Come As You Are With Marie Westburg, LMHC

Marie Westburg began her career studying the fine arts, enjoying learning the various forms in which humans can express themselves.

While creating and watching others create alongside her, she recognized how the inner workings of the human mind can so easily find their way onto the page. Interested in understanding how creativity and psychology intertwine, she went on to pursue her master’s degree in Art Therapy at New York University.

Now, as a Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC), Marie describes her counseling style as relational, eclectic, and deeply human. She believes that therapy should begin with compassion, acceptance, and curiosity, not judgment or rigidity.

Her approach integrates a variety of modalities and approaches, including:

• Art Therapy
• Trauma-Informed Therapy
• Somatic Practices
• Attachment Theory
• Parts Work

“Everyone has their own lessons to learn,” she explains. “Meeting someone where they’re at is the first step in being a partner with them.”

Finding Where She’s Needed

Marie’s career has taken her through a wide range of populations, each one expanding her understanding of people and their lived experiences.

Her first job working as an LMHC in community health was at a drop-in youth shelter in Times Square. Marie provided support to young people in crisis, offering them a way to express themselves when speaking their truth was too painful.

From there, she worked in a group home for children living with HIV, and later in a partial hospitalization program in the Bronx.

After relocating to Massachusetts, she continued her work in inpatient psychiatry, therapeutic schools, and nonprofit community mental health settings, including supporting youth involved with DCF and aging services.

These experiences have not only made Marie a well-rounded counselor but also created a strong desire to reach those who need the most help and meet them where they are.

Meeting Them Where They Are

Marie understands that starting therapy can feel intimidating and deeply vulnerable: “It takes courage to show up,” she says. “I want to respect that.”

In the first session, Marie focuses on creating a space that feels safe, compassionate, and accepting. She keeps it conversational, being mindful not to let the process feel overly clinical or overwhelming.

Keeping a curious, open, and understanding dialogue creates the kind of working therapeutic relationship that allows for healthy self-disclosure and genuine growth.

Marie encourages clients to be curious about her, too, and ask questions about her experiences, approach, and personality— ask her about the book she’s working on or how she enjoys singing to help regulate her nervous system!

Meeting Them Where They Were

While talk therapy can be incredibly effective, Marie believes that somatic and creative approaches can be uniquely liberating and incredibly effective with non-verbal individuals and those with intellectual disabilities, as well as therapeutic relationships with language barriers or major differences in culture and experiences.

Marie uses somatic practices to help clients explore how past experiences shape present patterns, and the connection between trauma and the mind and body. Clients will learn how to tune into their nervous system and begin to understand how it relates to themselves and their experiences.

Marie also utilizes art therapy for clients to access emotions and insights that may be difficult to articulate. This process can gently uncover what’s been held beneath the surface and create space for reflection, understanding, and healing.

Meeting Them Where They Want To Be

Marie’s focus on defining where they were and where they are now is crucial in creating a plan for where they want to be.

Setting goals is always a collaborative process with Marie, but she believes clients should take ownership of their therapy — it’s your journey, and it’s your goal. This also means frequent check-ins; Marie wants to ensure clients know they have the opportunity to express what is and isn’t working for them so that she can adjust accordingly.

Marie encourages curiosity and flexibility when creating goals, emphasizing that these goals don’t have to be rigid and can evolve over time.

Come As You Are To Therapy, and She’ll Meet You There!

For clients looking to do some soul-searching, trauma-unpacking, or simply to express themselves through creativity, Marie offers a compassionate and safe space to explore, reflect, and grow.

Marie offers both telehealth/online therapy as well as in-person therapy at our office in West Springfield, Massachusetts.

For clients looking for an compassionate and understanding therapist in Massachusetts, contact us today at (413) 343-4357  or request an appointment online to book with Marie Westburg.

 

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