Family therapy and counseling in Englewood, CO

25+ years of experience with individual, couples and families supporting them through all life stages and challenges. including neurodiversity in children and adults, blended and separating families, anxiety, depression, and grief and loss.

Hi, I’m Raquel Perez, a Licensed Professional Counselor, and I believe healing begins with feeling truly seen and safe. I specialize in working with individuals and couples navigating depression, anxiety, relationship challenges, and sex therapy, always honoring the deeper wisdom within each person. It’s a sacred privilege to hold space for your journey — wherever you are, you don’t have to walk it alone.

Life is hard, but finding the right therapist shouldn't be! In my practice, I strive to make strong, authentic connections with the people I see to support you in your healing and growth. I take a person-centered and relationship-based approach, utilizing action- and insight-based interventions (and a little bit of humor) to help you better understand yourself and life, and take steps towards peace, safety, and happiness. I am a good fit for those looking for empathetic support, to build insight, and to grow and become the best version of themselves.

I help highly sensitive persons navigate the stressors and challenges in the world to find their authentic self and a life worth embracing. Do you think deeply about the world, yourself, and those around you? Do you experience a profound sense of empathy, feeling more deeply than most people around you? Do you find challenges in communicating your inner most thoughts and feelings with others? Do feel lost and want to find a way to get back on track? I am here to guide you on your journey.

I’m Valerie, a therapist based in Denver, CO. I work with children (ages 4+), teens, and adults navigating anxiety, ADHD, trauma, life transitions, and identity exploration. I earned my Master’s in Social Work in 2023 and have experience in both agency and private practice settings.

I also live with ADHD myself, which means I don’t just talk theory—I understand firsthand the challenges of focus, overwhelm, and motivation. Clients tell me that makes me feel more real and relatable, and I feel that is an important part of the therapeutic alliance.

I have experience working with clients across the life-span on a number of issues including life transitions, anxiety, depression, LGBTQ+ concerns, etc. I specialize in grief/loss and suicidality as these are topics that I feel often get pushed to the side. I especially enjoy working with teens and folks in the LGBTQ+ community.

Although my degree is in Mental Health Counseling, my treatment method is psychoanalysis. This means that each treatment is developed and conducted for the client in question, their specific issues and inquiries they have about their own symptom.

Psychoanalysis emphasizes on guiding individuals in finding their own resources, gaining a knowledge about what is happing to them and the cause of their distress.

I’m a psychiatric nurse practitioner who works from the belief that people are not broken—and that many of the struggles we call “mental illness” make sense when we look at trauma, context, and lived experience. I’m especially attuned to the ways mental health systems, stigma, and labels can unintentionally cause harm, and I aim to practice in a way that feels respectful, collaborative, and deeply human.

My approach is unconventional and trauma-informed, influenced by perspectives like those of Gabor Maté, which emphasize compassion, curiosity, and understanding symptoms as meaningful responses rather than defects. I do not believe in rushing to pathologize the human experience. As Joni Mitchell once reflected about depression, sometimes what we’re feeling is not an illness to be fixed, but a signal—an honest response to pain, loss, or a world that has not been kind.

I am a licensed therapist based in Golden, CO. I offer in person visits at my office in downtown Golden, which is a convenient distance from Wheat Ridge, Arvada, Edgewater, Westminster, and Denver’s Westside. I also offer remote sessions online. As a Licensed Professional Counselor and Licensed Addictions Counselor.

Prior to earning my BS in Psychology followed by a Master’s Degree in Counseling from the University of Colorado Denver in 2010, I graduated from CU Boulder in 1994 where I received my BA in English Literature. I look forward to assisting you with your counseling needs.

I hope to provide a space for client's to feel comfortable while attending therapy. I try my best to create a warm and welcoming environment.