Molly Ruggles is a Licensed Psychologist with a doctoral degree in clinical psychology from the Minnesota School of Professional Psychology.  Molly has been practicing for more than 10 years and provides psychotherapy, clinical supervision and also serves as the Assistant Clinical Director at the Center for Grief & Loss. Molly values a strong therapeutic relationship with her clients as a crucial aspect of the healing process and is particularly attuned to creating safety in the therapy room. Her approach is primarily relational, utilizing a psychodynamic and attachment lens to more fully uncover and support each client’s unique needs in their healing process.  Molly also integrates the use of Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART) to aid in the healing of distress connected to particularly painful and frightening events.  Molly has long held a special interest in the areas of grief and trauma, and along with her professional experiences of doing this work, she holds her own personal experiences that allow her to more deeply attune. 

Bobbie is a grief therapist at the Center for Grief, Loss & Transition. Her interest in grief and loss began with the diagnosis of life-threatening illness and subsequent death of her husband. The impact of this life-changing experience has brought a willingness to work with others as they journey through the healing process. Bobbie works to create a safe, trusting and nonjudgmental place in which to grieve a personal loss or transition.

Bobbie brings with her years of experience working with children of all ages through teaching, counseling and mentoring. She has worked closely with AIDS and hospice care teams as individuals experience chronic illness and death.

Because of Bobbie's belief in the mind, body and spirit connection, she brings to therapy various forms of creative expression, mindfulness and relaxation techniques.

“I do my best because I am counting on you counting on me.” – Maya Angelou.  Seeking help and support is not always easy or fun. My goal with every client is to build a relationship of trust, honesty, and openness so clients can create the change and shifts in life that are desired and impact their lives in ways they want. I work from a client centered approach. I have a sense of curiosity and I take the time to build the trust and sense of safety that clients have a right to create.

As a clinical social worker, my approach is founded on an ecological perspective, or a “person in environment” perspective. This approach explores how people interact with their environments - physical, social, and cultural environments, and how these interactions affect and impact both the person and their environments. I use a trauma informed lens along with a health equity lens, which both prompt me to explore how environments and the structural systems we are living with influence how we experience, internalize, cope with, and adjust to all aspects of life and living.  

My areas of clinical practice include: Historical and Intergenerational Trauma, Racialized Trauma, Decolonization, Interpersonal violence, Intimate partner abuse, Sexual violence and abuse, Child Welfare and Protection, Living with Serious Illness, Living with Chronic Pain, End of Life, Bereavement, Complicated grief and loss, Life Transitions, and LGBTQ+.

“Contrary to what we may have been taught to think, unnecessary and unchosen suffering wounds us but need not scar us for life. It does mark us. What we allow the mark of suffering to become is in our own hands.” – bell hooks, from All About Love: New Visions.  I work from a strength-based perspective and my clinical approach is grounded in empowerment theory which focuses on growing a person’s capacity and ability to deal with and respond to life’s circumstances. I believe being centered in empowerment theory helps people help themselves in ways they want and achieve the goals they face, thereby increasing the quality of their lives.

In my free time, I enjoy being in nature – the woods, the ocean, the mountains, the wilderness. I also enjoy fine tuning my Korean cooking skills, watching indie films, and wandering through art galleries and museums.

Clare Dudzinski has spent over a decade supporting individuals and families across the lifespan as they work through times of grief, loss, trauma, and life transition. She has spent the majority of her career in healthcare, specifically hospital critical care, and thus brings a depth of knowledge related to medical trauma, managing complex and chronic illness, and navigating end of life. Clare recognizes that every family and family member holds many intersecting identities and experiences. She leads with humility and respect in letting everyone tell their own story and be their own expert. Clare utilizes a collaborative, integrative approach to treatment and therapeutic relationship building. Her lived experience gives her particular empathy for those whose identities do not grant them as much power and privilege to access resources, especially members of the LGBTQ+ community.

 Clare acknowledges that grief, loss, trauma, and transition are inevitable parts of life and of healing. As a social worker trained to serve the whole person and a certified SomaYoga teacher, she honors the importance of the body-mind-spirit connection in navigating life’s most challenging times. Clare is relationship-focused, trauma-responsive, equity-minded, and strengths-based. Above all, Clare is guided by the belief that everyone comes into the world whole with the innate ability to heal and return to their wholeness.

Forming a positive and trusting therapeutic relationship with her clients is most important to Michaela. She focuses on meeting each client where they are in their grief and therapeutic journey, and supports every client individually. She utilizes an integrated approach to therapy, drawing primarily from Person-Centered and Trauma-Focused theories to provide a safe, caring, and empathetic environment to connect with her clients. Michaela is gentle, curious, and welcoming.  

Michaela is a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor (LPCC), has completed the primary Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART) training, and has a certificate in grief and loss counseling. She has completed both the Postpartum Support International (PSI) Perinatal Mood Disorders: Components of Care and the Advanced Perinatal Mental Health Psychotherapy trainings and she is working on becoming a Certified Perinatal Mental Health Professional (PMH-C) through PSI.

