Part insight, part humor, all heart.
Looking for therapy that does not feel like a chore, from a therapist who feels like a human being and has actually sat on the hard side of the couch? Hi. I'm Katie, owner and founder of Connected Roots Counseling.
I am a trauma-sensitive, neurodivergent therapist committed to a genuinely judgment-free space. I wholeheartedly welcome and affirm people of all neurotypes, genders, sexualities, races, religions, abilities, and sizes, and the whole beautiful in-between. I work with kids (8 and up), teens, adults, young adults, parents, couples, and families across Ohio by telehealth. I also support friends and unrelated people working through conflict, and organizations navigating conflict or change.
I have a particular soft spot for queer folx, neurodivergent and mixed-neurotype couples, eldest daughters, perfectionists, the traumatized but funny, and anyone who has been sized up instead of cared for in an exam room.
As a neurodivergent therapist myself, late-diagnosed and late-self-identifying folks are my bread and butter. High-masking, high-performing people and perfectionists who quietly run on empty: I see you, and you never have to mask or translate yourself to be taken seriously here.
Before I was a counselor, I spent 7 years as a teacher. I know what schools ask of kids, what kids hide from adults, and what parents carry home from both. I also bring professional training in religious trauma, and a soft spot for intellectualizers: the cripplingly self-aware people who can analyze their feelings brilliantly and still cannot feel their way out of them.
Our work together is collaborative, feminist, and grounded in the fact that not every problem began inside you. We can name the effects of patriarchy, racism, capitalism, ableism, anti-fat bias, and other systems without reducing you to them. My job is not to fix you, because you are not broken. It is to help you build a life rooted in your own values, and to be honest with you the whole way there.
How I work (modalities)
- Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
- Attachment-based
- Coherence Therapy
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
- Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) skills
- Internal Family Systems informed
- Gottman Method couples work
- Family systems and structural family therapy
- Mindfulness-based approaches
- Person-centered
- Somatic and experiential work
- Strength-based
- Trauma-focused
- Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP)
- Art- and music-based activities
- Play therapy-informed
- Sand tray-informed
- Games, video games, and geek therapy
What I work with
- ADHD and executive functioning
- Autism and neurodivergence
- Anxiety
- Depression and mood
- Religious trauma and spirituality
- Complex trauma, neglect, and PTSD
- Chronic stress and trauma-related concerns
- OCD, including mental compulsions and scrupulosity
- Self-esteem
- School and educational challenges
- Learning differences
- Family conflict
- Parenting
- Relationships and interpersonal dynamics
- Relationship and marital stress
- LGBTQ+ affirming care
- Neurodivergent couples
- Women's issues
- PMDD
- Supporting people living with PCOS/PMOS
- Friendship and small-group conflict
- Organizational conflict and change
- Supportive parenting for neurodivergent kids
- Weight stigma and body image
- Teachers and helping professionals
- High masking and high performance
- Coping skills
Creative work, real-life practice
I am a classically trained musician and a very creative therapist. I make activities, worksheets, interventions, and resources for my clients. Art, music, games, and expressive work can help us practice a concept or find words that are hard to reach by just sitting and talking. I especially love this with kids and teens, and it is welcome with willing adults too.
Relationships, communication, and finding a way through conflict are strengths of mine. That can mean a couple, a family, friends, or an organization working through change. We get curious about the pattern and practice something different, rather than looking for someone to blame.
I also almost always create a digital journal with clients to keep therapy progress and resources together. We discuss privacy as part of your care; journals are not created or stored on this website. The longer version of how we can work together is on the Services page.
Curious whether we would click? My favorite people to sit with, and who might fit better elsewhere, live on their own page.
What I stand for
Some of this shapes how I practice. Some of it just shapes me. I would rather you know it up front, in case it matters to how you choose a therapist.
Access
Mental health care should be reachable for everyone. Advocacy is part of the work, not an extra.
People of color
Racism is a health issue. You deserve care that sees your whole context, and therapists who keep learning instead of expecting you to educate them.
Neurodivergence
Different wiring is not a defect to fix. I am neurodivergent myself, and I will never ask you to mask, perform, or translate yourself to be taken seriously. Late-diagnosed, high-masking, and high-performing folks are my people, whether your answer arrived at 8 or 48.
Chronic illness and pain
Living in a body that needs managing is exhausting, and medical gaslighting makes it lonelier. Your fatigue is real, and you do not have to earn care.
LGBTQIA+
Affirmation, not tolerance. Queer and trans joy is real, chosen family counts, and you will never have to explain or defend who you are in my room.
Feminist therapy
Your voice deserves to be taken seriously the first time. We can work on what is yours without pretending patriarchy, racism, and gender expectations did not help create the weight you carry.
Kids and teens
Kids get the least say in their own lives and are deeply misunderstood by the adults around them. Neurodivergent kids deserve curiosity before compliance, support before punishment, and adults willing to ask what a behavior is communicating.
Real crisis care
Suicidal thoughts and self-harm deserve actual care, not just a grippy sock vacation.
Body liberation
Weight bias and fatphobia are real harms, not a motivation problem. Your body is not a before picture.
Healing from harmful faith
Faith can sometimes hurt more than it helps, and healing from that is some of my favorite, challenging, beautiful work.
Community care
Mutual aid matters. Nobody heals in isolation, and economic fairness is a health issue. I do not believe every problem can be solved with better self-care while systems keep grinding people down.
Disability justice
Ableism teaches people to measure worth through productivity and independence. Rest, access, interdependence, and the support you need are not moral failures.
Straight talk
Clear, honest communication beats riddle talk and hidden agendas. I will always just tell you what I mean.
Not sure if I am the right fit? That is exactly what the free consult is for.
Fifteen minutes, no pressure, no paperwork. You ask questions, I answer honestly, and if I am not the right therapist for you I will help you find someone who is.