Stephanie Podasca

Stephanie Podasca (she/her)

Licensed Professional Counselor

MA, LPC, LMHC

I offer compassionate and trauma-informed Telehealth to residents of OR and WA. Here to help you navigate all the peaks and valleys of life!

Client Status

not accepting clients

Contact

503-912-2126

97217

At a Glance

Me

Rate: $150-$175

Provides free initial consultation

Practicing Since: 2020

Languages: English

Services

  • Individual
  • Group

Insurances Accepted

  • Out of Pocket
  • Out of Network
  • OHP CareOregon/HealthShare
  • OHP Open Card
  • OHP Trillium
  • PacificSource
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My Ideal Client

The clients that have the most effective outcomes with me are multicultural professional adults who are struggling to find balance in their lives because they are caught in trauma-related emotional and behavioral issues that are interfering with living the life they want. They are open to exploring their difficult emotional patterns and are willing to try new things in and outside of our sessions. My ideal client wants to connect with a real person and expand their tool kit!

My Approach to Helping

Together we will explore the many dynamic parts of your life and how they have influenced or been impacted by trauma, addiction, anxiety, relationships, and other challenges. My goal is to create a compassionate, collaborative, and trauma-informed therapeutic container that is free from judgment and pathology. I want to help you reconnect to your body, mind, and spirit and to find more acceptance and meaning in every part of life’s journey. My work does not look like regular talk therapy - I invite a lot of somatic exercises, movement, mindfulness pauses, and play to shake up those patterned responses that have been holding you back. I believe that therapy is an active process and that YOU do most of the work. The time between sessions is just as important as the time we work face-to-face. I highly value client feedback, and it’s so important that you feel you can share when things both are and aren't working for you.

My Personal Beliefs and Interests

I bring a lot of my authentic self into therapy with clients, meaning that my work is not only informed by specific techniques and interventions or theories. My work is also informed by my worldview, personal experiences in therapy, addiction, and recovery. I wouldn't be a therapist today if it wasn't for my own healing and recovery process, taking a look at the hard stuff with the help and support of a therapist and community. I believe that humor and self-compassion can heal many deep wounds, that plant medicines are an incredible tool to access alongside therapy, and that mindfulness really is a superpower we're all born with. I also have a background in art, technology, and Buddhist meditation and I try to incorporate these skill sets into everything that I do. In the past, I have volunteered for local PDX nonprofits including: Children's Healing Arts Project, Lines for Life Suicide Prevention, and Recovery Dharma. I am currently a member of the Portland Integration Network.

Techniques I Use

Specialties

  • Mindfulness-based External link

    Using mindfulness in counseling allows us to slow down and explore every part of our present moment experience. Sometimes it is a more active process and other times it can be more meditative. I have been personally practicing and studying mindfulness for the past 5 years and incorporate it into everything I do. It is also a foundation component of doing both DBT-informed therapy and Sensorimotor therapy for trauma.

  • Sensorimotor External link

    My work does not look like regular talk therapy - I invite a lot of somatic exercises, movement, and play to shake up those patterned responses that have been holding you back. Working somatically allows us to reach below the surface and identify the roots of our struggles Sensorimotor Psychotherapy - Level 1: Affect Dysregulation, Survival Responses, and Trauma Memory Sensorimotor Psychotherapy - Level 2: Developmental Injury & Attachment.

  • Experiential External link

    Somatic and mindfulness-based therapy is experiential at its core. By working in the present moment and including the body’s inner wisdom in our work, we can tap into connection with our most authentic Self. Experiential therapy gives us the real-time tools to track and engaged with both the joys and sorrows of the human experience. This type of therapy places more emphasis on the present and future rather than focusing too much on the past.

Issues I Treat

Specialties

  • Anxiety External link

    Excessive thinking, worrying, future-tripping, panic, freezing, shutting down... Anxiety truly sucks! The majority of my clients would be diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety Disorder, which tends to mask underlying trauma, low-self esteem, and other behavioral issues. Luckily, there are so many helpful tools you can learn to overcome the helplessness that anxiety makes you feel. With mindfulness, somatic experiments, and education we will work together to get you through the worries and fears!

  • PTSD External link

    PTSD is a very challenging and unique experience for everyone - I have worked with many people who satisfied the criteria for PTSD, even though all of their experiences were wildly different! As a trauma-informed therapist, I initially assume that a traumatic experience is at the root of most human suffering and is the cause of the majority of symptoms such as anxiety, depression, addiction, etc. I engage in ongoing education to be an active helper at every phase of the recovery process.

  • Women's Issues External link

    Being a woman in this world is hard! It's important you work with someone that understands the array of challenges women are faced with from the time they are born and throughout life. I have the most experience working directly with women in both individual counseling and in women's-based recovery circles. I am passionate about helping women process their experiences of womanhood, motherhood, sexuality, challenges in the workforce, and overcoming trauma so they can live empowered lives.

  • Early Recovery External link

    You have just made one of the most important decisions of your life in seeking recovery from addiction! It can be vital to set up your life with as many supports in place as possible as you start to uncover the challenging emotions, behaviors, and trauma that contributed to your addictions. I bring my personal background in recovery and harm reduction education, and I am attuned to both the challenges and gifts the recovery journey brings up.

  • Compassion Fatigue External link

    Do you struggle to take care of yourself because you tend to take care of others? Has taking care of someone drained your energy and lust for life? Are you a healthcare professional that is reaching their limit? Compassion/Burnout fatigue has a way of building up and breaking us down. You give up so much of yourself only to feel depleted and unable to pursue your goals, desires, and cope in healthy ways. I can help you to carve out your own time, self-care and get back on your own path.

Contact Stephanie

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