Nic Sutherland (she/they)

Accepting Clients

I offer discernment and pre-marital counseling, conscious uncoupling support, and more for clients experiencing relationship transitions.

Associate Marriage & Family Therapist in Portland, OR
Supervised by Paula Emerick, LMFT

About My Clients

My clients are individuals, couples, and families going through intense relationship change; breaking up, getting married, starting a family, blending families, moving in together, experiencing infertility, grieving a death or loss, separating, divorcing, and more. I can support couples in staying together or separating with care, teenagers in adjusting to their parents' divorce, individuals in grieving the end of a relationship, and families in growing (and more).

My Background and Approach

No matter what difficulty or un-expected turn in your life and relationships has brought you to therapy, my goal is to build an authentic, trusting relationship that facilitates connection to yourself and others, owning your capacity for choice in the face of limiting circumstances, and finding meaning. I believe the deepest heartbreaks in our lives open us up to the deepest connections and sense of being human. I utilize emotionally-focused therapy to foster secure attachment, vulnerability, and understanding. With an existential-humanistic lens, I work experientially to face with is true for you, and to support you in making meaningful, authentic choices in the face of uncertainty. I draw on Internal Family Systems in order to access the parts of yourself who have been hurt and made to protect, creating cohesion and self-trust.

My Personal Beliefs and Interests

My choice to become a therapist is a result of my early life experiences. I am a child of divorce, raised in a high-conflict, multicultural, and blended family. In the homes I grew up in, the hurts left behind from divorce left open wounds, that made new wounds for the next generation. I learned firsthand how systemic factors like class, race, gender, culture, etc, are intertwined with our relationships, creating conflict, disconnection, and hurting the most vulnerable. I see the end of relationships (whether through death, divorce, or any other means) as inevitable, normal, and highly impactful, and in my practice I work to minimize the harm caused by such loss as much as possible; maybe even transforming it into deeper authenticity, connection, and a sense of being human.

Insurance Plans Accepted
  • Trillium Community Health Plan
I offer online counseling in the following states:

At A Glance

  • Experience: 4 years of practice
  • Languages: English
  • Rate: $100 - 210/session

Info

Email Nic
917 SW Oak St
417
Portland, OR 97205

Reach out to Nic