Kelli Penner, LMFT, Clinical Director (she/her)
BIO:
I’m Kelli, she/her, LFMT (CA #79102, TX #204019), the Clinical Director of Spaces Therapy, a supervisor, and therapist.
I’m a Relational therapist that works from an Attachment-Based perspective. What this means is I believe that the relationships we have experienced throughout our lives shape our lens of the world and of ourselves. I work with my clients to help them better understand how that lens may be impacting their ability to authentically connect with others, as well as their ability to engage in present-minded living.
Guiding Principles:
Throughout my career, I have come to learn and believe that, despite what many of us therapists were taught early in our training, we cannot actually be “blank slates”. While I do strongly believe in the importance of clear boundaries in the therapeutic relationship, I also know that I am a human with my own perspectives, needs, and biases. It is not my job to turn those parts of myself off in the therapy room, but instead to do the important work of understanding how my clients’ perspectives, needs, and biases interact with my own and the greater community at large. Through this process I work to provide client-centered, strengths-based, and securely-attuned care that helps each individual better understand themselves and their experiences in the world. I also see it as my responsibility as both a therapist and a human, to ensure that I am consistently working to unlearn perspectives and narratives that are rooted in white-body privilege. As a cis white-bodied woman, I have a responsibility to understand how my experiences might differ from those with other lived experiences, and be sure that my work is de-colonized (i.e. de-pathologized, clients seen as equal participants, challenging to Western-European assumptions of dominance).
My Style of Therapy:
Collaborative
I value and will often ask for your input. Therapy is most effective when the client is aware of, and engages, their agency to shape treatment. We will discuss goals, strategies, our working relationship, and how your needs shift over time. If this feels awkward, or if you’re not sure what to say, just know that I can help facilitate that part of the process too.
Straightforward
I believe that my clients deserve an authentic version of me. If I am going to ask them to come to sessions having thought about what is working and what is not, I expect myself to do the same. I will always strive to act first from a place of support, while also ensuring that my clients are getting direct feedback from me. We don’t always have to agree, as I’m not looking to be right. My aim is to help you get clarity on what’s working for you and what’s not. I’ll most likely use some humor to call you out at times, and you are welcome to do the same with me.
Supportive
I believe in advocating for my clients, and I don’t believe that any of us are meant to go through life alone. I work to go beyond creating a safe and supportive relationship in every therapy session by also helping my clients get connected to skills, community resources, and supplemental healing opportunities that will help them acquire well-rounded support.
I’m Particularly Good at Working With:
Children and teens who are struggling with anxiety and identity formation and translating their experiences to parents/caregivers
Couples, especially those who are part of the LGBTQIA+ community, helping them learn how to better connect and communicate
Adults who have experienced childhood trauma, including those with C-PTSD
I Hold Space For:
LGBTQIA+, Kids, Teens, Complex Trauma
As well as: Anxiety, Anxiety in Relationships, Avoidance in Relationships, Behavioral Issues, Communication Issues, Depression, Family Struggles, Life Direction, Living Authentically, Peer Relationships, Nonbinary Issues, Relationship Issues, Self-Image, Sex Positive, Spiritual Abuse, Spirituality, Stress, Teens Issues, Trauma, Vulnerability Issues, Women’s Issues
Services I Offer:
Individual Therapy
Child & Adolescent Therapy
Couples/Relationship Therapy
Family Therapy
Parenting Therapy & Consultations
Supervision Consultations
CREDENTIALS:
B.A. in Psychology with an emphasis in Community Counseling
M.S. in Marital and Family Therapy
Certified Clinical Trauma Professional
Location:
In-Person in the Highland Park neighborhood of Los Angeles (Northeast)
Virtually Anywhere in California or Texas