Who Are You
If you’ve experienced a recent life change…
SUCH as:
move
job change
break-up
becoming a parent
new health diagnosis
losing a loved one
financial stress
that’s been difficult to manage…
WHICH FEELS LIKE:
overwhelm
anxiety
worry
fear
uncertainty
sadness
irritability
loneliness
and you’re ready to feel empowered, let’s talk.
IDENTIFIED AS:
intention
clarity
steadiness
awareness
peace
contentment
engagement
alignment
ease
WHO ARE WE
View Ellen’s Full Profile
Ellen Hokit, MA, LMHCA
Specialities: relationship dynamics, navigating difficult change, LGBTQ+
View Emily’s Full Profile
Emily Fitch, MA, LMHCA
Specialities: self-doubt, uncertainty about the future, grief and loss
View Jennifer’s Full Profile
Jennifer Petty, MA, LMHC
Specialities: anxiety in high achievers, relationship patterns, meaning-making
Therapy for the moments when life feels heavier than it should
At some point, it becomes clear that something isn't working.
Sometimes that realization comes after a significant life event. A difficult diagnosis, an unexpected loss, a relationship ending, or a major transition can bring questions you can no longer ignore. Other times, it develops slowly. You begin noticing that the patterns that once helped you through life are leaving you anxious, exhausted, disconnected, or feeling unlike yourself.
You are still showing up. You are still meeting responsibilities. You are still doing what needs to be done. But something feels harder than it should.
Therapy offers a space to understand what is happening beneath the surface, explore the patterns that shape your experience, and begin creating meaningful change.
At Seattle Counseling Center, we work with adults navigating:
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When your mind won't leave you alone.
Have you ever noticed that the more important something feels, the harder it becomes to stop thinking about it? Maybe you're replaying conversations, anticipating problems, or trying to find the "right" decision before you've even made one. What if anxiety isn't just something to get rid of, but something worth understanding?
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When doing less somehow feels impossible.
When was the last time you rested without feeling guilty? Or finished one thing without immediately thinking about the next? Burnout doesn't always happen because life is too busy. Sometimes it happens because we've forgotten how to stop taking care of everyone else long enough to notice ourselves.
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When life starts to feel smaller.
Have you noticed yourself pulling away from people? Going through the motions? Wondering why everything feels like it takes so much effort? Depression isn't always loud. Sometimes it quietly convinces us to expect less from life than we once did.
Learn more about depression therapy → -
When life doesn't look the way you thought it would.
What have you lost? A person? A relationship? The future you imagined? Grief has a way of showing up in places we don't expect. Sometimes the hardest part isn't letting go, it's figuring out how to carry what happened while continuing to live your life.
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When relationships leave you feeling exhausted.
Do you find yourself wondering why you're always the one reaching out first? Why saying "no" feels so uncomfortable? Or why you keep ending up in relationships where your needs somehow end up at the bottom of the list? Those patterns usually have a story worth understanding.
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When you don't feel as connected as you'd like to.
Have you ever been surrounded by people but still felt alone? Or noticed yourself holding back parts of who you are because you're not sure they'll be understood? Sometimes loneliness isn't about being by yourself. Sometimes it's about not feeling known.
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When you keep missing each other.
Do you ever leave an argument wondering, "How did we end up here again?" Maybe you're having the same conversation on repeat, even though neither of you wants to keep hurting the other. Couples therapy helps us slow those moments down so we can understand what's happening before we try to fix it.
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When your best never quite feels good enough.
When was the last time you felt proud of yourself before moving on to the next thing? Or made a mistake without wondering what it said about you? Perfectionism isn't always about wanting everything to be perfect. Sometimes it's about working incredibly hard to avoid feeling like you've fallen short. Therapy helps us understand where those expectations came from and what it might feel like to measure yourself by something other than achievement.
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When becoming a parent changes more than your schedule.
No one talks much about how becoming a parent can change your relationships, your identity, your confidence, and the way you see yourself. Have you found yourself wondering where you went? Or feeling like you're carrying the mental load for everyone around you? Therapy creates space to care for yourself while you're caring for the people who depend on you.
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When the old version of your life no longer fits.
Have you ever reached a point where nothing is exactly wrong, but nothing feels quite right either? Maybe life has changed. Maybe you have. Either way, transitions tend to ask us questions before they give us answers.
