Hello! My name is Kathleen Walker. I am a Licensed Professional Counselor in Pennsylvania. In my thirties, I decided to change careers and began my studies and work in the Mental Health field. During the last ten years of education and practice, my love for this work has grown exponentially. I have a deep respect for people who are attempting to work towards bettering their lives, no matter where they are in that process. So much of my experience involves working with those who are fighting addiction and impulse issues. I have also worked alongside individuals with histories of trauma, grief, depression, anxiety and much more. I believe in using evidence based approaches and techniques that most speak to the individual I am working with – in other words, I believe in meeting people where they are in their lives right now. Whether you are battling addiction or depression or simply wanting support in a life change, I look forward to sharing in your journey toward meeting your goals!
What can clients expect to take away from sessions with you?
During our first session I will go over the consent and confidentiality conditions to therapy. If there are no questions, I prefer to dive right in. I like to find out specifically why you reached out for support and what goals for our work together you may have. I usually like to ask questions to clarify and better understand what you are wanting to get out of therapy. We can work through an intake format that looks for a bit of background and current information that may help us in deciding upon what path forward is most helpful for you as an individual. Depending on client preferences, I might give "homework" or discuss skills to begin to practice in addressing any disruptive symptoms you may be experiencing. Ultimately, this is a session where we can get to know a bit of how we can work together, while also hopefully providing a sense of relief from some of the struggles.
Explain to clients what areas you feel are your biggest strengths.
I hope that my greatest strengths as a therapist are the same as what I hope for my clients to have - honesty, openness and willingness to work through struggles. I am a firm believer in the healing power of community. I believe that sometimes we all need to be heard, feel understood and inhabit a space that is free from judgement. As a fellow human, I relate to these needs and I am excited to offer that space to others as it has been offered to me.