Shawnna Punteney
With over 25 years of experience, I believe therapy should be practical, collaborative, and tailored to the person sitting in front of me. I work with teens and adults who may appear to have everything together on the outside but are struggling with anxiety, trauma, PTSD, depression, burnout, chronic stress, grief, relationship challenges, or major life transitions. My approach is compassionate, direct, and solution-focused. I want you to feel heard and understood, but I also believe therapy should help you create meaningful change in your everyday life. We will work together to understand what keeps you stuck, identify your strengths, build practical tools, and create strategies that fit your life rather than relying on a one-size-fits-all approach. I use evidence-based approaches including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), EMDR, Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART), motivational interviewing, and solution-focused therapy. I integrate these approaches based on your individual needs, goals, and experiences. I especially enjoy working with people who carry significant responsibility in their personal or professional lives—including professionals, leaders, healthcare workers, first responders, and individuals working in demanding or high-stress environments. I also have extensive experience working with adolescents and young adults. You do not have to be in crisis to benefit from therapy. Sometimes you simply know that something needs to change. My goal is to provide a space where you can be honest, gain clarity, build skills, heal from difficult experiences, and move toward a life that feels more manageable and meaningful.
First session
Your first session is an opportunity for us to get to know one another and begin understanding what brought you to therapy. You don't need to have everything figured out or know exactly what you want to work on before you arrive—that is something we can explore together. I want you to leave your first session feeling heard, understood, and hopeful that there is a path forward. We will talk about what is happening in your life, what has been difficult, what you would like to be different, and what you hope to gain from therapy. I will also ask questions to better understand your experiences, strengths, relationships, and the things that may be contributing to where you feel stuck. Because I am naturally solution-focused, we may begin identifying patterns, possible next steps, or practical strategies during our first meeting. At the same time, I don't believe you need to solve everything in one session. Building trust and making sure you feel comfortable with me are equally important. When I work with couples, I take time to understand each person's perspective as well as the relationship as a whole. I typically meet individually with each partner and then bring the couple together. This allows each person an opportunity to share their experiences and concerns before we begin working collaboratively on the relationship. Most importantly, I want you to leave that first session feeling that you don't have to figure everything out alone and that we have a clear starting point for the work ahead.
Strengths
I am an active, engaged, and solution-focused therapist. I often tell clients that if you need a session where you simply want space to vent, process, or be heard, please tell me—I am happy to give you that space. My natural tendency, however, is to listen for opportunities to help you find solutions and move forward. I am compassionate and supportive, but I am also willing to respectfully challenge you. I may help you look at a situation from a different perspective, identify patterns that may be keeping you stuck, or ask questions that encourage you to think a little deeper. I believe some of the most meaningful growth happens when we feel supported enough to examine things that may be uncomfortable. I also recognize that not every problem needs to be solved immediately. Sometimes you need validation, sometimes you need practical strategies, and sometimes you need someone who will gently challenge you. Part of my job is learning what you need in that moment. My goal is for therapy to feel collaborative and purposeful. I don't want to simply sit back and listen week after week without helping you work toward the changes that brought you to therapy. We will identify your goals together, build on your strengths, and focus on practical strategies that you can use outside of our sessions.
Ideal clients
My ideal client is a teen or adult who knows something in their life isn't working the way they want it to and is ready for support, understanding, and practical ways to move forward. You may be struggling with anxiety, trauma, PTSD, depression, burnout, chronic stress, grief, relationship difficulties, or a major life transition. You may also appear successful and capable on the outside while privately feeling overwhelmed, exhausted, or stuck. I work especially well with people navigating demanding stages of life—adolescents and young adults finding their identity and direction, adults balancing relationships, family and career, and professionals or leaders carrying significant responsibility and stress. I also enjoy working with people in high-pressure occupations who may be used to taking care of everyone else and struggle to make space for themselves. You don't need to come to therapy knowing exactly what you need. We can figure that out together. What matters most is a willingness to be honest, curious, and open to looking at things differently. My style tends to fit clients who want an engaged therapist who will listen and validate their experiences while also helping them identify patterns, develop practical strategies, and make meaningful changes. I will meet you where you are, but I will also encourage and respectfully challenge you when I believe it can help you move toward where you want to be.
Treatment methods
Acceptance and commitment (ACT)
I use Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) to help clients develop a different relationship with difficult thoughts, emotions, and experiences. Rather than spending all of our energy trying to eliminate uncomfortable feelings, we work on recognizing what is within your control, making space for difficult emotions, and choosing actions that move you toward the life you want. ACT can be particularly helpful for anxiety, depression, trauma and PTSD, chronic stress, burnout, grief, perfectionism, and life transitions. I also use ACT with clients who feel stuck in cycles of overthinking, avoidance, people-pleasing, or trying to control things that may be outside of their control. In our sessions, we may work on identifying your personal values, noticing thoughts without automatically believing or reacting to them, increasing emotional flexibility, and recognizing when avoidance is actually making a problem bigger. We then focus on small, realistic actions that align with what matters most to you. I especially appreciate ACT because the goal isn't to never feel anxious, sad, angry, or overwhelmed. The goal is to help you become more psychologically flexible so that difficult thoughts and feelings have less control over the choices you make and the way you live your life.
