Attachment-based Therapists in Charlottesville, VA

Hi, I’m Rachel. I believe that everyone has the capacity for healing. My goal as a therapist is to help you find safety and stability within yourself and in the world around you. I provide a warm, nonjudgmental approach to support adults and college-aged adults, teens, and children in managing life and relationship stress, anxiety, depression, school issues, and trauma. My work with clients often includes exploring how present challenges are connected to our past experiences.

Therapy is a great gift to yourself. The connection provided in a safe, therapeutic relationship is healing. I encourage self exploration to find and heal wounds that are blocking one's own self-love and connection to the authentic self that feels true and right. I provide a gentle, accepting presence to join you on your journey toward increased life satisfaction. I enjoy working with adults struggling with life transitions, anxiety, shame, depression, anger and grief or just feeling stuck.

In my practice, I offer adult and couples therapy, specializing in trauma, anxiety, loss, and relationship distress. I collaborate with individuals and couples who experience fear, sadness, anger, and disconnection who seek a pathway to healing, greater emotional connection, and sense of well being. I utilize evidence-based therapies, including attachment-based, mindfulness, trauma-informed, and emotionally-focused approaches, including IFS, EMDR, and AEDP. My style is calm, non-judgmental, & interactive. I value the opportunity to partner with clients on their journey.

I highly value trust and connection in order for humans to heal. I bring my authentic self and transparency into session in order to give clients the ability to be fully themselves. My goal is to help ease psychological suffering brought on by trauma and other negative life circumstances and then make sense of the overwhelming emotions/responses. It is through compassion and connection that corrective emotional experiences can occur. I believe that our ability to both experience and understand our Self and others is a key component in building secure (emotionally safe) relationships.

Your problems may be specific - a challenging relationship, sexual concerns, upsetting memories, or problem behaviors. Or your struggles may be less tangible - feeling lost, detached, or stuck. In my practice, I offer adult and couples therapy for a range of concerns. I specialize in treating sexual dysfunctions, trauma-related issues, relationship concerns, and problem behaviors. I also provide gender & sexual identity affirming care. I deeply enjoy helping individuals feel a greater sense of self-efficacy, confidence, and clarity in their lives.

As a therapist, I am driven by a deep passion for helping clients overcome obstacles and nurture their inner strengths. Through a warm and collaborative therapeutic approach, I empower clients to gain greater awareness and self-understanding, cultivating and developing skills for personal growth. I firmly believe that seeking support holds the potential for transformative change.

No matter who you are, life is hard. The difficulties of day-to-day life often put us in a bind: On one hand, the stressors are too big and too painful to ignore. And yet, while we may wish for and even utilize the support of those around us, for a whole host of reasons, we often resort to going it alone. In these moments, therapy can be a promising new option: a confidential relationship rooted in honesty, understanding, and compassion. It is my belief that such a relationship can provide a fresh start: a new orientation towards our problems and a new way of experiencing the world we live in.

I provide therapy to teenagers, adults, and couples who have diverse reasons for seeking therapy, including mental health support, personal growth, and conflict and communication issues. I especially enjoy working with individuals who want support for managing anxiety, for navigating the significant life changes that come with adolescence, the transition to college, and young adulthood, and for developing self-esteem and more positive relationships with food, eating, and their body. My hope is that the work we do together will help you in better understanding yourself and feeling empowered to make meaningful changes in your life.

I know what it’s like to go through hard times and what a difference having a skilled, compassionate therapist can make. For over 15 years, it’s been a privilege for me to do the same for my clients. My passion is helping clients heal from different types of traumas (PTSD, complex-developmental, intergenerational, attachment, religious, etc). These traumas often lead to symptoms of depression, anxiety, impulsive/addictive behaviors, eating disorders, and personality disorders – all which I have experience and success in working with.

