Mary Thomason, Counseling Intern

Hello, I am Mary Sarah Thomason, a counseling intern with a specialization in art therapy from Pennsylvania Western University. I take a holistic approach to counseling, honoring each unique person’s journey by working from a number of perspectives, including person-centered, DBT, Gestalt, mindfulness, transpersonal, and narrative therapies. I believe the space between us is sacred, and that it is a safe container and a relationship of witness that allows for deep healing to take place.

I acknowledge that we are all raised within systems and cultures—from family to global—and that these systems influence how we have developed and how we experience the world around us, and ourselves in the world. I am not here to fix, because you are not broken. I am here to mirror back to you the beauty and intrinsic value you have as a person. I believe in the innate wisdom of your body and look at emotions and sensations as messengers—not problems to be fixed, but experiences to be honored.

I specialize in working with women living with anxiety, depression, and borderline personality disorder, as well as women who have experienced trauma, domestic violence, sexual assault, pregnancy and child loss, and systemic trauma from navigating “mental illness” through the medical, school, and court systems. My personal experiences, work in community, and studies have made this work particularly important to me.

I am Mary Sarah

A woman

Born of blood, of bone,

Of fire, water and breath

Through the depths of darkness

I have declared to the world

I am worthy to be here

I am worthy of life, of breath,

of presence, of joy, of love

And I am enough to receive it,

A big woven basket

holding all that life has to give

I am smart enough to be heard

good enough to take up space

Important enough to be seen

Creative enough to be an artist

I lived the labels

Mentally ill

Victim

Less than and not of value to the machine,

to the consumption of souls

I reclaim my name in sparkling gold

I am Mary Sarah

Mother, sister, daughter, friend,

Counselor, art therapist, person,

Forever student of life and love

Digging out my meaning

from the scraps in the compost pile

Piecing together the lens through which I view life

Stories, systems, and skills

Mindful moments and meaning making

Unconditional positive regards for all of it,

The sticky bits in-between

Not knowing is full of juicy lessons

We are all people

Wounded and beautiful

Decomposing and blossoming

Dying and reborn again

All in a breath

The stroke of brush or pen

Catches a glimpse of the ever elusive now

A mirror, a reflection of life being lived

Capturing the flow of it on canvas