Welcome to Pacific Sky Counseling & Coaching
I'm Kathryn Snell-Ryan, and my practice is committed to helping you map life goals, work through destructive patterns of living, strengthen the depth and health of your relationships, and develop a clear plan for change - emotional, relational, professional, physical, creative... We dig in where you need it most.
counseling vs coaching
The foundation of counseling and life-coaching share the same crucial qualities: self-discovery, goal setting, and getting down to the work of change. The primary difference between the two is this: therapy typically involves reaching back historically to past events, traumas, and relationships to make sense of the present, and life-coaching takes a person's current starting point in life and moves forward from there as action-plans are developed and implemented.
What's right for you
It boils down to where you are and what you need, right now. In my 17 years as a therapist, my primary focus has been working with adults and adolescents who struggle with depression, anxiety, or generally feeling "stuck". In my private counseling practice, we do the emotional heavy-lifting: digging into current family dynamics, trauma, past childhood experiences, unhealthy patterns of living. My approach is closely aligned with current research on brain functioning and best-practice treatment, and I'm committed to helping clients explore what feels fractured in life, find or re-connect with what feels "right", and make meaningful changes that allow forward movement.
In my coaching practice, I'm able to reach out and work with people all over, helping clients create the map for big-picture dreams and desires while identifying what's holding them back. Some people require more structure, some seek more in-depth guidance, and others simply need greater accountability as steps towards change are taken.
Who I am
I'm Kathryn Snell-Ryan, a Licensed Professional Counselor, nationally registered Art Therapist, mother of two, ceramic artist, traveler, and sincere encourager of living well. I've been a therapist for 17 years - from Chicago where I earned my graduate degree, back home to the Southern US for several years, and finally now rooted in Oregon since 2009.
My commitment to helping people find or re-discover their sense of joy, balance, and self-worth runs deep. As a busy parent, business owner, and creative thinker, I am keenly aware of just how challenging it is to stay present in our lives, stay connected to those and what we love most, and to feel organized and in control of our days/weeks/months. The pace at which we're expected to live, work, and parent can often feel like an absolute set-up for failure. And in many ways, IT IS. Identifying our core values and true priorities helps lead the way back to a saner, more present lifestyle. So we begin there. I look forward to hearing your story.
