Yasmine Lamour
One of the things I value most about being a therapist is getting to know people beyond the version of themselves they feel they have to present to the world. I've always been interested in what shapes the way we see ourselves, how we make sense of our experiences, and why certain patterns can be so difficult to change, even when we recognize them. I'm a Licensed Professional Counselor, and I work with adults navigating anxiety, relationship difficulties, trauma, identity, and major life transitions. I also specialize in PMDD, particularly the ways cyclical emotional changes can affect relationships, self-perception, and everyday life. My work is attentive to the influence of family, culture, and generational expectations, including the roles and responsibilities we may have taken on without ever really questioning them.
I offer a relational, depth-oriented approach to therapy that focuses on understanding you beyond your symptoms. My work is grounded in genuine connection, curiosity, and exploring how your experiences have shaped the way you see yourself and relate to others.
My approach is relational, person-centered, and grounded in psychodynamic and attachment-based perspectives. I'm interested in understanding not just what's happening in your life, but what those experiences mean to you and how they've shaped the way you relate to yourself and others. My style is conversational, curious, and collaborative. I'll ask questions, share observations, and sometimes invite you to look at something from a different perspective. I don't believe every concern has a straightforward explanation or that recognizing a pattern automatically makes it easier to change. I value taking the time to understand those complexities rather than rushing toward a solution, while making room for you to show up as you are.
First session
Our first session is an opportunity for us to get to know each other and begin exploring what brought you to therapy. I want to understand who you are, what you've been experiencing, and what you're hoping to get out of our work together. We'll review your intake paperwork, discuss confidentiality and practice policies, and talk about your mental health history, relationships, current concerns, and goals for therapy. I'll help guide the conversation, but there's no expectation that you'll share everything in our first meeting. Getting to know each other takes time, and you'll have space to share more about yourself and your experiences as our relationship develops. Just as importantly, this is your opportunity to ask questions, get a feel for my approach, and see whether working together feels like a good fit. I believe feeling comfortable, understood, and able to be yourself is an important part of the therapeutic process.
Strengths
I'm often interested in the things people mention in passing, the contradictions they notice about themselves, or the experiences they've come to accept as just the way things are. Sometimes, what seems like a small detail can tell us something important about how you've learned to see yourself, relate to others, or navigate certain situations. One of my strengths is being able to recognize those connections and explore them with you in a way that feels natural rather than forced. I bring genuine curiosity, empathy, and an appreciation for the complexity of people's experiences. I don't assume that every feeling or behavior has a straightforward explanation, and I'm comfortable sitting with uncertainty when we're still trying to make sense of something. I also recognize that understanding why you do something doesn't necessarily make it easier to change. My style is conversational, engaged, and collaborative. I listen closely, ask thoughtful questions, share observations, and sometimes invite you to consider a different perspective. I'm not a therapist who simply sits back and nods, but I'm also not here to tell you what to think, feel, or do. I want our conversations to feel like we're genuinely working together to understand your experiences. I also pay attention to the broader context of your life, including how family relationships, culture, and generational expectations may have shaped what you've learned about yourself and others. What I believe distinguishes my approach is my interest in understanding you as a whole person. I'm less concerned with finding the quickest explanation for what you're experiencing and more interested in making sure we're asking questions that help us understand what's actually going on for you.
Ideal clients
Sometimes, you recognize that something in your life isn't working, but understanding what's happening doesn't necessarily make it easier to change. You might notice yourself repeating the same patterns in relationships, struggling to express your needs, or questioning why certain situations affect you so deeply. Maybe you've spent much of your life meeting other people's expectations and are beginning to wonder what you actually want for yourself. I work with adults navigating relationship challenges, identity, major life transitions, and the lasting influence of family, cultural, and generational experiences. I also specialize in working with individuals experiencing PMDD, particularly when cyclical changes in mood and emotional sensitivity complicate relationships, affect self-perception, or intensify existing struggles. My approach is well suited for people who want to understand what's beneath their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors rather than focusing solely on managing symptoms. You don't need to have a clear understanding of what's bothering you or know exactly where to begin. Our work is about making space to explore your experiences, understand how they've shaped you, and consider what meaningful change might look like for you.
