I’m Kasha (pronounced KAH-shuh).
I use she/her pronouns.

My Personal Path of Healing

I’ve been on a personal path of growth and healing for over twenty-five years. As a young adult exploring women’s studies and sociology, I learned to recognize the ways harm causes suffering in families, communities, and culture at large. I made connections to my own childhood struggles and confusion with peer relationships, bullying, self-worth, and sexuality.

I decided I wanted to make a difference for youth as an extension of my own healing. My professional path began with a career in education.

Teaching & Living in San Francisco

I left Oregon to teach and explore in San Francisco, and I fell in love with the city’s art, music, cultures, and surrounding redwood trees. I taught middle and high school students in public schools for a decade.

In my English classes, I emphasized self-awareness, social justice, bullying prevention, and community building. I inspired my students to see multiple perspectives and be kind to one another. I advocated for LGBTQ+ youth and staff in my role as the Gay Straight Alliance (GSA) club advisor.

Balance & Boundaries

Early in my teaching years, I began meditating with a Buddhist insight-oriented meditation group. This practice supported my desires for spiritual engagement and community, and cultivated my personal resilience.

Despite my value for self-care, I found it challenging to maintain balance in my life as a teacher. In 2011, my marriage ended in divorce, and it became clear I needed to heal old relationship patterns and shift my career focus.

I began seeing a somatic (body-based) and transpersonal counselor who helped me tune in to my body’s wisdom, clarify my boundaries, and strengthen my sense of self.

As I mended my heart, I felt drawn professionally to a Social-Emotional Learning program for youth, with its focus on mental health and holistic life skills.

Wellness Workshops & Playshops

I began teaching community leaders and teachers throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. My years as an educator gave me a deep understanding of the impact of compassion fatigue on those in helping and teaching roles. I led trainings to groups of up to 150 adults on emotional intelligence, mindfulness, Nonviolent Communication (NVC), conflict resolution, and educator self-care. Public speaking in this manner was an accomplishment for this introvert!

This experience supported my passions for mental health and wellness, and I deepened my learning by participating in courses on counseling, life coaching, peace work, and trauma stewardship.

My love of dance and community celebrations brought me to West Coast music festivals, and I developed and offered “playshops” on connection, belonging, and embodiment to fellow festival attendees.

Coming Home

In 2014, I returned to my home of Portland, Oregon to be near my family and the beauty of the Pacific Northwest. This move has allowed me to redefine relationships, reconnect, and deepen with my family of origin.

A Commitment to Care

It became clear in 2017 that I wanted to support other people’s healing in a more direct and consistent manner - so I decided to pursue a career in professional counseling.

I maintain personal commitments to growth and restorative self-care and aim to support clients in these areas as well. I find nourishment and inspiration through community, the natural world, and the subtle energy arts of qi gong, reiki, yoga, breathwork, meditation, song, and dance.

I am deeply honored to be a counselor and to support my clients in finding balance and healing.

See my Approach page to learn how my journey informs how we will work together, or get in touch.

Education & Licenses

Education

M.A., Counseling Psychology, Pacifica Graduate Institute, emphasis in marriage, family, and individual therapy; professional clinical counseling; and depth psychology

M.Ed., Secondary Education, Portland State University, emphasis in grades 6-12, Language Arts, culture, and ecology

B.A., English Literature, University of Oregon, Women’s Studies & Philosophy minors

Licenses

Professional Counselor Associate #R6877, Oregon
Oregon Board of Licensed Professional Counselors and Therapists

Mental Health Counselor Associate #MC61170951, Washington
Washington State Department of Health

Supervised by Anne-Marie Benjamin, LPC #C2000, Certified Hakomi Therapist

Professional Organizations

Oregon Counseling Association, member since 2020

Oregon SAIGE Association (mental health professionals serving LGBTQ+ Sexual, Affectional, Intersex, and Gender Expansive communities), member since 2020