Therapy in Alpine, Utah · In-Person & Online
I work with teens and adults navigating anxiety, relationship patterns, identity, and the weight of experiences they haven't fully made sense of yet.
About Me
"Sometimes the ways we learned to cope growing up show up later as anxiety, people-pleasing, or overthinking in relationships."
Hi, I'm Casey — a Clinical Social Worker based in Alpine, Utah, working with teens and adults who want to understand themselves more deeply and create real, lasting change.
Many of my clients look capable on the outside, but internally feel stuck in patterns they don't fully understand. They're thoughtful, self-aware people who sense there's something beneath the surface worth exploring — and they're right.
My style is warm, collaborative, and client-focused. I'm not here to hand you a diagnosis or tell you what to do. I'm here to slow down with you, listen carefully, and help you make sense of what's been happening — both inside and in your relationships.
I hold an MSW from Grand Canyon University and have trained in several evidence-based approaches. I also incorporate the Enneagram as an optional tool for self-understanding when it feels like a good fit. I see clients in Alpine and online throughout Utah.
Hover over any approach below to learn what it means.
My Approach
I don't use a one-size-fits-all model. Our work together is shaped by what you're carrying, what you're hoping for, and what actually helps you grow.
Many of the patterns that feel most stuck — anxiety, people-pleasing, emotional reactivity — have roots in early relational experiences. We explore those roots with curiosity, not blame. Everything we do is grounded in an understanding of how trauma shows up in the body and in relationships.
I draw from approaches that research has shown to be effective — including CBT (understanding how thoughts affect feelings), DBT skills (tools for emotional regulation), and NARM (a trauma model focused on identity and relationships). We use what works for you, not a rigid protocol.
You set the pace. I listen first, ask good questions, and tailor our work to your goals. Therapy here is a genuine partnership — you're the expert on your own life, and I'm here to help you understand it more clearly.
Managing symptoms matters, but the work I find most meaningful happens when clients start to understand why a pattern exists — where it came from, what it's been trying to do. That kind of understanding changes things from the inside out.
Change is hard. I bring warmth and humor into our sessions because growth doesn't require suffering — and because you deserve a space that actually feels safe. We won't spend our time criticizing you; we'll spend it understanding you.
For clients who are curious, the Enneagram is a powerful framework for understanding the deeper motivations behind how you think, feel, connect, and protect yourself. Always optional — never used to put you in a box.
Services & Specialties
Whether it's constant overthinking, physical tension, or a sense that you're always bracing for something — we'll work to understand what's driving it and build steadier ground. Anxiety often has a story behind it, and understanding that story is part of how things shift.
Using trauma-informed approaches, we'll gently explore how past experiences are showing up in your present — in your body, your relationships, and your sense of self — and work toward healing at your pace. No forcing, no rushing.
People-pleasing, codependency, conflict avoidance, difficulty trusting — these patterns usually have deep roots. Therapy can help you understand where they came from and begin building relationships that feel safer and more honest.
If you struggle to know who you are outside of what you do for others, or your sense of self feels fragile or unclear, this work can help you reconnect with something more grounded — not a performance, but actually you.
Persistent sadness, low motivation, or feeling disconnected from your own life. We'll work together to understand what's underneath and find a path forward — one that doesn't require you to just "try harder."
I offer a supportive space for preteens and teens who need room to reflect, problem-solve, and make sense of their world — without judgment, and with a lot of genuine care.
Please verify your benefits before your first appointment — I'm happy to help you figure out what to ask.
Enneagram-Informed Therapy
The Enneagram isn't a personality test — it's a map of motivation. It explores not just how you behave, but why: the deeper drives, fears, and longings that shape how you move through the world.
Unlike other personality frameworks, the Enneagram focuses on what's happening underneath the surface — the stories we tell ourselves, the ways we protect our hearts, and the patterns we fall into when we're stressed or scared.
I incorporate the Enneagram as an optional tool in therapy for clients who are curious about it. It can give language to patterns that previously felt confusing, and open up insight into relationship dynamics, emotional habits, and self-protective strategies.
This is never a box to put yourself in. It's an invitation to get curious about yourself — with a little more compassion and a little less self-judgment.
The Enneagram is always offered as an optional lens, not a required framework.
A lens for understanding motivation, not a label
Client Resources
These are resources I return to and recommend regularly — curated for current clients and anyone on a path of self-understanding. If you're in therapy with me, this is a good place to explore between sessions.
Amir Levine & Rachel Heller on attachment styles — why we connect the way we do, and how to build more secure relationships. Especially helpful for anxious attachment patterns.
Daniel Siegel & Tina Payne Bryson on how a parent's consistent presence shapes children's brains and emotional lives. One of the most important parenting books I know of.
Meg Josephson's book for those navigating the relational hypervigilance and emotional patterns that come with complex trauma — feeling like you're always scanning for disapproval.
A practical, science-based guide to understanding and thriving with ADHD. Valuable for adults with ADHD and parents of kids who have recently been diagnosed.
David Brooks on the art of truly seeing and understanding another human being — and what it means to actually be known. For clients who want to build deeper connections.
Dr. Marisa G. Franco uses attachment science to explain how to make and keep deep, lasting friendships — a topic therapy doesn't address nearly enough.
A structured companion for OCD treatment — built around self-compassion rather than self-criticism. Used in session and as a resource between appointments.
