I am a Licensed Mental Health Counselor in Iowa with 24 years of experience working as a mental health therapist. I've had 2 years of providing in-home family therapy where I learned a lot about family system and solution focused theories, as well as utilizing them with the families I worked with. I then worked two years at an outpatient community behavioral health center, that provided me with many opportunities to work with a variety of people with different backgrounds including, their socio-economic status, race, age, sexual orientation, gender, religious affiliation, and cultural experiences. The issues that my clients had also varied greatly from working with people who had chronic and severe mental illness to those who were adjusting to life transition issues, and many things in between. The last 20 years, I have been an independent practitioner in a private practice setting. While working in this setting, I have been able to see areas/issues where my strengths are most helpful. I have developed a strong knowledge base with working with people who struggle with eating disorders. I live in a very rural area, and resources are not easy to access at times, so I was the only therapist who would work with individuals with eating disorders for the majority of the past 20 years. I also work with survivors of sexual assault/abuse, domestic abuse, and other trauma related issues. I work a lot with kids and their families to address the issues that they are struggling with, which has included, but not limited to, blended family issues. Other issues that I work a lot with are depression, anxiety, and grief. I have two trained therapy dogs who come to work with me, and I have seen the positive impact that the therapy dogs have on clients. I am an animal lover so I also understand the deep loss people feel when their pet has died. Most recently, I have also become more involved in understanding tech addiction, and the devastating impact this is having on people's lives, and finding ways to break away from that addiction.
I understand that seeking out counseling can be a very difficult thing for people, so when someone trusts me enough to choose me as their therapist, I see that this is a precious gift that I need to handle with the greatest care I can offer. I will see you as a person, not a label defined by a diagnosis. I will not walk ahead of you, push you from behind, but walk next to you, on the journey you are wanting to go on. I will help you achieve the goals you want to achieve, not what I think you should achieve. I look forward to getting to know you, and working with you to achieve the outcomes you want!
Additional areas of focus: Addictions, LGBT, Relationship issues, Family conflicts, Grief, Parenting issues, Self esteem, Bipolar disorder, Coping with life changes, Compassion fatigue, ADHD, Blended Family Issues, Body image, Cancer, Caregiver issues and stress, Control issues, Coping with Natural or Human-Caused Disaster, Divorce and separation, Domestic Violence, Eating and Food-Related Issues, Emptiness, Family of Origin Issues, Family Problems, Forgiveness, Guilt and shame, Hospice and End of Life Counseling, Impulsivity, Life purpose, Mood disorders , Panic disorder and panic attacks, Postpartum Depression, Post-traumatic stress, Pregnancy and childbirth, Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), Self-Harm, Sexual Assault and Abuse, Social anxiety and phobia, Women's issues, Young Adult Issues
Clinical approaches: Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Motivational Interviewing, Solution-Focused Therapy, Trauma-Focused Therapy
These quotes represent just a few of the many positive reviews that we have received for Kirsten Ludwig. We don't pay anyone to provide their review and they are all made voluntarily. Some people's experience receiving therapy with BetterHelp might be different.
Kirsten has been amazing to work with, I’ve already recommended her specifically to a friend of mine, and I’m signing on for more sessions with her. I’m so impressed with her ability to recall things I’ve shared from previous sessions so I don’t have to keep explaining context, and she’s so easily able to connect the dots and help me see the bigger picture, and frame really difficult topics in a way that’s easy for me to understand, accept, and work thru. She’s very kind and easy to talk to, and I completely trust her expertise. She’s helped me work thru one of the most difficult times in my life. This was my first time in counseling and now I recommend it to everyone because she’s made it such a pairing experience for me.
Written on Dec 21, 2021 after therapy with Kirsten for 2 months on issues concerning stress, anxiety, relationship issues, and parenting issues