Welcome! My name is Leah Horton and I'm an LPC in Virginia. I began my journey in the counseling world working as a licensed K-12 school counselor and later transitioned into doing clinical work in an outpatient setting and at a collegiate counseling center. I have experience working with children, adolescents, families, and young adults. My personal motto for counseling is "one life touching another". I have a passion for helping people explore and better understand their feelings and experiences in order to assist them in navigating through the difficulties of life within the safety of the therapeutic relationship.

I offer individual therapy for adults and adolescents, with a primary focus and expertise on those that are currently struggling with anxiety, addiction, depression, grief, and trauma. Other areas of expertise include family conflict, difficult life transitions, career/vocational issues, and challenges unique to men during this season.

Those who have experienced developmental and relational trauma are constantly finding themselves in complicated and challenging relationships. Maybe you identify with codependency, complicated grief, or are suffering from other intimacy disorders. It may seem like you’re navigating the world, unable to esteem and care for yourself in meaningful ways. Dysfunction at work or school, financial challenges, and perhaps declining physical health have prevented you from living a full and whole-hearted life. Today is different- together, we can work on challenging your old beliefs and create a new way of knowing and being known.

Early adulthood is a time of profound change and self-discovery. I specialize in working with young adults, college students, and professionals who are exploring their individuality, and place in the world. You may be navigating complex family issues, pursuing healthy friendships and relationships, and figuring out self-acceptance. This time period can bring about feelings of uncertainty and stress as you explore your values, how your experiences have shaped you, and how you want to experience the life ahead of you. I'm here to help you explore your feelings, experiences, and feel confident about your future.

I'm only seeing clients located in Virginia and fully virtual! I often work with parents who are preparing to bring a child into their family through adoption and those who have been a family for a long time who are struggling. Maybe becoming a parent through adoption was not what you expected. Maybe you are an adoptee yourself and struggling with things like feeling really guilty or wondering where you fit. My clients want to better understand themselves and their family dynamics to feel more whole and secure.

As a therapist, I provide a safe space for you to explore your potential, heal from past wounds, better manage stressors, and develop an actionable plan to work towards the goals you wish to pursue. I work with adults and adolescents (age 16+) and specialize in working with individuals who are experiencing anxiety, depression, trauma recovery, parenting challenges, or who are coping with relational, medical, and/or life stressors. I utilize a strengths-based approach with an emphasis on cognitive-behavioral and solution-focused interventions.

I'm passionate about helping individuals, couples and families heal and experience deeper, more meaningful connections. My work as a counselor has spanned over a decade and through a variety of settings including community-based counseling, outpatient level services, residential care, and crisis support. I have particular interest in working with issues related to foster care and culturally-based trauma. I also have many years experience treating mood-disorders in adolescents.

Accompaniment matters. Relationships transform. We sit together to access the health that is at the center of every human being, even when one of us can’t feel it. We sit because healing happens in relationship, access to true self is made easier in the presence of another person’s settled nervous system, and because your healing matters for the health of all of us. Whether you are facing overwhelm, anger, a frozen feeling, compulsions, depression, trauma, anxiety, or facing other difficult experience, we can touch it with awareness and respect. Our experience includes joy, includes pain, and includes connection and compassion.

I operate from an attachment perspective, and I believe that we must establish safety in order to change, heal, and grow. I aim to help clients heal past traumas, work through difficult emotions, and find their inner strength and core self. I help clients build and strengthen relationships with themselves and others for transformation and healing.

I serve individuals who have experienced interpersonal violence, sexual violence, attachment wounds, and other traumas. Trauma is events, experiences, and their effects. It is the ensnaring voice inside that says "not good enough," it's the feeling of shame and not-belonging, and it's the body's rhythms out-of-sync. Through a healing relationship, I journey with clients in the messy process of change by drawing on their inborn capacity for growth and wisdom. I support clients in reconnecting the stories of the mind, heart, and body such that they attune to the self with compassion, honor their emotions, and orient to the present.