CERTIFIED HYPNOTHERAPIST                          LICENSED MARRIAGE & FAMILY THERAPIST

 

     ANNOUNCEMENTS & SERVICE UPDATES

      Business hours vary between 12PM and 7PM Tuesday - Thursday and occasional Mondays.              Email is the best way to reach me. Messages are returned during usual business hours.

                                                        **OFFICE CLOSURES**                                                                                                                         October 15th                                                                                                                   November 22nd - December 2nd                                                                                                           December 24th - 26th                                                          

         My Practice is currently full. I occasionally accept referrals from clients and colleagues.

                                       All services are provided via telemedicine.                   

          Clients need to be physically located in the state of WA or NM at the time of service.     

                       If in crisis, call 988 or (206) 461-3222 - OR - Text HOME to 741741           

                                       For life-threatening emergencies dial 911

                                                  FOR CURRENT CLIENTS ONLY:                                                                            Click the links below to manage appointments and access your client portal:

                BOOK AN APPOINTMENT                           LOGIN TO CLIENT PORTAL

My Personal Approach

Knowledge truly is power - when we come to know ourselves, love and accept ourselves and others with all our imperfections, we learn to love deeply, authentically and unconditionally. Small personal changes lead to larger circles of support and interconnection in our lives.  

I take an interacitve approach in therapy so your sessions feel educational and engaging. Expect to laugh a lot. Together, we will explore the mind-body connection. You will learn the neurobiology of instinct, emotion and cognition and to trust your intuition. I want you to leave each session with something new to consider. I often give specialized tasks for clients to practice outside of session in order to master self-empowerment in the real world.  

You will be challenged to become your best self with me and I'm confident you will enjoy both the process and rewards of therapy.  I take great satisfaction in witnessing measurable progress with clients who actively engage in the therapeutic process.

My Theoretical Approach

I combine ideas from various individual and family systems theorists, but first, I am an objective observer and mindful partner in the therapeutic relationship. My natural approach is Humanistic, Rogerian, or Client-Centered. It is imperative for each client to feel seen, heard and understood, to trust a sense of unconditional positive regard from me and not to feel judged. Without this important therapeutic connection, minimal progress can be made.

As we establish rapport, each client and I systematically explore critical life events and transitions together by reviewing their unique personal history. Throughout this process, I integrate Bowenian and Attachment-based theories by examining family-of-origin and other early childhood relationships. Our early relationship experiences directly impact the current intimate relationships we choose with romantic partners, peers and even our employers.

In our homes and communities as children, we are utterly powerless.  Like particles of energy, our lives collide, propelling us into gravitational fields we may or may not be able to control.  We bond with what fits, often times with what feels familiar to us, even if at our core we know it doesn't feel right. We do the best we can growing up, often times flaling, as we navigate complex relationships and others' expectations of us. Most of us had minimal  guidance from our adult caregivers and role-models in areas of honest self-reflection, emotional awareness and personal responsibility.  Maybe we never experienced a felt sense of encouragement nor delight in our uniqueness from an adult while we were young. And for those of us who us who did, the likelihood of those constructs being tainted by hints of codependency, at best, is extremely high.

It is almost impossible to trust what we know is best for us, in each of our unique circumstances, when we're constantly trying to live our lives according to expectations of those who have a biased investment in our choices.  But what about all the stuff we can't learn from the same people and the same institutions? What about the the unfamiliar and non-traditional options? What about the fact that our ignorance can indeed hurt us, or at best, hold us back from a higher potential?

It is common, when attempting to reflect inward for the first time, to be flooded with self-doubt, anxiety and frustration. We don't know what to believe or who to trust, certainly not expecting the answers to be within ourselves. We don't know what is possible until we create and experience the lives and relationships each of us uniquely desires.

Therefore, we must learn to trust ourselves first within a healthy relationship, one without bias, obligation or expectations. Many of us start this first secure relationship with a therapist until we know how to recognize what security feels like with others. We learn to grasp secure, consistent connections while embracing the uncomfortable pull toward change, growth and healing.

As I support each client in their treatment goals, I demonstrate interoception and somatic awareness techniques to increase a client's mind-body connection as they learn to self-regulate and self-soothe. When we share our deepest feelings and experiences in safe, supportive and therapeutic environments, we enhance the potential for intimate connection and security with our loved ones.

Guided imagery and hypnotherapy are fantastic modalities to help clients get out of their heads (literally toning down cognitive activity in the frontal lobe) and into their bodies, allowing for both a cathartic release of emotion (processed in the limbic system of the brain but physiologically experienced in the rest of our bodies) and an increase in instinctual awareness (processed in the brain stem), which I can best describe as a deep sense of knowing what we need and deserve in order to feel safe. 

