Natalie Favorite Chen (she/they)

I enjoy working with adoptions issues including: open adoptions, closed adoptions, international adoptions, interracial adoptions, and attachment. I utilize an attachment-based model for all of my clients and focus on exploring loss and trauma associated with the adoption experience as well as ongoing adoptions issues including loss and identity development and consolidation. Adoptee advocacy is at the core of my work, understanding that adoption is often misunderstood societally.

I provide support in coming out, gender and sexuality exploration, and gender affirming care. I enjoy working with parents supporting their trans children. I have significant experience working with the LGBTQ+ community and specific issues that are commonly linked to folx in the community. I provide letters for gender-affirming surgeries and see my role as supported in discovering the way to best live in community and in your body. Affirming care for asexual/aspec aromantic/aro spec folx

Anti-fat bias is devastating to most people, particularly those in marginalized bodies. I specialize in working with people navigating the road to fat liberation and body justice and I reject diet culture and anti-fat bias through recognizing the harm done by our society and its obsession with thinness at all costs, and I specialize in supporting people to peace with their bodies at every size and ability.

I am currently basic-trained in EMDR and am pursuing certification. I utilize and EMDR framework including identifying how past experiences may impact current response to triggers, mind-body connection through identifying how memories may still be felt in the body, and through reprocessing traumatic incidents through bilateral stimulation to promote increased functioning.

I pull from many theories in my work including: feminist theory, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, DBT, EMDR, Solution-Focused Therapy, and liberation framework to create tailored treatment for my clients who are presenting with unique experiences and unique needs. I enjoy supporting clients in building upon existing strengths while identifying areas of growth and collaboratively working together towards goals. A core piece in my work is mind-body connection--our body giving us lots of data!

The basis of my therapy is rooted in attachment. First, in the therapy space it is critical that I facilitate and foster a safe, supportive environment so that we can explore personal attachment style and relationship history through an attachment lens. I believe that in order to have healthy relationships with ourselves and others, that can start in the therapy space by creating a healthy therapeutic relationship. I utilize a somatic, nervous system informed approach to safety building.

Trauma is often not just a one-time event, but something that our mind continues experiencing following a significant event or series of events we may not even consider "traumatic." This can show up in racing thoughts, difficulty sleeping, guilt, hypervigilance, body discomfort, and difficult connecting with people. Together we can explore ways to return to feelings of trust and safety with ourselves and others through creating new meaning from past experiences and moving forward intentionally.

I am a neurodivergent and affirming provider. Those of us with ADHD, Autism, and other neurodivergent identities (of which there are many!) learn to conform ourselves to meet the expectations neurotypical society places on us, to great harm to ourselves. It is possible to explore how to flourish while affirming our neurodivergence, while navigating a society that is not made for us through accommodations, exploring the parts we love about our brains, and better understanding it.