Better Health Starts Here.

In addition to helping clients overcome depression, anxiety, stress, and trauma, my subspecialties include supporting women and couples after the loss of their pregnancy or newborn to help them grieve, heal and find new meaning in their lives while treasuring and honoring their babies. Additionally, I enjoy working with women during pregnancy and following the birth of their child to help create a motherhood mindset to thrive in their new role and minimize risk factors for developing post partum mood disorders. I have supported men and women through their struggles for over 20 years so they could live their lives more fully and without the burden of past traumas constantly holding them back. My clients report that with treatment they feel more supported and validated, have confidence in using powerful tools to help them through the worst of times and ultimately learn to move forward in their lives. Please don’t hesitate to call so we can discuss how I can best serve you. My clientele is diverse in culture, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, and family makeup.

WELCOME! TODAY - you are one step clser to creating a joy-filled life, by living your dreams and connecting to the sanctuary of your heart! Embarking on this 'personal journey' of exploration, you will - feel a sense of personal power on a positive path to growth, balance, and optimal well-being. As a solution-focused and eclectic therapist - I incorporate a TRANSPERSONAL, ARCHETYPAL, HUMANISTIC, SELF-PSYCHOLOGY AND COGNITIVE-BEHAVIORAL approach. My goal is to assist you in uncovering your innate human and divine potential and gifts - leading to a life worth celebrating. Together, we will tap into your own healing resources - both ancient and modern in order to live a life fully in the moment - despite challenging and difficult situation in your 'history'. While we cannot undo difficult situations of the past, we can work together creatively to better understand and resolve challenges in your life. We can release and change limiting patterns and belief systems that limit your relationships, in order to create a state of balance and peaceful harmony. We will listen to your own innate inner wisdom, incorporating new and changed behaviors of compassion, self-love and empowerment. Through the creative modalities of 'play', 'art', 'storytelling', and nature based 'sandplay therapy we will weave a tapestry of healing that will transform your internal world - transforming to a life lived fully in all dimensons -- like the 'butterfly leaving the cocoon' - and the 'wild geese' coming home to the person and place you are meant to be and experience.! I bring to my clients and sessions my heartfelt compassionate and authentic presence -- allowing safety and trust to emerge. To deeply 'know oneself' - through all dimenstions. jTo find and access one's 'authentic voice' - and experience of one's inner sanctuary -- 'announcing your place in the family of things'.

Complex trauma is a relatively newer concept referring to our adaptive development around ongoing or repeating childhood abuse, neglect, or abandonment. It is very common, and because it involves entangled parts and beliefs, healing requires specific approaches that instill a sense of felt safety in the body before processing old traumas. Where most of us develop structures to protect us from the uncomfortable parts of life, in therapy we are developing an ability to meet all parts of self with presence and compassion.

Possibly the deadliest drug available, heroin destroys lives. Because treatment for drug addiction is most effective when specific to your drug of choice, we focus on helping men with addictions to heroin. Men's Heroin Rehab is also a drug addiction resource that helps families understand, assess, and treat loved ones who are suffering from addiction.

At Compass Community Counseling you can count on a judgment free environment to assist individuals, couples and families with counseling services in Vancouver, WA and the Portland-Metro area to make lasting positive changes. We lead our clients to find hope, direction, and healing through emotional renewal, spiritual change and physical growth. We have extensive training and experience working with relationships and how they are imbedded in a person’s patterns of behaviors. We have additional training in Functional Family Therapy, Gottman methods, and Sex Therapy. Every couple has moments when they start to fight more, feel angry, harbor resentment, or even feel withdrawn from their partner. If we are being truly honest we know that relationships are hard and they take a tremendous amount of work. We see our role as a relationship or marriage counselor to sit with you, where you are in the moment and help guide the way in mending the broken pieces of your relationship. Our goal in couples counseling is never about taking sides; it is about helping you each to understand each other better.

Sue Bernt is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker dedicated to working with all humans to discover their strengths within. Now and for the past 31 years, Sue has developed an awareness of how to support development of all ages. With natural and instinctive qualities, she has had a successful career as a teacher, a support to adults (Parents, Foster/Adopt Parents, and Teaching staff), and as a child and family therapist. Sue is a dedicated advocate for quality services within communities, and strives to empower all human beings as they recognize the strengths they carry within themselves. Sue specializes in working with children (ages 2-14) and their families. Her focus is on understanding the challenges of life brought about through relationships, self worth, behavior, trauma, depression, stress, and anxiety. Sue is now working with adults through their employee benefits (EAP) or medical insurances. In order to maintain her credentials, Sue attends trainings to obtain Continuing Education Credits in the Mental Health field as well as keeping up-to-date on current research in the treatment of mental health and relationship issues. Sue attends trainings which focus on Child and Family Therapy, Play Therapy, Trauma, and PTSD to name a few.

Counseling for adults and teens (age 11+). At Star Meadow Counseling, you'll find warm, good-humored mental health therapists that care about helping you on your path toward healing. We'd love to help you overcome anxiety, depression, relationship conflict, an eating disorder, or recover from a traumatic event. Our therapists have specialties in research-proven therapy approaches, including Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy, Solution-Focused Therapy, and EMDR. Supervision for licensure is also available for Master's level counselors.