Sarah Carlson

Sarah’s approach to counseling is both compassionate and practical. Sarah believes that helping individuals, couples and families develop the real-life tools to create lasting change and improve relationships begins with collaboration between therapist and client. Sarah works closely with clients to create goals and concrete solutions that address the unique challenges of each client or family situation. Families make enduring change by being empowered to apply in their lives, what they have learned in therapy. Clients will be encouraged to do reading and homework in between sessions to further the learning.

At Journey Inward Counseling, Sarah works with:

⪢ Relationship Problems – Sarah has completed Dr. Gottman’s Level 3 training, and this approach significantly informs the work on improving communication, building shared meaning, and reducing conflict. Sarah has also spent many years studying co-dependency issues.
⪢ Family Issues – Divorce, separation, step/blended families, parenting coaching, reunification therapy, Parent-Child Interactional Assessments, adjustment problems, LGBTQI and transitioning issues.
⪢ Child Issues – Adoption and foster care issues, ADHD, Autism Spectrum Disorders, LGBTQI and transitioning issues, opposition and defiance, attachment problems, and reducing behavior problems through the use of evidence-based Parent-Child Interaction Therapy. Sarah is a P-CIT International Certified Therapist and Level 1 Trainer.
⪢ Individual Issues – Cognitive Behavioral approaches to anxiety, depression, coping, relationship problems, parenting stress; LGBTQI.

Sarah received her Master’s Degree from the nationally accredited Marriage and Family Therapy program at California State University, Fullerton in 1996. She earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology Magna Cum Laude from The University of California, Riverside in 1993. Sarah has been a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) since 2000 and is a Certified PCIT Therapist and Level 1 Trainer, AAMFT approved clinical supervisor, and also an Adoption Competent Therapist. 

Sarah worked as a foster care and adoption social worker for 8 years. During this time, she wrote adoption home studies, worked with families to preserve and enhance their child’s placements, improve attachments, and trained in evidence-based PCIT. This makes Sarah particularly well-suited to work with children who have experienced changes in family composition and who maybe struggling because of attachment problems. In addition, Sarah’s training included working as an outpatient therapist at various community non-profits, as an elementary school counselor, board director, administrator, and equine-assisted psychotherapist. Sarah is married with 2 children, 3 dogs including her little assistant “Roxi” and a horse named Tanner.

Professional Affiliations
+ American Association of Marriage and Family Therapists (AAMFT)
+ Colorado Association of Marriage and Family Therapists (CAMFT)
+ Colorado Chapter Association of Family & Conciliation Courts (COAFCC)
+ AAMFT Approved Clinical Supervisor
​+ P-CIT International
+ Member ACT – Adoption Competent Therapist Network of Colorado Post-Adoption Resource Center