About me

Ben Bjorgaard, PhDc, MA, LMHC, LPC, LMFTA, RCC

Becoming a psychotherapist was one of my earliest professional aspirations. In large part, I gravitated to the field to help with my own adolescent and family crises. In my mid-teens, I started reading works by psychotherapy pioneers; authors like Carl Rogers, Abraham Maslow, and Carl Jung. Some of my first jobs were at youth social work non-profits in positions such as peer-mentor, mental health technician, and youth shelter attendant. When I was 19, I decided to pursue massage therapy training as a stepping stone to becoming a somatic (body-oriented) psychotherapist. At the time, connections between trauma research, neurobiology, and body-based techniques were rising in popularity.

As I learned more about the field, I became dissatisfied with how many therapeutic approaches miss out on the big picture of mental health. Really addressing individual psyches requires change to families, communities, cultures, and societies—not to mention holistic health. During my professional development as a therapist, I always had an eye out for the bigger picture, and I spent a fair amount of my higher education exploring larger questions related to mental health. I’ve been particularly interested in the integration and unification of psychotherapy approaches.

Earlier in my career as a psychotherapist, I worked at multiple sliding-scale community mental health clinics. I also practiced at a trauma and crisis treatment center specializing in the treatment of acute psychological symptoms, including traumatic loss, sexual assault, PTSD, violent crimes, domestic violence, vicarious trauma, human trafficking, and problematic substance misuse complicated by traumatic events. Prior to practicing psychotherapy, I gained experience as a massage therapist in end-of-life care, the wellness field, and at an innovative multidisciplinary clinic in which teams of chiropractors, acupuncturists, psychologists, medical doctors, and massage therapists collaborated on individual cases.

Currently, while I like to help folks address specific, targeted problems and goals, I also like to take a look at their personalities, life trajectories, and how they relate to others as a whole. Early formative experiences can significantly impact your personality, character, and sense of self—as do choices you make throughout your life and the work you put into yourself here and now. Psychotherapy is not only effective for addressing symptoms and “dark nights of the soul.” It has a lot to say about human potential, meaning, purpose, and general life satisfaction. In addition, I am the director of the Intrepid Therapy Collective, where I am honored to support a community of downright stellar therapists in bettering their clinical services.

 
Education & Credentials

Licensed Mental Health Counselor # LH61229219 (Washington state)

Registered Clinical Counsellor # 17465 (British Columbia)

Licensed Professional Counselor # C6795 (Oregon)

Licensed Marriage and Family Therapy Associate # MG61056592 (Washington state)

PhD Candidate and Adjunct Faculty in Integral and Transpersonal Psychology

California Institute of Integral Studies, San Francisco, CA

Coursework completed along with elective seminars in Anthropology and Philosophy departments.

Areas of specialization: Psychotherapy education, psychotherapy integration, and exceptional adult psychological development.

My current research focuses on how to best customize methods of professional development for individual therapists. It addresses a host of problems with traditional approaches to improving therapists’ effectiveness, such as supervision, graduate school, and continued education workshops focused on acquiring competency in particular modalities.

MA in Counseling

Southwestern College, Santa Fe, NM

Areas of specialization: Bridging cognitive-behavioral, psychodynamic, contemplative, and systemic approaches to therapy; interpersonal neurobiology;  complex developmental trauma; personality disorders; and somatic therapies. 

BSc with distinction in Geography

University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN

Minors: Sociology and Studies in Cinema and Media Culture.

Core curriculum in geographic information science and select graduate coursework in philosophy. 

Areas of specialization: Affective turns in the social sciences, critical education, world cinema, social movements, refugee diasporas, political economy.

AAS in Health Sciences

Northwestern Health Sciences University, Bloomington, MN

Certificate in Massage Therapy, Certificate in Neuromuscular Therapy and Myofascial Release.

Areas of specialization: rehabilitative/medical massage, energy medicine, history and cross-cultural traditions of bodywork.

Select trainings

Selection of additional trainings

  • Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy: Immersion and Level 1 and 2

  • Acceptance and Commitment Therapy: multiple intensive and advanced courses

  • ADHD Professional (ADHD-CCSP) Intensive Training Course: Evidence-Based Strategies for Managing ADHD Across the Lifespan

  • Ayurvedic Life-Style Consultant Certificate, American Institute of Vedic Studies (David Frawley)

  • Brainspotting: basic training

  • CBT: multiple intensives and advanced trainings

  • Clinical Anxiety Treatment Professional (CCATP) Training Course: Applied Neuroscience for Treating Anxiety, Panic, and Worry

  • Compassionate Inquiry with Gabor Mate

  • Dialectical Behavior Therapy Professional (CDBT) Training: 8 ­Week Intensive

  • Engaging Adolescent Sexual Assault Survivors in Treatment Promoting Sexual Health and Well-Being, The New Mexico Coalition of Sexual Assault Programs Inc.

  • EMDR: basic and advanced trainings

  • Emotionally Focused Therapy: Multiple basic and advanced courses with Sue Johnson for EFT with couples and individuals.

  • Food and Mood: A Therapist’s Guide to The Role of Nutrition in Mental Health

  • Gender Equity and Reconciliation International: Professional Immersion and Facilitator Trainings

  • Gottman Couples Therapy: Level 1 and 2, Treating Affairs and Trauma, Couples and Addiction Recovery

  • Guilt, Shame & The Trauma Survivor: Integrated Modalities to Move Therapy Forward

  • Integrative Psychopharmacology: The Future of Medications, Nutrition and Genetics

  • Intensive Short Term Dynamic Psychotherapy: Multiple immersions with Allan Abbass

  • Internal Family Systems: comprehensive training

  • Lifespan Integration Level 1

  • Mindfulness-based Emotional Processing: Activating and Supporting Felt-Sense Awareness of the Body’s Affective Experiencing

  • Motivational Interviewing: Engaging People in a Meaningful Change Process

  • Personality Disorders Certification Training: Advanced Diagnosis, Treatment & Management 

  • Polyvagal Theory in Trauma Treatment with Stephen Porges & Deb Dana: Integrating the Science of Safety, Trust, Self-Regulation and Attachment 

  • Psychobiological Approach to Couples Therapy (PACT): Level 1 and Level 2

  • Radically Open Dialectical Behavior Therapy (RO-DBT): Level 1

  • Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy: mutliple workshops

  • Schema Therapy: basic training with Wendy Behary

  • Sensorimotor Psychotherapy workshop with Pat Ogden

  • Solution Focused Brief Therapy: mutliple trainings with Elliot Connie along with conference workshops.

  • The Prevention and Relationship Education Program (PREP) Approach to Couples Therapy: Prep 8.0 facilitator training and PREP Couples Therapy training

  • Windz Institute: 5-day Brief & Narrative Therapy Certificate Program

  • Yoga Teacher Certificate,Prajna Yoga (Tias and Surya Little)