Call for a free consultation: 540-255-1458 or
Serving children, teens & adults
~ART IS OUR MEDICINE~
SERVICES
TRAUMA PROCESSING
Distressing and traumatic events can leave us feeling fragmented, isolated, on high alert, panicked, stuck in our trauma memories and nightmares and hopeless about our future. The brain needs to process the events in order to register that the traumatic event isn't still happening. We can help you do that with a safe and effective method using art and narrative. Read more...
ART THERAPY
Often, words are not enough to describe or make sense of our experiences, feelings and memories of what life brings us. We will partner with you to find safe and meaningful ways to meet your goals and we will adapt our strategies to meet your needs and ability level. Please call or email for a
free consultation. Read more...
We offer groups and workshops to provide a variety of options for how you can engage in art therapy. We recommend our groups for anyone who wants to engage in art therapy, but also to connect with others during the process. It's also a great way to introduce yourself to art therapy and see if it feels like the right fit for you.
MEET THE ART THERAPISTS
Laura Tuomisto, ATR-BC, ITR-CTS
Art Therapist/Certified Trauma Therapist
Director
I'm all about helping you get to the root of your symptoms to find relief.
I work with teens and adults, using art to move beyond words and help them recover from trauma, anxiety and depression. Through this process, my clients also discover their strengths, identify and change old, unhelpful patterns, learn valuable skills, and begin to thrive.
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When participating in art therapy, it is like you have two helpers: me and the art. Painting, drawing, collage, and sculpture are surprisingly powerful communicators and past clients have been astounded by what showed up and the insights that they gain through the process. By utilizing art, we tap into your brain in a very different way than just talking -- in a way that allows for new information to come to the surface and then allows you to shift how you are thinking about past experiences so you can feel hope for and look forward to what is ahead.
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Let’s work together to create the life and connections you want. We won’t just talk -- we will use art and other strategies to create a deep sense of change and progress. Your life and relationships can transform. I am here to help you do just that. When you treat the roots of your mental health symptoms AND get the skills to cope, your life can feel so much better and you can finally move in the direction you want.
I love guiding clients through the process of art therapy to meet their goals and find their inner light and resilience through their stories and artwork.
Suzanna Anderson, LPC, ATR
Art Therapist
I take a holistic approach to health and healing, exploring the brain, heart, and body through art processes. My approach to art therapy and counseling is a combination of person-centered therapy, object relations therapy, and narrative therapy, in addition to tools from Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy, Dialectical Behavior Therapy, and others as needed. I am the person who will research an art process and/or theory that I am unfamiliar with (even if it includes glitter) in order to help clients meet their goals with their preferred tools. Being human means that we are always learning about ourselves and others.
As a self-taught artist, I enjoy graphic narratives, painting, sculpture, bookbinding, and yarn crafts (crochet, knitting, Tunisian crochet, weaving, and spinning) as an art therapist and in my personal studio space. With a background in creative writing and journalism, I turned to art when words began to fail. I learned and am still learning how to explore the art with words before, during, and after the art making process. Everyone has a story to tell, and I am here to listen, make art, and help you understand yourself on a deeper level.
I have an MS in Art Therapy and Counseling from Eastern Virginia Medical School in Norfolk, Virginia, and I have a BFA in Creative Writing from Bowling Green State University in Bowling Green, Ohio. I am currently registered with the Art Therapy Credentials Board as a provisional art therapist and with the Virginia Department of Health Professions as a resident in counseling under the supervision of a credentialed art therapist and LPC supervisor.
Through the therapeutic process, I hope to bear the role as both guide and witness to each client’s journey for healing.
Juliana Haug, ATR-P
Art Therapist
I received a Bachelor of Science in December 2021 with a Creative Art Therapy major and Psychology minor from West Liberty University. Currently I am a graduate student, with two semesters remaining, at West Liberty University studying for a Masters of Art in Art Therapy and Counseling. As a graduate student, I have had previous intern experiences working with a range of client populations including but not limited to adults, geriatrics, groups, and children with intellectual and developmental disabilities, trauma, anxiety, dementia, ADHD, autism, and/or other presenting factors.
I foster the idea that each of us is designed to naturally create, express, and communicate. However, the means and capacity through which we convey our feelings is unique to each individual. Because I am heavily involved with art as well, I find that an impactful form of communication is through artistic media and its various applications. For me, art is a narrative. It is the ability to take an idea or interest and birth it into a visible conformation. This expressive journey, whether personal, observative, complicated, or straightforward, captures a story tailored to anyone’s personal experience and inspiration: a notion that the field of creative art therapy upholds. Through the therapeutic process I hope to bear the role as both guide and witness to each client’s journey for healing.