View on Amazon →Kimberley Quinlan's podcast is one of my favorites for clients with intrusive thoughts and OCD. This mindfulness episode is one I've shared many times recently.
Listen on Apple Podcasts →A self-care tracking app where you take care of a little virtual bird by completing daily check-ins and personal goals. Surprisingly effective for building self-compassion habits.
An emotion-tracking app that helps you identify, name, and understand your feelings — great for building emotional intelligence and self-awareness between sessions.
For clients managing suicidal ideation — a structured, personalized safety planning app developed by the VA. Simple, private, and clinically grounded.
A daily tracker for sobriety and recovery goals, with milestones and community support. Useful for clients working on addiction or habitual behaviors they want to change.
A VA-developed app for Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia — one of the most effective non-medication approaches for persistent sleep difficulties.
App-blocking and timer tool for your phone — helpful for reducing digital distraction, protecting your attention, and setting healthier boundaries with technology.
An ADHD-friendly time-blocking, scheduling, and visual timer app. Designed to make daily routines more manageable and less overwhelming for ADHD brains.
From Huberman Lab. NSDR is a guided rest protocol (similar to Yoga Nidra) that promotes nervous system recovery without sleep. A powerful midday reset.
Watch on YouTube →A longer version of the Huberman Lab NSDR protocol — excellent for stress recovery, improving sleep quality, and nervous system regulation.
Watch on YouTube →A free meditation app with thousands of guided sessions — including Yoga Nidra for sleep, body scans, and breathwork. Great for beginners and experienced meditators alike.
My current go-to recommendation for learning your type — well-researched, nuanced, and avoids the common oversimplifications. Includes a free test to get started.
Take the free test →The foundational resource for Enneagram education — includes in-depth type descriptions, wings, instinctual variants, and levels of development.
For clients who may benefit from a psychiatric evaluation or medication support alongside therapy. Located in Orem, UT. Able to accept many of the same insurance plans.
A step-by-step skill for sitting with difficult emotions rather than pushing them away:
N — Notice & name the emotion. Just identifying it ("I'm feeling anxious") creates a little distance.
I — Invite it to stay. Instead of fighting it, let it be there. Resistance often amplifies.
C — Curious: Why are you here? What threads are attached? Get gently inquisitive, not judgmental.
E — Embrace the emotion. Bring some compassion to it — it's there for a reason.
R — Return to the present moment using grounding skills (like 5-4-3-2-1 sensory grounding), then continue with your day, schedule, values, or goals.
Temperature · Intense exercise · Paced breathing · Progressive muscle relaxation. A DBT skill for quickly bringing your body out of a high-emotion state by changing your physical experience first — because sometimes the body needs to shift before the mind can follow.
Press your thumb and each finger together one at a time while breathing slowly and intentionally. Each finger directs your breath to a different part of your body:
👆 Pointer finger — breathe into your chest
🖕 Middle finger — breathe into your rib cage
💍 Ring finger — breathe into your belly
🤙 Pinky — breathe into your pelvic floor
A simple, discreet tool you can use anywhere to bring breath — and awareness — into different layers of the body.
Deliberately widening your visual field (panoramic vision) or softening your gaze can shift your nervous system from a stressed, narrow-focus state toward a calmer, more open one. A research-backed tool from neuroscience for regulating arousal without doing anything obvious.
When you're shut down or frozen, the goal isn't to do everything — it's to pick up a hand, or lift a foot, and go slowly from there. Tiny, intentional movement can interrupt a freeze state and begin to bring your system back online gently.
When the to-do list feels crushing, list everything out and sort it into four boxes: Urgent + Important (do now) · Important, not urgent (schedule) · Urgent, not important (delegate) · Neither (let go). Helps separate real priorities from noise.
For moments of pure overwhelm or emotional shutdown — when motivation is gone and nothing sounds worth doing. This structured tool helps you identify small, manageable actions that match your current capacity and gently rebuild momentum. Used in session for depression and shutdown states.
Stop what you're doing · Take a breath · Observe what's happening inside you · Proceed with your values in mind. A brief pause practice for hard conversations and reactive moments — creates space between impulse and action.
A core CBT tool for examining the connection between situations, automatic thoughts, emotions, and behaviors. Helps you notice distorted thinking patterns and gently test whether they're accurate — not to think positively, but to think more clearly.
A DBT interpersonal effectiveness skill for asking for what you need or saying no, while keeping the relationship intact. Describe · Express · Assert · Reinforce · Mindful · Appear confident · Negotiate.
When an emotion is driving you toward a behavior that makes things worse, deliberately doing the opposite can shift the emotion itself. A counterintuitive but powerful DBT skill — especially for shame, fear, and anger.
Learning to see thoughts as thoughts — not facts. Instead of "I am a failure," try "I'm having the thought that I'm a failure." Small shift, big difference. An ACT technique for loosening the grip of difficult self-narratives.
A core NARM practice — turning attention toward what's happening in your body and emotional experience with curiosity rather than urgency. Not every sensation needs to be solved. Sometimes just being witnessed, even by yourself, is what shifts things.
OCD feeds on the need for certainty. ERP involves intentionally tolerating the discomfort of not knowing — and learning through experience that you can handle it without a compulsion. Done gradually, with support, and always with self-compassion.
FAQ
Don't see yours? Reach out — I'm happy to talk.
Get in Touch
Reaching out is often the hardest part. I'll get back to you within one business day, and we can set up a free 15-minute consultation to see if we're a good fit.