Jessica Barks

As a trauma-informed therapist, Jessica believes that in many cases issues such as anxiety, panic attacks, depression, addiction, OCD, and eating disorders can be linked to early experiences of trauma. Trauma lives in the body and can often affect the language center of the brain, making it difficult to process using talk therapy only. Art therapy provides a contained way to connect to the body, establish safety, and eventually get to the root of unconscious, psychological turmoil. As an art therapist, she will join you collaboratively and with unconditional support throughout your journey of self-discovery and healing.

Jessica has worked with adolescents in schools, residential treatment for eating disorders, as well as community-based empowerment programs. She approaches therapy from a strengths-based, client-centered, expressive lens, empowering clients to discover their own insights around their artistic process. She is also experienced in acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT), as well as cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) and attempt to weave these into the art-making process.

Working in residential treatment, Jessica has gained training in Emotion-Focused Family Therapy (EFFT) and believes strongly in the connection between family involvement and therapeutic success. EFFT believes that empowering parents to help their children can be the most therapeutically worthwhile approach to reducing symptoms, processing emotions, and repairing relationships within the family system.

Jessica feels honored to connect with young people and their families in authenticity and creativity every day and says truly, this is her dream job! When she is not working, She enjoys spending time with her family and cat, reading, making art, backpacking, snowboarding, and traveling.