Kensington Art Therapy provides primary and adjunctive mental health services. Bridget works with clients and fellow providers to coordinate care.

Some clients come for long-term individual therapy services while others see Bridget short-term or as needed for expressive arts therapy sessions, trauma work, or a combination of the two. For clients who already have a primary therapist, Bridget provides specialized care to address a treatment goal that requires somatic, experiential, and non-verbal modalities.

These approaches can provide reparative developmental experiences and support memory reconsolidation to transform how individuals organize and relate to past experiences in the present. These address symptoms related to brain stem based survival instincts and limbic system based emotional regulation and functioning.

Kensington Art Therapy offers Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, a somatic (body-based) talk therapy that tends to the unique needs of clients who have experienced trauma by engaging the innate wisdom of the body and nervous system.

Bridget is trained in Level I for the treatment of trauma and Level II for the treatment of adverse childhood experiences, developmental injuries including attachment disruption, and relational trauma. This modality blends cognitive and emotional verbal approaches with physical interventions and mindfulness to address the implicit memories and neurobiological effects of trauma.

The process is phase oriented and prioritizes safety and stabilization throughout. Sensorimotor Psychotherapy was created by world-renowned expert Dr. Pat Ogden. Incorporating physically held memories and ways of knowing into the therapeutic process facilitates growth grounded in present moment experiences to restore balance from the inside out.

Art Therapy is an integrative, creative, and sensory modality that uses a variety of expressive interventions to facilitate exploring emotions, identity, processing experiences, and tending to both implicit and explicit memories.

Research has shown Art Therapy can reduce trauma symptoms, relieve stress, and reduce depression.

No skills are required and Art Therapy is for all ages. The focus is on the process of authentic expression not the skill level or end product. Materials used include drawing (pastels, crayons, pencils, markers), painting (acrylic and watercolor), collage, mix media, and clay. Interventions include prompts related to goals and session themes to promote insight. Writing is often integrated into this process as well.

Art making can involved structured prompts and opportunities for exploring and discovering what emerges on its own. The level of structure is determined by the client’s preferences and needs.