Treatment methods
Psychodynamic
I use a psychodynamic approach to help you better understand the patterns that shape how you think, feel, relate to others, and respond to difficult experiences. Rather than focusing only on what is happening in the present, we explore how your earlier experiences, relationships, and the beliefs you've developed about yourself may continue to influence your life today. For example, you might notice that you have difficulty expressing your needs, feel responsible for other people's emotions, or repeatedly find yourself in relationships where you feel overlooked or misunderstood. In our sessions, we might explore when these patterns first began, what they helped you navigate or protect yourself from, and why they may continue to feel familiar, even when they no longer serve you. This work isn't about blaming the past or assuming that every difficulty stems from childhood. It's about making connections between experiences that may initially seem unrelated and developing a deeper understanding of your internal world. We also pay attention to emotions, contradictions, and reactions that emerge during our conversations, including things you may not have had the space or opportunity to explore before. The goal isn't simply to identify a pattern and tell you how to change it. It's to help you understand **why a particular response makes sense in the context of your experiences**, what purpose it may have served, and whether it still reflects what you need or want today. Over time, this awareness can create space to question long-held beliefs, approach relationships differently, and respond with greater intention rather than feeling bound to familiar patterns.
Attachment-based
I use an attachment-based approach to explore how you've learned to experience closeness, trust, and emotional safety in relationships. For example, you may feel uneasy when someone needs space, struggle to express your needs without feeling guilty, or pull away when someone gets too close. In our sessions, we might explore what these reactions mean to you, what you've come to expect from others, and how those expectations influence your relationships. We may also pay attention to how these dynamics emerge in our therapeutic relationship, offering opportunities to explore them as they happen. The goal is to help you develop a greater sense of security in your relationships, become more comfortable expressing your needs, and experience connection without feeling responsible for maintaining it at your own expense.
Dialectical Behavior (DBT)
I use Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) when practical tools may be helpful for managing emotions, navigating relationships, or handling difficult situations. For example, you might feel overwhelmed during conflict, struggle to express your needs, or find yourself reacting in ways you later regret. In our sessions, we may explore what makes these situations difficult and work on ways to manage strong emotions, communicate more clearly, and respond with greater intention. The goal isn't to avoid difficult feelings or always remain calm, but to help you feel more capable of handling challenging moments without becoming overwhelmed by them. I bring in these tools when they're useful, rather than making skills training the main focus of our work.
Trauma-Informed Care
I recognize that difficult or overwhelming experiences can shape how you see yourself, relate to others, and respond to the world around you. Sometimes, the ways you've learned to cope or protect yourself can continue to show up long after those experiences have passed. In our sessions, we'll explore how these experiences may be affecting you today, without assuming what they mean or how you should feel about them. My approach is centered on understanding your experiences from your perspective, respecting your boundaries, and allowing you to decide what feels important to explore. The goal is to help you make sense of what you've been through in a way that feels meaningful to you, without pressure to move at a pace that doesn't feel right.
Internal Family Systems (IFS)
Internal Family Systems (IFS) is based on the idea that we all have different parts of ourselves, each with its own feelings, needs, and ways of responding to the world. Some parts may try to protect us from being hurt, while others carry difficult emotions or experiences we haven't fully processed. For example, you might have a part of you that's highly self-critical because it believes pushing you to do better will help you avoid rejection or failure. In our sessions, we'll explore how these parts developed, the roles they've taken on, and what they may be trying to protect you from. Rather than viewing certain feelings or behaviors as problems that need to be fixed, we'll work toward understanding why they're there in the first place. The goal is to help you develop a different relationship with these parts of yourself, one that allows for more understanding, compassion, and less internal conflict.
Location
Virtual sessions
In-person sessions1630 Welton St, Denver, CO 80202, 917