Hello and welcome! I'm Sierra. I'm a queer, anti-racist Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) in Atlanta, Georgia. I started my career as a therapist at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and if there is one thing I learned from that time it's that, more often than not, it's not you- it's the system. Since then I have been helping fellow women and members of the LGBTQ+ community rebuild self-esteem, manage anxiety, and heal unresolved trauma. I also help families of LGBTQ+ youth gain understanding about their child's experience and empower them to provide the best support they can. We all have certain narratives we tell ourselves about ourselves, some helpful some not, and some of those stories aren't even ours. My goal is to help clients identify the unhelpful stories, where they came from, and help them create a new story. I like to incorporate both CBT/DBT coping skills and Jungian concepts such as inner child work to ensure a holistic healing approach for my clients. Whatever your healing journey looks like, I would consider it an honor and a privilege to walk it with you.
What can clients expect to take away from sessions with you?
In our first session, we will start with introductions and review consents. After the housekeeping is out of the way, we will get into your story. Clients are free to share as little or as much as they feel comfortable sharing in this space. I like to use this first session to introduce one new grounding skill.
Explain to clients what areas you feel are your biggest strengths.
Research shows that the therapeutic relationship is the most important factor in the therapeutic process. I believe I offer a partnership in this space that is warm and genuine, inviting my clients to be open not only with me but with themselves as well. My therapist hot take: I don't believe in lazy, crazy, or stupid. I challenge my clients to be radically self-accepting and self-compassionate. I challenge myself at least as much as my clients and make the effort to be aware of my own biases and limits of my lived experiences. For example, I won't pretend to understand what it's like for my black clients to be black in America, but I will hold the space for them.
About Sierra Kihlstadius
Serves ages
Licensed in
Accepts
Appointments
VirtualMy treatment methods
Jungian
Over the last two years, I have been incorporating Jungian concepts such as inner child and shadow work into my practice with clients. Together, we explore how the inner child shows up and what they might need in order for the client to operate from a healed place. I think Ayesha Siddiqi's quote, "Be the person you needed when you were younger," wonderfully describes this approach.
Eclectic
Therapy is not "one size fits all". Different people need different things. Therefore, I have utilized a multitude of various approaches over the course of my career. Utilizing eclectic therapy approaches is how I meet clients where they are.
Person-centered (Rogerian)
I have always maintained that the client is the expert of their own experience. I honor this truth by empowering the client to take charge of the session and use the time as they need it.
Cognitive Behavioral (CBT)
I consider this modality a therapist's bread and butter. I often start with some CBT to help clients identify what thinking errors they may be running into (ex. black and white thinking, "should" statements). This is how we start challenging some of those unhelpful stories.