Chris Pattyn, MS, NCC

I believe our past experiences can have a lasting impact on us, and affect how we move through life as adults. This can impact how we view ourselves, how we view others, and how we connect in relationships. Fortunately, our past experiences can be worked through in adulthood. As adults we can intentionally explore what we have learned to determine what we can hold onto and what is no longer serving us. This means we can orient toward a journey of healing and growth. This may involve confronting past lessons, examining our present patterns of relating, and adjusting so our futures can be aligned with who we are and what we want. I work with a wide range of issues including depression, anxiety, trauma, relationship issues, grief and loss, men’s issues, existential concerns, and job stress. I offer individual and couples counseling. My clinical approach is an integration of psychodynamic, relational, and family systems models. These models support personalized, in-depth work of past history, past and current relational and family dynamics, as well as the unconscious. I find this integrative approach invaluable in the process of healing and reconnecting with your core-self and overall well being. While using these modalities, I tailor them to the individual client, affirming a client’s full story. I do not dismiss or pathologize a client's lived experiences, culture, or values. I strive to create a collaborative relationship in working with clients and couples, using the counseling relationship as a potential change mechanism. My approach acknowledges the power dynamic inherent in our relationship, and aims to flatten power imbalances in order to cultivate trust between myself and clients while also encouraging clients to explore their agency in the counseling relationship.