Cognitive Behavioral (CBT)
I use Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) to help clients understand how their thoughts, emotions, and behaviors influence one another. We work together to identify patterns of thinking that may be contributing to distress and explore more balanced, realistic, and helpful ways of responding. CBT can be especially helpful for anxiety, depression, trauma and PTSD, chronic stress, panic, low self-esteem, anger, perfectionism, and adjustment to difficult life changes. I also use CBT with clients who struggle with overthinking, negative self-talk, avoidance, or feeling stuck in repetitive patterns. In our sessions, we may examine the thoughts that show up during stressful situations, identify cognitive distortions or assumptions, and explore how those thoughts affect your emotions and choices. From there, we develop practical strategies to challenge unhelpful patterns, change behaviors that are no longer serving you, and practice healthier responses. What I appreciate about CBT is that it gives clients tools they can use outside of therapy. My goal isn't to tell you to simply “think positively.” Instead, we work toward thinking more accurately, understanding your reactions, and developing skills that help you respond differently when difficult situations arise. Over time, the goal is for you to become better able to recognize these patterns on your own and have practical tools for managing them when they occur.
Dialectical Behavior (DBT)
I use Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) to help clients develop practical skills for managing intense emotions, tolerating distress, improving relationships, and responding more effectively when life feels overwhelming. A central part of DBT is learning that two things can be true at the same time—we can accept where you are today while also working toward meaningful change. DBT can be helpful for anxiety, depression, trauma and PTSD, emotional dysregulation, anger, relationship difficulties, impulsive behaviors, chronic stress, and difficulty coping with overwhelming emotions. I also use DBT skills with clients who struggle with boundaries, conflict, rejection, or reacting quickly when emotions become intense. In our sessions, we may draw from the four primary DBT skill areas: mindfulness, emotion regulation, distress tolerance, and interpersonal effectiveness. This might include learning how to recognize and regulate emotions, tolerate difficult situations without making them worse, communicate needs more effectively, establish healthy boundaries, and slow down before responding when emotions are high. I particularly appreciate the practical nature of DBT. It isn't just about understanding why you feel or behave a certain way—it gives you specific skills for what to do differently in the moment. My goal is to help you build a toolbox of strategies that you can use in real-life situations so you feel more confident managing emotions, navigating relationships, and handling difficult moments without feeling controlled by them.
EMDR
I use Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) to help clients process traumatic or distressing experiences that continue to affect how they think, feel, or respond in the present. Trauma can sometimes leave the nervous system reacting as though a past experience is still happening, even when you know logically that you are safe. EMDR can be particularly helpful for trauma and PTSD, anxiety, panic, distressing memories, grief, negative beliefs about yourself, and experiences that continue to trigger strong emotional or physical reactions. I am also trained in Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART), another evidence-based, trauma-focused approach that uses eye movements and imagery-based techniques to help reduce the emotional and physical distress associated with difficult memories. ART can be helpful for PTSD and trauma, anxiety, phobias, grief, and other distressing experiences or memories. When appropriate, I may incorporate EMDR or ART based on your symptoms, experiences, treatment goals, and comfort level. You remain in control of the process, and we will spend time building trust, developing coping strategies, and making sure you feel prepared before beginning trauma processing. The goal is not to erase your memories or pretend that difficult experiences did not happen. Instead, we work toward helping your brain and body process those experiences so the memories can become less emotionally overwhelming and have less influence over your present life. Trauma treatment is not one-size-fits-all. We will work together to determine which approach feels appropriate for you and move at a pace that supports both safety and meaningful progress.
Internal Family Systems (IFS)
I use principles from Internal Family Systems (IFS) to help clients better understand the different “parts” of themselves that may show up in response to stress, relationships, trauma, or difficult emotions. Rather than viewing these reactions as something wrong with you, we become curious about what those parts may be trying to protect you from. IFS can be helpful for trauma and PTSD, anxiety, depression, grief, shame, perfectionism, people-pleasing, relationship difficulties, low self-esteem, and patterns of self-criticism or emotional avoidance. It can be especially helpful when you find yourself thinking, “Part of me wants this, but another part of me feels completely differently.” In our sessions, we may identify protective parts that have developed over time—such as the part that needs control, avoids conflict, shuts down, stays constantly busy, takes care of everyone else, or becomes highly self-critical. We work to understand when those responses developed, what purpose they have served, and whether they are still helping you today. IFS is not about getting rid of parts of yourself. Instead, it helps you approach yourself with greater curiosity and compassion while developing a healthier relationship with the thoughts, emotions, and protective responses that may have developed because of difficult experiences. I often integrate IFS concepts with other approaches, including EMDR, ART, ACT, CBT, and trauma-informed therapy, depending on your needs and treatment goals.
Location
Virtual sessions
In-person sessions800 Werner Ct, Casper, WY 82601, Suite 261