Helping Professionals Interview Series: Gretchen Haughey, MAC, LPC of Compassionate Counseling St. Louis
We are thrilled to share the news that Gretchen Haughey, MAC, LPC has joined Compassionate Counseling St. Louis!
Gretchen is a fully licensed therapist specializing in working with kids and teens with ADHD, anxiety, and emotional regulation challenges.
Today Gretchen is sharing more about why she became a St. Louis therapist, her approach, and why she loves helping kids express what’s hard to put into words.
Why did you decide to become a counselor?
I greatly benefitted from my own personal counseling and found it to be important work that I wanted to do with others. I liked the challenge of working on abstract concepts with clients and trying to bring more integration into their lives in different ways. Some family friends have also pointed out that I seem to like nurturing and being in nurturing environments.
What's your favorite part about counseling?
Getting to know each person individually, celebrating their unique interests, characteristics and giftings, and coming alongside them in their journey of life to consider making space to make changes in their lives.
What do you feel is the most important part of therapy?
Creating a safe space for clients where no emotion, question or issue is off limits and where they can try out or consider risking difficult conversations and making changes in their lives.
What does a first session look like with you?
I welcome clients and I ask if they have any questions about the forms and go over confidentiality and practice policies.
Starting out, I like to get to know my clients, so I love to hear them tell me a bit about themselves, their experiences and interests. Then I ask about what prompted them to come in for counseling, and what goals they have.
If we have time, I might ask if there is anything urgent they would like to talk about. And if it is a child, we might play a game such as Uno while talking or invite them to draw or play with fidgets if they would like.
What clients do you love to work with?
A client who is open to trying different exercises, especially art to help them, as I really enjoy leading clients in exercises for externalizing what is going on internally for them.
How do you see anxiety and anxiety-driven anger overlap?
Often anger and acting out with big behaviors can be easier for a person to express, making them feel stronger, but be a cover for anxiety and hurt that they have deeper down, which make them feel weak.
They can all be related, especially with anger or conduct being secondary and signaling anxiety. The fears associated with anxiety are often more primary, and a safe place and person are needed to address them.
Want to know a fun fact about Gretchen?
Gretchen has experience working as a diving coach for kids!
Want to learn more about working with Gretchen?
If you’re interested in working with Gretchen, you can schedule a free 15-minute phone consultation right here! This call will give us a chance to hear from you about what’s been going on, walk you through our session structure and figure out the best therapist to pair you with (Gretchen, or one of our other awesome therapists).
Curious to learn more about therapy for anxiety, therapy for ADHD and therapy for anxiety-driven anger? Wondering if Compassionate Counseling St. Louis could be a good fit for you or your child? Reach out to us at hello@compassionatecounselingstl.com. As child anxiety experts, we love working with kids, teens, college students and parents to help manage their anxiety, stress, and anger. Compassionate Counseling St. Louis is located in Clayton, MO and works with families by offering both in-person counseling and online therapy throughout St. Louis City, St. Louis County, Ladue, University City, Town and Country, Webster Groves, Creve Couer, Kirkwood, Richmond Heights, and Brentwood. We also provide online therapy Missouri -wide to teens and college students. You can set up your first free consult on this website, on our consultation page.