Melissa Ward, M.S.

• Ph.D., Counseling Psychology, Oklahoma State University (in-progress)
• M.S., Clinical Mental Heath Counseling, California State University, Fullerton
• B.A., Psychology, Humboldt State University
• A.A., Behavioral and Social Sciences, College of the Redwoods

Drawing from relational-cultural theory, I work from an empowering, trauma-informed lens that assumes clients are the experts in their lives. Through collaboration, clients and I explore how past experiences may be related to current behaviors. I also seek to understand how systems of power and oppression have impacted clients based on their intersecting privileged and marginalized identities. From there, my goal is to help clients develop the skills they need to reach their goals and thrive. I take a non-judgmental, empathetic stance in therapy, as I believe safety is central to creating an environment of growth. Although I enjoy working with clients with diverse experiences, my specific professional interests include disordered eating and body image concerns, social justice, and trauma.

I identify as a white, queer, larger-bodied, cisgender woman. The understanding I have about my intersecting privileged and marginalized identities and how they shape my experiences is central to my clinical practice. In my conceptualization of diversity, people do not have one singular identity or even multiple identities that work individually. Instead, people have multiple identities that intersect and influence each other and impact the way people move through the world because of the systems of oppression that are present in society. In treatment, I consider how my clients intersecting identities both potentially impacted the development of their presenting problem and reinforced their strengths and resilience. My perspective on diversity extends beyond my clinical practice to every part of my personal and professional life.