Britney Roark, LMFTA

Compassionate and affordable therapy services for women and couples in Bothell and across the state of Washington.

I know how to help women and couples because I’ve been in your shoes. I know what it’s like to be trudging along, putting my heart and soul into meeting the needs of my family while ignoring my own needs and the needs of my marriage.

A few years ago, I reached a point where I could no longer sustain the life I was living. I was sacrificing myself for others, but I had nothing to give. It was only when I began to understand my emotional needs and recognize the unhealthy ways I was operating in my closest relationships that I found my power. I learned that by taking care of myself emotionally and mentally, I was able to find peace. I could give more to those around me because I had a stronger version of myself to share with them.

After beginning this life-changing work for myself, I decided to go back to school to become a therapist so I could help other women and couples change their lives. Now, as a marriage and family therapist, I have the tools to help you overcome your personal and relational challenges. Through counseling, you can feel more peace too.

I’m here for you!

Do you feel stuck?

Counseling for Couples

It can be devastating and disorienting when things don’t feel right between you and your person. As humans, we need connection, and when our primary attachments feel threatened, it can almost feel like a matter of life and death. The emotions that arise when a romantic relationship is off balance are intense. You may find yourself responding in ways that you don’t understand and maybe don’t even like, but you’re stuck in a cycle that you don’t know how to get out of. It may feel like you’ve resolved an issue only to find yourself back in a similar argument a few days later. During times like these, couples need an objective outsider who can figure out the underlying processes that are keeping you stuck.

As a marriage and family therapist trained in Emotionally Focused Therapy, I am a process consultant. I use my knowledge of family systems and attachment to help you stop your relationship from spinning out of control. Through couples therapy sessions, we will stabilize your interactions first so we can then create new ways of experiencing each other. Our work together will dig deep to help you and your partner heal what’s happening under the surface. Future disagreements will no longer lead to eruptions or the silent treatment. I will help you rebuild trust. There’s hope. You can feel safe with each other again.

Counseling for Women

As women, we carry so much of the emotional weight of our families. We’re smart and capable, but because we have to manage endless responsibilities, we often struggle to do everything as well as we would like and as perfectly as the world tells us we should. Even though we’re working extremely hard, we may feel like we’re failing. Not being able to keep up with the demands of life can lead to feelings of depression, anxiety, shame, grief, or burnout. It may cause resentment in our relationships because we’ve given so much of ourselves and feel like we’re still disappointing those we love. Sometimes those we love don’t even recognize or appreciate our efforts, and that hurts. Additionally, we may also be carrying the pain of past traumas.

You don’t have to keep suffering. There’s a way to feel successful and happy again, and therapy can help. As your therapist, I will work with you to make sense of the areas of your life that feel overwhelming or painful. I use an attuned and empathic approach as I provide a safe haven and secure base to help you explore your present emotions. I want to help you improve the way you feel about yourself and your relationships.

As a marriage and family therapist, I work with clients from a relational perspective even when I’m working with an individual. The attachments we form throughout our lives are important and inform our emotional world. When we feel stuck in negative patterns, there is often a relational aspect to it. Even when symptoms may not seem to be tied to any relationship, they always involve how one relates to the self, and our views of self are developed in relation to others, particularly those closest to us.

Please visit my website at sparrowcounselingonline.com to request a free 15-minute phone consultation.