Kate Mageau

About Kate

My approach

My key values are social justice, curiosity, and empowerment. I use relational therapy to build genuine connection; feminist therapy to explore power and systems; existential therapy to explore meaning and choice; narrative therapy to question inherited stories; and ACT to develop psychological flexibility. We'll adapt our work to you!

About me

I'm a therapist, author, speaker, and domestic violence survivor. My experience in survivor support groups inspired me to return as a volunteer facilitator and eventually become a therapist. Today I support survivors, queer and neurodivergent people, and anyone seeking more agency in their life. I love helping empower themselves to build the lives they want!

More background

What was your path to becoming a therapist? What inspired you to choose this profession?

I am a mental health counselor/therapist, but first I was an IPV/DV survivor. I went to support groups at a DV advocacy agency, and I loved the experience so much that a few years later I returned to run the groups as a volunteer. This inspired me to become a therapist, and now I counsel IPV/DV survivors and run counseling support groups. I help people understand what happened, and empower them to find their self-esteem to move forward. I also wrote Rose-Colored Glasses, a memoir about my IPV experience. After every chapter there is a psychological explanation of the warning signs and the power dynamics, as they occurred at the time.

What would be important for someone to know about working with you?

I'm genuine, expressive, curious, and collaborative. I'm not a therapist who just sits silently and nods! :)

I believe you're the expert on your own life. My job isn't to tell you who to be or what decisions to make. It's to help you understand yourself, recognize your strengths, explore your options, and make choices that feel right for you.

You don't have to know how to "do therapy" or have a plan for every session. That's my job!

I also recognize that different people need different things from therapy. We might explore relationships, emotions, past experiences, or the bigger questions about your life. We might work on understanding your ADHD or Autism, finding ways to make everyday tasks easier, or developing a better understanding of your needs and boundaries.

If something we try doesn't work for you, that's okay! We'll try something else.

Outside the therapy room, I write books and create resources to help people understand and heal from toxic relationships. These include Rose-Colored Glasses, the Healing from Toxic Relationships Workbook, and a self-paced course. I also enjoy helping people with memoir writing, career exploration, and creative projects.

You can learn more about my books at https://www.katemageau.com/books.

In what ways do your life philosophy and treatment philosophy overlap?

My key values are social justice, curiosity, and empowerment. I bring these values to my life and to counseling:

Through life: My friends in school to become a therapist nicknamed me "AdvoKate" and I absolutely melted. I do advocate for people, and I also show people how to advocate for themselves. I have a lot of advocacy passions, though some are: DV, SA, BLM, LGBTQ+, personal body autonomy, and climate change. I organized phone banks and canvases for, and was a precinct delegate for Bernie Sanders; I went to the CHOP almost every day; and I have spoken at city council meetings; as well as attended other protests, marches and activities.

I stay on top of the news and I find ways to help whenever I can. I believe finding even small ways to give and advocate for change can be incredibly therapeutic and empowering. Though, I also like to remind people to put their own mental health first and to find that balance. We must always put our own life jackets first and take care of our own needs, before we can help others. Once we're ready, though, it can make us feel so strong, connected, and alive.

My key values are social justice, curiosity, connection, and empowerment. I bring these values into my life and my counseling practice through four primary therapeutic approaches, incorporating elements of other approaches when they're helpful for each client. I believe therapy should be collaborative, individualized, and focused on helping you better understand yourself and make choices that feel right for you!

Relational Therapy (Curiosity and Connection)

I believe the relationship between a therapist and client is one of the most important parts of therapy! Relational therapy recognizes that our relationships shape how we understand ourselves, communicate, and connect with others.

I bring my genuine self into sessions. I'm expressive, curious, and engaged, rather than a therapist who sits silently and nods. Our relationship can also be a place to explore communication, boundaries, trust, and healthy ways of relating to others. We can practice having difficult conversations, expressing needs, and navigating disagreements in a supportive environment.

Feminist Therapy (Social Justice and Empowerment)

I love feminist therapy because it's for people of all genders! It explores how power structures, social expectations, and systemic inequalities affect our lives. Our intersecting identities and unique lived experiences shape how we encounter these systems.

Sometimes things we've been taught to blame ourselves for are connected to larger social structures, cultural expectations, or experiences of oppression. Recognizing those influences can help reduce self-blame and create space for new perspectives. Feminist therapy also incorporates psychoeducation, advocacy, and recognizing personal strengths to help people feel more empowered in their lives.

Existential Therapy (Curiosity and Empowerment)

What do I want from life? What matters to me? Why do I keep making the same choices? How do I figure out what comes next?

Existential therapy explores the big questions about meaning, identity, freedom, responsibility, and connection. We can look at how your past experiences influence your present without requiring you to revisit every detail of your history.

Through thoughtful, introspective conversations, we'll explore your values, the possibilities available to you, and what it means to live a life that feels meaningful to you. You don't need to have all the answers. We get to be curious together!

Narrative Therapy (Social Justice, Curiosity, and Empowerment)

Society, our families of origin, and our relationships can shape the stories we tell ourselves about who we are. Sometimes we internalize messages from others and begin treating them as absolute truths, even when they don't reflect our own experiences, strengths, or values.

Narrative therapy helps us explore where those stories came from, question the ones that no longer serve us, and recognize that we have agency in how we understand and tell our own stories.

Through creative, insightful, and empowering activities (not all of which involve writing!), we can recognize strengths, explore different perspectives, and make intentional decisions about the lives we want to lead.

Bringing It All Together

I also incorporate Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), somatic techniques, and other tools depending on what works for you. Sometimes we'll explore thoughts and emotions, sometimes we'll pay attention to what you're experiencing in your body, and sometimes we'll focus on practical ways to make everyday life easier.

And if something doesn't work for you? That's okay! We can do something else. :)

My goal isn't to tell you who to be or what decisions to make. It's to help you understand yourself, recognize your strengths, advocate for yourself, and feel empowered to build a life that works for you!

More about my professional background

Before becoming a therapist, I worked in corporate training and instructional design, education, youth programs, and community advocacy.

I've helped high school students find scholarships and internships, supported students with college essays, worked with middle school youth at the YMCA, and worked in a group home for teenagers involved in the criminal justice system.

Those experiences inform my work with clients navigating careers, education, relationships, and major life transitions.

Today, alongside my private practice, I'm an author, speaker, and trainer. I teach other therapists about toxic relationships and ADHD and Autism assessments, and I've presented on ADHD and toxic relationships at professional conferences.

I offer individual therapy, ADHD and Autism assessments, gender-affirming letters, and emotional support animal letters.

My goal across all of this work is the same: to help people understand themselves, recognize their strengths, advocate for their needs, and create lives that feel meaningful to them.

Specialties

Types of therapy

Who Kate works with

Ages

Teens (14-19), Adults, Elders (65+)

Communities

LGBTQ+, Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, Non-Binary, BIPOC, Black / African American, Latino / Hispanic, Asian American, Indigenous / Native American, Immigrant, Neurodivergent, People with Disabilities, Sex Worker Allied, Body Positive, Open Relationships / Non-Monogamy, Single Parents

Languages

English

Education and training

Master of Science in Counselor Education, specializing in Clinical Mental Health Counseling,

Florida International University, 2022

Bachelor of Science in Applied Developmental Psychology, Eastern Washington University, 2006

Certifications

ADHD-CCSP (ADHD Certified Clinical Services Provider

WA Domestic Violence Certification