WHAT IS PSYCHOTHERAPY?
counseling, psychotherapy, talk therapy?
All names for the same thing: a conversation with a trained listener designed to identify, challenge, and adjust the way we move through the world. We rely on Cognitive Behavioral, Mindfulness, Existential, Humanistic, and Psychodynamic therapies to help clients identify goals and move closer toward them.
Psychotherapy can be as rich or deep as we want it to be. Some of our clients’ needs are resolved within a handful of sessions with coping skills, problem-solving, and new ways of thinking. Others have invested in therapy as a platform for exploring beliefs about themselves, the world, and relationships. Part of our initial contact will be identifying goals, including measurable outcomes, and determining the length of treatment.
what to expect
Weekly 53 minute sessions in our Queen Anne or virtual office.
Questions like, “How does that make you feel?”: Cliche? Yes! Relevant? Yes! Part of our job is pushing you to identify how to feel without asking you to change it. Yes, there will be an emotion wheel.
Mindfulness exercises like deep breathing, grounding, and body scans.
Problem-solving. Maybe the solution is right in front of us, it just took a fresh set of eyes to see it?
Accountability. Did you do what you said you were going to do? Are you skirting away from a difficult topic? Are you showing up? Putting in the effort?
Confidentiality. Your private thoughts are safe with us.
Flexibility. Sometimes what we think is the problem isn’t actually the problem.
Feeling heard, supported, and cared for. We’ve got your back. We’re in this together.
what psychotherapy isn’t
Magic
We don’t have a magic wands and are still trying to figure out how to get ourselves and others to do what we want all the time. We can’t get the other people in your life to do, or not do, particular things. But we can explore how it makes you feel and how you can start getting what you want, or grieving what you can’t.
Comfortable
If we’re cruising, we aren’t doing good work. We’ve got to push ourselves to stretch and grow. We can move through this process together at your speed, pushing you only into a level of discomfort that you can tolerate.
Easy
If it was easy, everyone would do it. Many of our clients report feeling exhausted after sessions. It isn’t easy to “hear” your thoughts, stories, wounds, and fears. Good news is that you won’t have to face it alone.
What happens next?
step one - request a consultation
Fill out our contact form to request a consultation, or visit our online calendar to request a consultation time that works with your schedule. You don’t need to know exactly what to say or which therapist to choose, we’ll guide you through the process.
step two - share a few details about yourself
You’ll be invited to share some information about what brings you in and your insurance information through the scheduling process. You don’t need to be certain you can afford therapy to begin; part of the consultation process is figuring out scheduling, fees, and fit.
step three - attend your consultation
You’ll spend 20 minutes with a therapist either in our Queen Anne office or via telehealth to get a feel for therapy. Most clients usually share a little bit about what’s bringing them to therapy at this time and ask their therapist questions about how therapy works, what to expect from the process and commitment.
The goal of the consultation isn’t to dive deeply into everything all at once. It’s simply to help you decide whether to move forward together.
step four - schedule your first session
If you decide to move forward, your therapist will invite you to schedule an intake session. Early sessions are often focused on understanding your history, current struggles, relationships, and what you hope might change through therapy.
step five - begin therapy
Therapy doesn’t follow a script, and no two people experience it exactly the same way. Over time, therapy may involve exploring emotions, relationships, long-standing patterns, losses, fears, or ways of relating to yourself and others.
Some sessions feel clarifying. Some feel difficult. Some feel relieving. Often, meaningful therapy includes all of those experiences.
Therapy ends when it feels complete enough for you, whether that’s after a few months of focused support or years of deeper work.
Curious about how therapy works, how long it takes, or how to know whether it’s helping? Visit our FAQ page to learn more.
LET’S GET STARTED
Fees
Licensed Mental Health Counselors are $165 per hour, and Licensed Mental Health Counselor Associates are $145 per hour.
We are paneled with Premera, Regence, and First Choice health insurance companies and are considered an Out of Network provider for all other insurance companies.
All therapists offer a free, 20 minute consultation to determine fit.
Location
200 W Mercer St, E307
Seattle, WA 98119
Telehealth appointments available to clients within the state of Washington
Scheduling
HOURS: Monday - Friday, by appointment
Appointments can be requested in the following ways, from most responsive to least:
Online Calendar
office@seattlecounselingcenter.org
206-395-8004