Paul "River" Fagan, M.A. (they/them)

My Approach to Helping

I view therapy as an unfolding process, a collaborative journey, and a microcosm in which the client has the opportunity to discover, explore, and transform deep-seated emotional patterns. As therapist, my role shifts with the needs of each client and each moment, while retaining a core of compassionate presence and clear reflection. I draw from feminist, psychodynamic, humanistic, and nature-based frameworks and tools, seeking to reconnect clients both with their own inner wisdom and with broader webs of support and vitality. These varying frameworks share a common thread of focusing on the experiential, i.e, on the power of present moment experiences to provide both insight and healing. I see mindfulness as a central tool for engaging with the present moment and deepening into the self. I am also drawn to the tools of creative writing, embodying metaphors, and co-created visualizations.

My Personal Beliefs and Interests

I hold a Master’s Degree in Professional Mental Health Counseling from Lewis and Clark College. There, I learned how to incorporate my feminist values and passion for social justice with a strong foundation of research-informed counseling tools. I supplemented my education through trainings at M.E.T.A. where I also completed a one-year internship. At M.E.T.A., I learned the power that mindful awareness can have in deepening our understandings of our patterns and experiences and in unlocking new perspectives and possibilities. More specifically, I learned about the Hakomi method, Recreation of the Self, and various strategies for facilitating insight, compassion, and transformation. Currently, I am completing a Certificate in Ecopsychology through Lewis and Clark. Ecopsychology explores the ways that ongoing ecological crises impact individual and familial wellness and also the resilience and healing power found through attending to our relationships with the natural world.