We are glad you are here!
Connect with us today to begin your journey to healing and wellness!
Your safe place for in person and telehealth sessions. We continue to offer online counseling sessions, in addition to in person sessions, in all of our Kansas City offices.
We are here.
We care.
Welcome to Embark Counseling Services, LLC, a compassionate place for you, your children, your teen, families and couples. At Embark Counseling, our caring counselors provide a warm and supportive outpatient therapy environment that cultivates safety and trust for each client to find the strength within to manage emotions, behaviors, or other challenging life situations. Embark is your safe place for your journey to wellness.
Our goal is to provide high quality, compassionate counseling services to empower and guide families to lasting change from a client-centered, integrative, holistic approach, where hope and healing are the central focus, to foster emotional and behavioral growth and nurture satisfying family interpersonal dynamics.
Empowering Children and Families for Hope and Healing
Our Counselors are trauma competent, and approach outpatient therapy and counseling from an integrative, holistic approach, paying careful attention to each individual’s emotional, physical, mental, spiritual and psychological safety; recognizing that each person experiences situations uniquely different, and building resiliency requires empathy, support and understanding. We approach therapy with evidenced based modalities, including CBT, DBT, EMDR and Play Therapy.
All of our Therapists and Counselors are trained and experienced in providing Online Telehealth Therapy in Missouri and/or Kansas.
Our Play Therapists have specialized training and certification, and may utilize these methods with children, teens, families and couples in their therapy. To learn more on how Play Therapy may help your child, teen or family, click here.
Our Couples, Relationship and Family Therapists approach couples and family therapy with empathy and techniques that are substantially researched (Gottman Method) as a highly effective way for relieving distress among couples, reducing symptoms of anxiety and depression, resolving conflict, restoring lines of communication and re-establishing a secure emotional bond.
Our Counseling Interns provide counseling at an affordable cost, while maintaining the integrity of your experience, and quality of your therapy. Stop by their bios to learn more about their approach and strengths. We currently have interns at our Lenexa, Northland and St. Joseph locations.
Together, we help individuals and families improve overall functioning and growth toward healing, hope, peace and enjoying life together. We look forward to meeting you, and helping you along your journey!
Meet our Caring Professionals
Susan Kirby, MA, PLPC, NCC
Child, Adolescent and Family Therapist, Play Therapy, EMDR Northland OfficeLearn More
Emily Bradford, PLPC
Child & Teen Counselor, Adult Counselor, Northland and Lee’s Summit LocationsLearn More
Samantha Harris, MA, PLPC
Trauma Competent Child, Adolescent and Family Therapist, Play Therapist in Training Lee's Summit OfficeLearn More
Kaitlyn Sampson, MA, PLPC, CPT
Trauma Competent Child, Adolescent and Family Counselor, Play Therapist in Training, Northland Office, Lee's Summit OfficeLearn More
Samantha Trujillo, LMSW
Trauma Competent Child, Adolescent and Family Therapist, Perinatal, Postnatal Anxiety and Depression, TelehealthLearn More
Natalie Grady, MS, LPC, RPT, NCC
Child, Adolescent and Family Therapist, Registered Play Therapist, EMDR, Northland and Lee's Summit LocationsLearn More
Nicolette Rogers, MS, LPC, NCC
Trauma Competent Counselor, EMDR Trained, Integrative Mental Healthcare St. Joseph LocationLearn More
Kasey Ashcraft, MA, LPC, NCC
Trauma Competent Family Systems Counselor, Gottman Trained Couples and Relationship Counselor, Northland OfficeLearn More
Carolyn Grace, LPC
Trauma Competent Child, Adolescent and Family Therapist, Play Therapy, Theraplay, TBRILearn More
Candice Jenkins, MA, PLPC, NCC
Trauma Competent Child, Adolescent and Family Counselor, Play Therapist in Training, Couples and Relationship Counselor, Northland Office, Lee's Summit OfficeLearn More
Chadrick Miller, LMSW
Trauma Competent Family Systems Therapist, DBT Trained, Play Therapy trained, Lenexa Office, Northland OfficeLearn More
Ashley Cross, MA, LPC
Trauma Competent Child, DBT Trained; Play Therapy, Gottman Trained Couples and Relationship Counselor, Northland Office, LGBTQ+ AffirmingLearn More
Lauren Wood, LSCSW, LCSW
Trauma Competent Family Systems Therapist, Teen Counseling, Family Counseling, Lenexa OfficeLearn More
Jimmarie Smiley, LPC, CPT
Trauma Competent Child, Adolescent and Family Counselor; Certified Play Therapist; Couples and Relationship Counselor; Lee's Summit Office, Lenexa OfficeLearn More
Anna Rizzi, MS, LCPC, LPC
Trauma Competent Couples and Family Counselor; Certified MBTI PractitionerLearn More
Callie Jacobson, Counseling Intern
Counseling Intern, Lenexa Office, Play Therapy, Child, Teen and Family CounselingLearn More
Laura VanGoethem, Counseling Intern
Counseling Intern, Lenexa Location, Perinatal and Postpartum Anxiety and Depression, Women's Issues, Family CounselingLearn More
Phillip Zweerink, Counseling Intern
Counseling Intern in Training, St. Joseph Intern, Trauma InformedLearn More
Sabra Sherrow, Counseling Intern
Counseling Intern, Northland Office, Individual and Family CounselingLearn More
Chris Prather, Counseling Intern
Counseling Intern, Lenexa Office, Individual, Adolescent, and Family CounselingLearn More
Teresa Paterson Bartch, LPC-S, LCPC, RPT-S
Trauma Competent Child, Adolescent and Family Counselor; Parent Coach; Clinical Supervisor; Registered Play Therapy Supervisor; Educational and Business ConsultantLearn More
Our Counseling Services
Embark Counseling Services now has multiple locations, and likely in your area! Now, you have greater access to quality trauma informed mental and behavioral health services, including Telemental Health. We are located in:
Kansas City North, MO
specializing in Play Therapy, Teen Counseling, EMDR, Couples and Relationship Counseling, Women’s Issues and Parent Coaching. Teen Group Therapy for Emotion Regulation (DBT) now enrolling for Fall 2021.
Lenexa, KS
specializing in Play Therapy, Teen Counseling, EMDR, Couples and Relationship Counseling, Women’s Issues, and Parent Coaching.
St. Joseph, MO – Now Scheduling with our Intern!
specializing in Play Therapy, Teen Counseling, EMDR, individuals with anxiety and depression and family systems approach with a holistic, integrative lens.
Couples Counseling ~ Coming Soon!
Lee’s Summit, MO – Now scheduling New Clients for Play Therapy and Teen Counseling!
specializing in Play Therapy, Teen Counseling, Couples and Relationship Counseling, Women’s Issues and Parent Coaching.