Amanda Laukant

I’m a neurospicy human myself which means I understand firsthand that brains don’t always work the way they’re “supposed” to. While your therapy is focused solely on you, I do know what it’s like to overthink, go down research rabbit holes, juggle too many ideas at once, and feel frustrated when advice that works for other people doesn’t seem to work for you.

Because of that, I tend to take a flexible and collaborative approach to therapy. I’m less interested in forcing you into a box and more interested in understanding how your mind works so we can build strategies that actually fit your life.

I have 15 years of experience as a therapist after getting a Masters in Social Work from the University of Denver and am a Licensed Clinical Social worker in Illinois, New York, and Colorado. My work as a therapist has focused on working with individuals on their mental health and substance use recovery. My experience has brought me to work with many life transitions and stressors including: substance use, mental health, relationship issues and betrayal trauma.

Most of the people I work with aren’t looking for someone to simply listen and nod. They’ve spent years trying to understand themselves, reading books, talking with friends, and doing their best to figure things out on their own. Yet they still find themselves stuck in the same patterns, relationships, fears, or self-doubt.

Therapy is a place to slow down and get curious about what’s happening beneath the surface. Together, we’ll explore the experiences, beliefs, and coping strategies that made sense at one point in your life but may no longer be serving you. Sometimes that work looks practical and focused on building new skills. Other times it means processing old wounds, unresolved experiences, or relationship patterns that continue to show up in the present.

A lot of people come into their first therapy session worried they’ll have to tell their entire life story or have everything figured out before they arrive. You don’t.

Our first session is really about getting to know each other. I’ll ask questions about what’s bringing you to therapy, what’s been feeling difficult lately, and what you’re hoping might be different in your life. We’ll talk about your background, relationships, and any relevant history, but there’s no pressure to share more than you’re comfortable sharing.

Just as importantly, the first session is an opportunity for you to get a feel for me and how I work. Finding the right therapist matters, and I encourage clients to pay attention to whether they feel comfortable, understood, and supported.

By the end of our session, my goal is for you to leave with a clearer understanding of where we might focus our work together and a sense of what the therapy process could look like moving forward. You don’t need to have all the answers—we’ll figure things out together.