Savannah Chavez

When you or your child are struggling with overwhelming emotions, anxiety, or the effects of difficult experiences, finding someone who understands can feel daunting. You deserve a space where your concerns are taken seriously and your individual needs are respected. I’m Savannah, a Licensed Professional Counselor–Mental Health Service Provider and founder of Caterpillar Counseling. I work with children, teens, and families to build coping skills, strengthen connection, and navigate challenges. I welcome different ways of thinking, communicating, and experiencing the world, and I want you to feel comfortable being yourself.

My style is warm, affirming, and collaborative, with room for humor. My experience includes working with children, teens, and families navigating trauma, anxiety, depression, and difficulties managing emotions. I tailor sessions to each client’s age, strengths, and needs. Using cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), we explore connections between thoughts, feelings, and behaviors and practice skills for everyday challenges. With children, I use play and creative activities to help them express feelings, while involving caregivers to strengthen communication and connection. Trauma-focused work includes building coping skills and processing difficult experiences at a thoughtful pace. When appropriate, we practice body-awareness strategies, plan manageable activities to support mood, or use exposure and response prevention (ERP) to gradually face fears while reducing compulsive responses.

Your first session will be a relaxed, guided conversation where I ask questions and make space for you to share and ask questions of your own. We’ll review confidentiality, discuss what brought you to therapy, and explore your concerns, strengths, and goals. For children, the visit includes caregiver input and age-appropriate conversation or play to help them feel comfortable. You don’t need to prepare a speech or share your whole story right away, and you can let me know when you need a pause or a different way to communicate. We’ll finish by discussing next steps and making an initial plan together.