About Me
Hi! My name is Sarah Harden, and I am licensed as a Provisional Licensed Professional Counselor and hold a Master’s Degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from MidAmerica Nazarene University (no personal affiliation with the Nazarene Church).
I work with teens, neurodivergent clients, intellectualizers, and individuals navigating relational difficulties, trauma, identity development, and questions surrounding faith and spirituality. Many of my clients have spent years feeling emotionally disconnected, misunderstood, or caught between who they are and who they thought they would be.
A large part of my work focuses on collaboratively helping people understand how early experiences, relationships, trauma, family systems, and identity development continue to shape present emotions, relationships, and self-perception. I find often we can be highly self-aware and capable of logically understanding our experiences, yet still feel emotionally or physically stuck. Insight alone does not always resolve what our bodies and nervous system has carried from stress, trauma, loss, or chronic emotional overwhelm.
My work is informed by attachment theory, relational and trauma-focused approaches, and EMDR therapy. I often work with clients who feel stuck in painful relational patterns, wanting closeness while also fearing rejection, conflict, misunderstanding, or loss of self. It is so common for individuals to struggle with emotional regulation, communication, and feeling trapped in cycles where both people are reacting from fear, hurt, or old narratives rather than feeling truly known by one another.
I often find that as people, we can have learned to survive by staying productive, analytical, self-aware, or “fine” on the outside while feeling emotionally disconnected underneath. I view many symptoms and coping patterns as parts of ones self that developed for a reason, not evidence that something is wrong with you.
So what helps? I believe people begin to heal when they feel genuinely seen, understood, and accepted without judgment. I often see healing begin when clients move away from self-judgment and toward curiosity about their inner experiences. From there, many begin developing greater self-compassion and permission to exist more fully and authentically as human beings rather than constantly remaining in survival mode. This shift along with skill development can be so beneficial for many individuals.
At the core of my work is the belief that no one can do life alone and everyone deserves someone willing to be with them no matter what phase of their story they are in. I would love to get to be a small part of your journey as you navigate various things life brings.
My Specialties:
I work with adolescents, young adults, couples, and individuals across the lifespan who are navigating anxiety, OCD, loss, body image, trauma and PTSD, Complex PTSD, depression, emotional dysregulation, loneliness, relational distress, low self-esteem, chronic stress, grief and loss, and boundary concerns. I am LGBTQIA+ affirming, and honoring each person’s identity, culture, and lived experience is central to my work.