Kendra Smith (she/her)

MA
Accepting Clients

I use a client-led approach to attend to concerns related to grief, anxiety, trauma, and relationship concerns.

Associate Professional Counselor in Portland, OR
Supervised by Jon Frew, PhD, ABPP

About My Clients

Do you feel "blocked up" inside or stuck when trying to connect to your emotions? Is it difficult to connect to yourself or others at times? It can be so difficult to work toward embracing our full range of emotional expression or our true experience. I believe in your ability to gain trust in yourself as you learn to integrate your most authentic self into your present day experience.

My Background and Approach

I am trained in Gestalt therapy with a focus on Attachment theory. This means that I use curiosity to approach how you have evolved to survive in and respond to your past and current environments, including your relationships with others. Sometimes, we find that the strategies that were effective in navigating the world in the past don't meet our needs in our present day. I am here to walk alongside you as a support as you experiment with ways to respond more authentically to yourself and others as you go through your life. While my primary position is to let clients lead their own journey, I will from time to time drop in a gentle challenge or question if I see an opportunity for growth. This sounds like a serious task, and it is, but there are lots of moments for humor and levity in the counseling process.

My Personal Beliefs and Interests

I am a white, cis woman who is currently able-bodied. I am from the Pacific Northwest. I obtained my graduate degree in Professional Mental Health Counseling from Lewis and Clark's Graduate School in Education and Counseling. I have received training in Gestalt Therapy with an Attachment focus from the Gestalt Therapy Training Center Northwest. These two training backgrounds have given me a place to explore how oppression can show up at various social levels most of us interact with, and attending to those factors is a prominent part of my client work. I strive to be anti-racist, am LGBTQIA+ affirming, neurodiversity affirming, sex positive, and engage in continued training to support my ability to work with people with different identities from my own. I welcome all clients to my practice regardless of their backgrounds, what will determine if we can work together is a goodness of personality fit, and if my training supports your needs.

Insurance Plans Accepted
  • Out of Network
I offer online counseling in the following states:

At A Glance

  • Experience: 2 years of practice
  • Languages: English
  • Rate: $90/session

Info

971-291-6164 Email Kendra
2370 SE 37th Avenue
Portland, OR 97214

Reach out to Kendra