Conversations with the Inspiring Laurie Arnold

Today we’d like to introduce you to Laurie Arnold.

Laurie, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I have a private practice in Berkeley, a neighborhood in NorthWest Denver where I work provide couples therapy. I have a master’s degree and am licensed in Marriage and Family Therapy. I spent several years working for agencies providing family therapy, supervision and consultation – but my heart has always been to work with couples in private practice. It’s an amazing and humbling experience to watch couples transform from their first session, when they are questioning if there is any hope that things can ever get better, to several sessions later when they are reconnecting and feeling confident and proud of the relationship they are rebuilding. I can’t think of a more rewarding role.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
I tried private practice a couple of different times earlier in my career but failed because I wasn’t confident enough in myself that I could do it successfully. I ended up gaining some of that confidence from working for an agency for a while and getting more experience, but there came a time when I still had to take a leap of faith and try again for my dream. My advice for young women is this, stay focused on your goal, even if the path to get there requires you to go in what feels like a different direction for a period of time, stay focused on how each part of your journey can help you in the end game. There was a time I was doing work that felt very disconnected from my ultimate goal of working with couples in private practice, but focusing on skills I could take from that work to my goal helped me not only to get through that tough time but also to feel continuously connected to my goal.

What do you do, what do you specialize in, what are you known for, etc. What are you most proud of as a company? What sets you apart from others?
I am a couples therapist! I work with couples experiencing anything from a rough patch to a full-blown crisis in their relationship. Many of the couples I work with are committed to each other but unhappy with how things are working in their relationship, and so are looking for a third party to help them get unstuck and do things differently. One of the things I am most proud of is that many of my couples tell me how comfortable they feel working with me. Starting therapy is a huge deal – I know this from being a therapist but also from going to therapy, both individually and with my husband – it can be super intimidating, there are a ton of barriers to finding someone and so many fears about getting started – it’s easy to put it off over and over again (most couples wait over six years to get help from a therapist) – so when a couple starts therapy with me and let me know they are both feeling comfortable in our sessions, I feel like I’ve achieved my first goal, which is to make my clients feel comfortable, and then we can move on to the next goal of helping them with what they have come in for. I think what sets me apart is I am very real with my clients – yes, I am a therapist, but I’m also a real person and I let that real person into the sessions. I laugh with my clients, I cry with my clients, I admit mistakes to my clients. I see therapy as a collaborative process with my clients where I am coming alongside them to help and cheering them on through their journey. I believe my clients know I am on their side and that’s what sets me apart.

It would be great to hear about any apps, books, podcasts or other resources that you’ve used and would recommend to others.
I will read or listen to anything from John and Julie Gottman and Esther Perel – leaders in the world of couples therapy and influencers of my work. John Gottman’s Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work is, in my opinion, the Bible of couples therapy, and my number one recommendation to couples in or out of therapy.
I also try to stay updated in all areas of the field of psychology because even though I specialize in seeing couples, couples come in with a variety of issues – from trauma to anxiety, to substance abuse. So, I am always reading journals, books and magazine articles to stay current on best practices for my clients.

Personally, my favorite podcast is Heavyweight – a podcast about helping people addressing an unresolved issue from their past. It’s such a good, real human story type of podcast – I just can’t get enough! I savor each new episode!

Pricing:

• 50-minute couples session $160
• 50-minute individual session $140
• 80 and 100-minute sessions based on rates above

Contact Info:

• Address: 4170 Tennyson St. Suite 1
  Denver, CO 80212
• Website: lauriearnoldlmft.com
• Phone: 720-460-0501
• Email: laurie@lauriearnoldlmft.com
• Instagram: @lauriearnoldlmft

Image Credit:
Penny O Photography

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