Melinda Fay

Melinda Fay is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist with a specialization in Art Therapy. I received my MA in Psychology from Phillips Graduate Institute in 2002. A lifelong love of art, nature, and travel imbue my practice. I enjoy working with individuals, teens willing to be in therapy, and couples who are both motivated for treatment. My focus is on issues related to identity, changing roles, and life transition. I address the thinking and behavior patterns that are out of sync with the client's identified core values and together we aim to transform them. My passion lies in the collaboration and co-creation of preferred stories. I work from a strengths-based model which views the client as the expert. I use mindfulness, CBT, and art therapy tools as a way of externalizing the "problem". Utilizing tenets from narrative-based practice I aim to identify and challenge the systems that influence our perception of self and how we use language to tell our stories. I approach each person with curiosity and begin each day with fresh eyes. I enjoy working with older teens (who choose to be in treatment), and younger and older adults grappling with life transition and their changing roles across the lifespan. I feel like I have been most useful to clients who are open-minded and want a directive approach to therapy. I enjoy working with women/men in midlife and those juggling multiple caretaking roles. I love working with aspiring creatives and entrepreneurs. I am warm and curious with a sense of humor. My tone is direct but nonjudgmental.
I Iisten well for nuances in people's stories. I believe in authenticity and transparency between therapist and client. I work hard to create a safe
environment where people can grow and heal and gain insight into the patterns/behaviors that keep them stuck. I have always loved people and their stories. After becoming licensed and working in myriad settings over a decade, I took a break to start my family and explore the role of motherhood. This led to a yearning to follow my passion for art and design. My business grew out of the idea that art, much like people, fails to thrive and live up to its potential when marginalized and labeled. I believe disconnection from nature and the creative self contribute to many modern-day illnesses. Utilizing the restorative powers of nature and art to heal and transform, I began offering mindful walk-and-talk sessions to my clients with an emphasis on coaching artists and other entrepreneurial spirits.
Goal setting is done at the outset of treatment and is a collaborative process. Over the first few sessions, a treatment plan with achievable goals will be determined with the client. Those goals will be periodically reviewed and revised as needed.
Clients can expect questions regarding the issues that brought them into treatment. A brief history taking will inform those questions as well as what has worked, what has not, and what has yet to be tried. Homework in the form of jouranling prompts /readings may be assigned for in-between session learning/insight.