I work with clients to find solutions from within themselves and that emerge from the body, not just the mind. Often, we have the solutions within ourselves but are unable to use those solutions as a result of overwhelming life circumstances, strong emotions, limiting beliefs, and trauma. I use a trauma-informed, body-oriented, attachment-based, and DBT approach with clients to help them better access those solutions and live life more fully in the present moment. As a result of my personal experience and the work I do with clients I carry a deeply held belief that healing is possible.
Specialties
- Trauma
- Dissociation
- Anxiety
- OCD
- Depression
- Chronic illness
Modalities
- Sensorimotor Psychotherapy
- DBT
- ERP (exposure and response prevention)
- Attachment
- Trauma Center Trauma Sensitive Yoga
Education
- Level II Sensorimotor Psychotherapy training
- Level I Sensorimotor Psychotherapy training
- Trauma Center Trauma Sensitive Yoga Foundational Training
- Exposure and Response Prevention Therapy for OCD
- Master of Counseling, Oregon State University
Why Toadstools?
What’s not to love about mushrooms? I’m a mycology nerd and spend a fair amount of time in the woods, my backyard, and around my neighborhood hunting for various kinds of mushrooms. See the pictures below for some of the treasures I’ve found.
I’m an avid knitter and weaver and one of the things I like to work with is mushroom and lichen dyed yarn. You’d be surprised how many mushrooms and lichen in the Portland metro area have dye potential! Sulfur tuft and dyer’s polypore are two great examples.
One of the things I also love about mushrooms is what they can teach us about healing and connection. The mushroom is the fruiting body of a vast network of mycelium underground that connects trees, allows them to communicate, and provides nutrients for their growth. Many mushrooms also have medicinal properties that have long been used by humans. There’s mounting evidence that mushrooms have a language all their own that has striking similarity to human language.
Mushrooms also capture the bottom-up approach I often use with clients. It can be beneficial to work with information that comes from the emotional realm, body sensations, and our felt sense rather than with congnition alone.
So pull up a toadstool and let’s connect!
Sulfur Tuft
Chicken of the Woods
Turkey Tail
Fly Agaric
Dyer’s Polypore
The Prince
West Coast Reishi
