Heather Thiel

So Glad You Are Here!

Hello! My name is Heather Thiel. I am a Licensed Clinical Social Worker. I love working with both individuals and couples! I am dedicated to helping clients to heal from trauma, depression, anxiety, grief and loss, and relationship challenges.

I firmly believe that everyone deserves to be comfortable in their mind, body, and relationships. At the same time, I know how easy it can be to get knocked out of life's driver's seat by depression, anxiety, trauma, self-doubt or interpersonal misunderstandings. For this reason my studies and work focus on modalities that target depression, anxiety, PTSD, grief and loss, low self-esteem, and communication difficulties.

In my studies at UT Austin's Master's of Science of Social Work program, I focused on working in a trauma-informed manner and with an eye to the mind-body connection. This means, in my work I strive to help clients not just know something more or different about themselves, but to feel it too!

First and foremost, I believe in the importance of creating a therapeutic relationship that allows clients to feel truly safe, accepted, and cared for. I want your truest self to feel free to come forward!

I very much enjoy assisting clients in getting in touch with the emotions, beliefs, needs, hopes and dreams that they carry. It’s all about building a heightened understanding of who you are, how you got to be this person, and who you want to be in the future -- on your own and in relation to others. Then, we just need to find the patterns of thought, feeling, and/or behavior that get in the way! I’m a big believer in giving people concrete tools that they can try out between sessions to make their life more manageable and ultimately more enjoyable.

In my couples work I use EFT (Emotion Focused Therapy) and the Gottman Method to help couples identify and change behavioral patterns causing disconnection and/or hurt.

Partners learn to express their deepest feelings, make successful bids for connection, and communicate without falling into criticism, character assassination, defensiveness, or stonewalling.

My clients typically say that they feel a sense of relief and of being understood after one session. Many also note that they feel clearer about what their issues are and how therapy will address them.

Over time, clients can expect to take away heightened self-awareness and self-compassion, a deeper understanding of the roots of the patterns that shape their lives, specific strategies and approaches for dealing with their particular life challenges . . . and eventually a felt sense of the changes within.