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About Spiritual Counseling & Spiritual Direction
Spiritual counseling integrates psychological wellbeing with spiritual exploration. It can help you tap into your inner guidance, find your own personal power, transform your suffering, deepen your self-awareness, and connect to a higher purpose.
Signs You Could Benefit from Spiritual Counseling
You know deep down that spirituality and psychology are inseparable, and want someone who can help support you in knitting the pieces back together
You feel lost in a sea of religious teachings, new age spirituality, and self-help gurus on the internet, and want to finally feel grounded in something that makes sense for you instead of searching outside of yourself for answers
You have wounds and burdens from past religious experiences, groups, and/or teachings, and you want to find wholeness and empowerment again
You are wholeheartedly committed to a path of inner work, personal growth, and evolution as a human being
You are concerned with questions of meaning, purpose, morality, and virtue. You want a container that helps hold you as you move toward your highest way of being in the world
You are experiencing a spiritual crisis or dark night of the soul, and want someone to help you navigate this difficult time
You have deconstructed your faith and you’re wondering “now what?”
You want to develop a personal relationship with spiritual guidance
What is Spiritual Counseling?
Spiritual counseling, also known as transpersonal counseling, views spirituality as deeply interconnected with the psyche and the whole person. It examines how spirituality intersects with psychological wellbeing, identity, meaning, relationships, and the way we make sense of our lives.
While some spiritual counselors work within a specific faith tradition, such as Christianity or Judaism, my approach is non-denominational. Though my own training has included Buddhism, yoga, shamanism, spiritual direction, and transpersonal psychology, there is no expectation that you adopt any particular spiritual or metaphysical belief system. You do not need to believe in any particular spiritual or metaphysical framework. I do ask that you believe you have access to inner guidance, and that meaningful answers can emerge from within you.
I approach spiritual and mystical experiences with openness, curiosity, and discernment. I do not assume that experiences involving inner guidance, energy, imagery, dreams, past lives, or other transpersonal phenomena have one definitive explanation. You may understand what arises spiritually, psychologically, symbolically, religiously, or in some combination of these ways. My role is to help you explore your experience, understand what it may be showing you, and consider whether the meaning you make of it supports greater integration and wellbeing.
I take an integrative approach to spiritual counseling. Sessions may include a blend of talk-based inquiry, hypnosis, meditation, shamanic journeying, experiential or energetic practices, parts work, and trauma-focused therapy, depending on your needs and preferences.
While some people seek spiritual counseling alongside treatment for mental health concerns, others come for personal growth, meaning-making, discernment, or deeper exploration. No particular diagnosis, religion, or spiritual identity is required.
Common Benefits of Spiritual Counseling
Increased access to your inner knowing, providing clarity, confidence, and increased self-trust
Transformation of any traumas, beliefs, patterns, or stuck points related to spirituality and mental health
Increased access to your personal power and a clear understanding of how to use it for good
A connection to what I call “inner-directed spirituality,” spirituality that comes from within
An enhanced ability to self-heal
A deeper connection to meaning, purpose, and wisdom
Increased peace, contentedness, and happiness
An ability to make peace with past religious experiences, both good and bad
Improved relationship quality
Frequently Asked Questions About Spiritual Counseling & Spiritual Direction
I belong to a religious group. Are you going to try to convert me?
No. My work has been informed by several spiritual and contemplative traditions, particularly Buddhism, yoga, shamanism, and transpersonal psychology, but I do not ask clients to adopt those traditions or their underlying beliefs.
I have worked with Christians, Catholics, Buddhists, people who identify as spiritual but not religious, atheists, agnostics, and people whose beliefs do not fit neatly into any category. What matters most is a willingness to approach your own experience with curiosity and to explore what feels meaningful to you.
Some clients find that this work deepens an existing faith. Others revise their beliefs, become less certain about particular ideas, or discover that spirituality means something different than they expected. Those developments are entirely their own.
What are sessions like?
Sessions are typically guided by your own concerns. For example, you may choose to bring up life questions you are grappling with, discuss grief or loss, explore “big questions” about meaning or purpose, or address religious or spiritual traumas and difficulties from your past. Sessions may be primarily talk and insight-based. I may ask you questions to help you deepen your understanding and find answers to your questions. Sessions may also contain hypnosis, meditation, or shamanic journeying. These methods alter your state of consciousness so that you may achieve deeper healing and insight.
What if I’m skeptical about spiritual concepts?
Skepticism is welcome here. You do not need to believe in a higher power, an afterlife, spirit guides, past lives, or any other particular metaphysical concept to benefit from spiritual counseling. In the broadest sense, I think of spirituality as our relationship with meaning, purpose, values, mystery, connection, and the larger context of our lives. For some people that relationship is explicitly religious or mystical. For others it is grounded in nature, creativity, ethics, community, or a sense of interconnectedness. You only need enough openness to explore your own experience and notice what emerges.
What is the difference between spiritual counseling and spiritual direction?
Spiritual counseling integrates your spiritual journey with emotional and mental well-being. It can help you navigate life's challenges and face specific difficulties in addition to deepening your spirituality. Spiritual direction, on the other hand, is less focused on psychological well-being and more on your relationship with spirituality and the universe. Spiritual direction may be longer-term and less frequent, a touchstone to help keep you centered on your spiritual path over your lifetime. Those with specific concerns will likely begin with a more frequent spiritual counseling format, and may choose to switch to a less frequent spiritual direction format over time as major concerns are resolved. For the sake of simplicity, I may refer to both as spiritual counseling. You precise needs and desires can be discussed in our consultation.
Spiritual Counseling Biography
Emma began asking “big questions” from a very young age. She carried this curiosity throughout her life and took it to college, graduating with dual bachelors degrees in Religious Studies and Global Studies.
The world then became her school, and she has traveled to over 30 countries, learning about various spiritual traditions and ways of life. She even worked at a mindfulness-based healing center for 18 months. After obtaining a Master of Arts in Professional Counseling, she continued her spiritual education by completing training in Internal Family Systems, Depth Hypnosis, Applied Shamanic Counseling, mindfulness and Buddhism, Spiritual Direction, and Psychedelic-Assisted Psychotherapy.
Credentials
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Ordained Buddhist Minister
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Certified Depth Hypnosis Practitioner
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Certified Applied Shamanic Counselor
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Certified Psychedelic Assisted Therapist
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Level 3 trained Internal Family Systems Therapist
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Completed a Spiritual Direction course
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Licensed Professional Counselor
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A full list of all qualifications can be found here