About Me
Hi, I’m Meagan (she/they). I’m a therapist, yes, but I’m also a person. I believe therapy invites vulnerability, and by sharing who I am, I hope to give you a sense of control in deciding who you open up to.
Personal Values & Lived Experiences
I share a number of identities and experiences that align with the people I often work with. Some of these include:
I’m Queer (existing on those asexual, bisexual, and non-binary spectrums)
I’m Neurodivergent (this includes sensory sensitivities around clothing and food, and I share many autistic traits)
I’m Chronically Ill (I have type 1 diabetes, POTS, and PCOS– so I get what it’s like to live with invisible illness, juggle high-care treatment routines, and face the many challenges of getting diagnosed or feeling heard by doctors)
I’m in an Interracial Marriage (being in an interracial marriage, I notice racism and microaggressions that others might overlook, as well as the struggles of blending cultures)
I’m a Work in Progress (I’ve been on a healing journey with my own self-worth, both in therapy and beyond, and while I’ve mostly healed, I continue to seek support as needed)
If any of these experiences resonate with you, I want you to know that you don’t have to explain every detail of your journey to me – I’m already familiar with these challenges. My goal in sharing this is to let you know that I understand firsthand the complexities of navigating these experiences, and I can be there as a safe, supportive person for you to trust when you’re ready.
Given these identities and experiences, you might be able to guess my values, but I won’t make you guess, I’ll share them openly:
I value the importance of questioning our own perspectives, exposing ourselves to different ways of thinking, and I don’t pretend to be all-knowing. I strive to keep a learner’s mindset and actively welcome feedback.
I believe in recognizing how systemic oppression shapes our world, especially for marginalized communities.
I see self-diagnosis as valid. DSM diagnoses are a tool to categorize struggles, but they can't capture the full breadth of the human experience. There’s no harm in having a word to describe an experience, as it helps to connect us with others and aids us in finding more resources to support ourselves.
I value your comfort, which I see as your boundaries. I’ll encourage you to prioritize them, and I’ll always ask for your input in our work together.
I don’t hide my reactions – I show up authentically as a real human! Rest assured, that human will always see you with a kind compassionate lens, and I welcome seriousness, cringe, and silliness alike.
I am open and transparent with my clients, so you always know what to expect from the therapeutic process. Many of my clients appreciate how I outline my line of thinking, and how I take the time to explain certain interventions work. If you ever have a question, please, ask it!
Now that you know a little about my values, here are a few things that make me... well, me!
Fun Facts About Me
To give you a glimpse of who I am, here’s a few of my favorites:
Video Games: Life is Strange, The Walking Dead, Detroit: Become Human, Minecraft, Pokemon, and The Sims 4
TV Shows and Movies: Severance, The Last of Us, Squid Games, Stranger Things, Back to the Future, The Matrix, and Jurassic Park
Hobbies: Metalsmithing, Jewelry Making, Lapidary Arts (rock shaping and polishing), Photography, Poetry Writing, and Loom Weaving
Collections: Crystals and fossils (which inspired my practice name), vinyl records, and a ridiculous amount of psychology books (I’m a non-fiction reader)
Miscellaneous: I love my 2 dogs (rescues), I love the Tucson Gem Show, I am a chicken sandwich connoisseur and will order one at most restaurants I go to, fondue and Korean BBQ are some of my favorite meals because I like to cook my food in front of me as I eat it, and I love redecorating my house for each season
Why Ammonite?
You might be curious about why I named my practice Ammonite Counseling LLC. If you didn’t know, an ammonite is a fossilized sea creature with a spiral shell. One, I like crystals and fossils, and so I wanted to decorate my space with them, but I also found a lot of meaningful symbolism in the ammonite.
When you see the direction of a spiral, as it goes towards the middle a spiral symbolizes going deeper, much like we do in therapy—exploring the depth of your feelings and their origins. We can also observe the spiral leading outwards, ending the cycle one has been in. Spirals are often symbolic of change and transformation, and that is what I seek to provide in my practice: healing and transformation found after looking within.
If you are like me and also enjoy learning about symbolism, I’ll detail even more. Water symbolizes the emotional world, and Earth the physical. The ammonite fossil, a creature of both realms, represents the blend of healing emotions and building the world you want for yourself, which is what I hope for everyone who enters my practice.
I also just really enjoy all of the wordplay and metaphors I can use with ammonites. We can “dig up” or “unearth” old feelings, and “dive” right in to those “ancient” wounds before you “spiral” out of control and really feel “under water”. I could go on, because it gives me great enjoyment, but I’ll spare you the cheesy dad jokes… for now.