Neuroplasticity allows us to modify neural connections impacted by genetic and social influences that shaped our instincts, emotions and thoughts over time, thereby learning to trust ourselves to adapt our behaviors now, in accordance with our current circumstances. As we slowly test new behavioral waters, we build courage and strength to achieve a deep sense of security within and around us.

Unlike children and now, as adults, we have the power to choose how we perceive and interact with the world around us. By enhancing self-awareness, we can optimize self-worth. Only with a high level of self-respect, confidence and trust can we maximize the quality of our chosen relationships with others, emotionally, sexually and spiritually/intuitively. 

It's a great honor to be entrusted in the therapeutic relationship with each client I have the privilege to treat. I thoroughly enjoy hearing each client's story and witnessing their evolution until their treatment goals are both achieved and sustained over time. Individual and relationship growth has remained a lifelong passion of mine, so naturally, I'm glad to be here with each client, until the work is done. 

 

 

 

 

 

SERVICES

Individual Therapy

  • Strengthen Self-Worth and Confidence
  • Heal from Emotional, Sexual and/or Physical Abuse and Neglect
  • Resolve Religious and Cultural Trauma 
  • Strengthen Spirituality
  • Identify ADHD, Master Organizational Skills and Increase Productivity
  • Increase Authenticity
  • Establish Trust
  • Explore Sexuality and Intimacy (Sex-Positive Approach)
  • Master Emotion Regulation
  • Learn Assertiveness Techniques
  • Validate Personality Styles
  • Explore Life Transitions
  • Manage Stress
  • Set Healthy Boundaries
  • Resolve Grief and Loss
  • Manage or Eliminate Depression
  • Eliminate Anxiety
  • Master Mindfulness Techniques  
  • Reduce or Resolve Chronic Pain

Couples Therapy

  • Strengthen Emotional Attachment Bonds
  • Learn Assertive Communication Techniques
  • Establish Autonomy and Inter-Dependence
  • Eliminate Co-Dependency
  • Explore Sexuality and Intimacy Issues (Sex-Positive Approach)
  • Consider Non-Monogamy, Open/Poly and Other                Non-traditional Partnerships
  • Transition Through Break-up, Separation or Divorce
  • Heal From Infidelity
  • Resolve Grief and Loss

Family Therapy

  • Strengthen Relationships
  • Improve Communication
  • Resolve Generational Trauma
  • Transition Through Separation and Divorce
  • Create Secure Attachments
  • Eliminate Co-Dependency
  • Establish Healthy Autonomy and Inter-Dependence
  • Resolve Grief and Loss
  • Heal From Sexual Abuse/Incest

About Danielle

My passion for deep, intimate connections with fellow humans cannot be reduced to my work as a therapist. Quality time and physical affection are my love languages. I thrive in open, honest, authentic and meaningful conversations with anyone willing to join me, both professionally and personally.

I also long for solitude, where I replenish my social and creative energy. In these quiet moments, I can be found daydreaming, contemplating, reflecting, reading, researching or writing, like a true introvert. Aside from my hobby of nerding out in all areas of study in social sciences and humanities, I also relish in learning about various aspects of the natural world and how all things are interconnected. I'm drawn to physics, epigenetics, neuroscience, evolutionary biology, and phenomenology.  

I'm filled with gratitude for having the privilege to explore the globe, to observe and appreciate unique sociocultural and environmental terrains.  As a visual and experiential learner, when I'm immersed in a new culture, I can better integrate my observations at scale.  Although tourist attractions have their obvious draws, I also like to meet locals or natives who can provide experiences off the beaten path of a typical tourist agenda.  

When vacationing, I gravitate toward warm climates where I can relax on a beach, read, and scuba dive. Large bodies of water comfort me. In a meditative state, I love to visualize escaping to the calm depths of the sea. 

Education

  • Antioch University - Seattle, WA
    Master of Arts - Psychology
  • Western Washington University - Bellingham, WA
    Bachelor of Arts - Psychology
  • The Wellness Institute, Issaquah, WA                                             Heart-Centered Hypnotherapy Certification

Qualifications

  • Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist (LMFT) in Washington State and New Mexico
  • Certified Heart-Centered Hypnotherapist

"People, even more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed and redeemed."

~ Audrey Hepburn

Payment

Intake Session

Talk Therapy

Hypnotherapy

Group Therapy

Legal / Other Consultation

Non-Scheduled Therapeutic Interaction (Phone Call, Document Review, Email Exchange)

$250 per 55 Minute Session

$175 per 53-55 Minute Session

$350 per 100 Minute Session

$75 Per 90 Minute Session

$45 Per 15 Minute Service

$45 per Therapeutic Exchange or 15 Minute Service

Contact

Info@DanielleDufault.com

(206) 390-1417

BUSINESS HOURS:

*My business hours vary between 12PM and 7PM Tuesday through Thursday and occasional Mondays.

*I respond to non-urgent voicemails and emails during normal business hours.

Website Design