Sarah Barkley LCSW
Intentional Womaning
My Philosophy
As a therapist—and perhaps even more importantly, as a woman who has poured blood, sweat, and tears—and continues to do so—in becoming the woman I'm proud to be, I am devoted to my life's work: helping women of all ages discover, rediscover, redefine, and confidently embrace who they are and what they deserve as a human.
I believe our future and that of those we care about is shaped by the gritty work we choose to do to become our version of an Intentional Woman. We only have this time, no do-overs. The question is...what do you want to heal and create with the time you have left in this precious body and with your precious people?
After 20 years in private practice working with women in a clinical and coaching capacity, I am more and more convinced that the ripple effect of goodness that enters the world through an upright, embodied, emboldened (even if scared out of her wits) intentional woman is beyond comprehension.
​I am committed to taking my 1000s of data points of what ultimately works, gleaned from the 1000s of women who have come before you, to ensure that the moment you enter my office or Zoom screen you are moving on your path with grace, integrity, solidity and as a result, less doubt.
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Individual Therapy
Social workers, of which I am proudly one, tend not to see "the person alone as the problem", but look at the whole system surrounding the client and how we can strategically alter certain aspects of the environment to encourage growth. I believe there is always untapped opportunity should my clients choose to take it, you just may need a fresh set of highly trained ears on it along side you.
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Individual therapy is taking a peek in the crevices, in the spaces between our ribs to see what's been sitting there. We have the luxury to see which apps are constantly running in the back of our brains, draining our batteries and close them, integrating what we learned along the way.
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​I treat women just starting their journey of who they are as young women to those well into their elder years, looking back at where they've come from and how they want to spend their future years.​
Path Forward Coaching
Coaching is about this moment forward. While we don't ignore the past, we relate to it differently. Rather than zooming in to deeply understand and process it—as we often do in traditional therapy—we zoom out, acknowledge it, and consider how it informs where you want to go next.
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When you've arrived at a place in your life where you have clear goals and are ready to take action, coaching can be a powerful option. It is focused, directive, measurable, and designed to help you hit the ground running.
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Self-doubt fuels so much of what nags at us. One concept I frequently introduce to clients is that of a Plumb Line—identifying the values, principles, and non-negotiables that serve as their internal compass. Once we can clearly articulate those, we begin to feel more embodied and emboldened in our decisions, experiencing far less second-guessing and much greater alignment with ourselves.
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Living from a well-defined Plumb Line doesn't guarantee certainty, but it does allow us to move through life with greater confidence, clarity, and peace because we're constantly choosing.
Historic Wounds & EMDR Treatment
I fundamentally believe we are created from our experiences and the good ones often shake us up just as the bad ones do. Looking through this lens creates a clear framework for proceeding.
"Trauma" can often feel like an intimidating word. However, I define trauma as anything that changes the way we see ourselves as people or how we see the world around us. Traumas can be large or small, overt actions or messages, or subtly compounding events over years. We often discount smaller traumas or negative messages we were told about ourselves, but they impact our day to day approaches and reactions to daily life.
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When our inside reality does not match our inside feelings, there is a good chance it's trauma.
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EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) is a treatment modality that enables us to heal from the symptoms of troubling or traumatic life experiences.
3 Foundations of My Practice
"As a licensed clinical psychologist, I give Sarah Barkley my strongest endorsement! I have referred many clients to her over the years and always hear excellent feedback. Sarah counsels in a relaxed atmosphere yet her extensive experience shines through, guiding clients to tap into their own insight. You’re lucky if you get on Sarah‘s schedule!"
L. T. PhD