Travis Fortenberry

I am a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, and I practice in California. I have been fascinated with depth-oriented therapy, narrative therapy, Eastern philosophy, and humanistic/existential therapy techniques as tools to connect with my clients in my practice. During my journey as a therapist, I have received multiple trainings in mindfulness, dreamwork, sandplay therapy, and other holistic/alternative ways to help my clients. I have had many rich experiences in my practicum and internship that allowed me to work with different age and cultural groups about various problems they were facing. I currently work with adult clients only. Many of my clients suffer some form of grief or spiritual and/or artistic crisis that is manifested in their dreams and maladies in their waking lives. My ideal client will work with me to devote the majority of our time together focusing on concepts from the Tao the Ching and Jungian psychology, will practice mindfulness meditation exercises in session and at home, and be open to processing and augmenting their dreams, reflecting on the dream world with an open and curious mind without having the goal of reaching a final interpretation of the dream. Some knowledge of Depth psychology can be helpful, but is not required.

My theoretical background is rooted in many concepts from Eastern philosophy, Carl Jung and Carl Rogers, Thomas Moore, and James Hillman. I focus on clients' dreams and narratives in session and use many of Thomas Moore's and James Hillman's theoretical frameworks for helping my clients. I may redirect clients at times, in order to avoid falling into familiar traps of the ego or getting caught in a cycle of "venting" difficult feelings related to conflict-riddled stories, and refocus our discussion to a topic about a dream, a poem, or a new story that is filled with hope and curiosity. Overall, I give the aura of being neutral and serene, which is my overall goal and focus as a practitioner of the sacred art of counseling.

During our first intake session, after a consultation, we will focus on personal and health information and I will have a short time to practice a mindfulness meditation exercise at the end of our session. After that first session we delve into who you are and how your soul is expressing itself. I create a relaxing and friendly environment during our sessions. I want clients to feel emotionally and intellectually engaged in our sessions without feeling anxious about doing the correct or most productive thing. I also like using creativity, spontaneity, and counterintuitive approaches during sessions in an attempt to offer an alternative perspective on a situation and experience communication in a unique way. I will also ask you to purchase Soul Therapy by Thomas Moore, and the Tao the Ching (Stephen Mitchell translation)