Michaela has provided mental health therapy to children, adolescents, and young adults who have faced trauma, grief and loss, medical conditions, and other life challenges in a variety of settings since 2014. She is expanding her practice to also support clients who have experienced pregnancy loss, infant loss, and perinatal mood and anxiety disorders. She earned her LPCC in 2016. She started working at the Center for Grief and Loss in December, 2018.  

Her passion for working with this population was stimulated by her own experiences of childhood medical concerns, living with family members who have chronic illnesses, having several close family members die since she was young, and pregnancy loss.

Michaela provides therapeutic support and advocates for her clients so they can be heard and receive assistance to cope with the effects of their struggles. She is grateful to clients for giving her permission to hear and hold space for their stories.  

Brooke has worked in the setting of grief, loss, death and dying for the past decade. Brooke strives to understand each person’s unique experience of grief and believes that bearing pain and accepting change is possible when done together. She practices psychotherapy from a relational psychodynamic perspective which means fostering a meaningful and safe relationship to be able to uncover and explore strength and stability. This can also mean paying attention to ways that lifelong patterns can help or hinder how we function in relationships with others and navigate the stress of life. She is genuine, curious and provides thoughtful feedback when life feels confusing or complicated. She integrates cognitive-behavioral interventions, mindfulness practices and Accelerated Resolution Therapy as a form of treatment for trauma and stress when appropriate.

Brooke is a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker with over 10 years of experience working with individuals facing chronic and serious health conditions and their families. She has a passion for working with individuals with cancer related concerns and other serious life-threatening health conditions. Prior to her work at the Center for Grief & Loss, Brooke worked in an academic hospital and medical clinic providing counseling for patients and families. She completed a clinical social work fellowship in palliative care and then directed that program from 2015-2019. Brooke considers herself a lifelong learner and does not go a day without learning something new from others.

I began my professional life as a writer—first as a cub reporter for a small-town daily newspaper, then as a creator of marketing materials, and eventually as a freelance writer, reporting on people and organizations doing important work in the world. I talked to amazing people: a young street minister reaching out to teen mothers on the South side of Chicago, a seasoned "Mother Teresa" working with desperately poor people in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, doctors working to heal people's trauma in the aftermath of the war in Kosovo. I often came back thinking, "I don't want to write about these people. I want to join them!"

That persistent call led me to enter Social Work school in Washington, DC, and after earning my MSW, I went on to receive post-graduate training at the Family Therapy Practice Center, founded by the late Marianne Walters, one of the early pioneers in feminist-oriented family therapy. Early in my career I also joined the Center for Mind-Body Medicine as a facilitator of groups that teach techniques for calming the nervous system and increasing self-awareness and emotional flexibility (mindfulness, breath work, meditation, guided imagery, movement). I have interwoven a mind-body medicine and a systems approach into all of my work with people, whether at the hospital bedside, in hospice care, in community mental health or in private practice. I continue to supervise clinicians seeking certification in mind-body medicine.

I have also received training as a spiritual director through Mercy Center in Burlingame, California. Though spiritual direction is not be confused with psychotherapy, I have found that exploring what kinds of spiritual beliefs, stories and practices bring meaning and comfort can be very fruitful.

Along with my clinical work, I have continued to write professionally and have found strong themes emerging regarding mental health and well-being. A detailed report I wrote for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Weaving a Tapestry of Well-Being in Communities, explored the many ways that well-being can be nurtured “upstream” in the community, well before people encounter the health care system. For Chorus America, the national association representing 2,000 choirs and choruses in North America, I wrote and edited a special issue of their magazine exploring the many ways music and singing contribute to physical and mental well-being—and enhance communities.

A common thread in all my work is story. I love to hear people’s stories—and to be able to notice with them not only what happened, but how they make sense of it. We explore together how to weave the threads of their lives, even the dark, knotty ones, together to create a sense of purpose and meaning, and how to connect with others, or as the researchers say, how to “tend and befriend” when challenges come. Life can be hard, bad things do happen, but there is still beauty to be found and a path forward. I draw from a number of therapeutic approaches but the ones that resonate for me are mindfulness based cognitive behavior therapy (MB-CBT), narrative therapy, mind-body medicine, and acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT). One little “credo” from ACT that is useful for myself and for the people I accompany is this:

I am here now

Accepting my feelings and

Noticing my thoughts

While doing what I care about

Dallas entered yoga teacher training knowing that she wanted to bring the gifts of yoga and meditation to people experiencing grief. Having lost five family members in 14 months, she understands the physical and mental toll grief can take on a person and has experienced firsthand the healing effects of yoga, meditation, and other non-verbal practices. She is honored to be working with the Center for Grief and Loss supplementing traditional talk therapy with offerings designed to support the body and address some of the physical symptoms of grief. Through the Center, she offers restorative yoga, yoga nidra, nature immersion experiences, rituals for remembering, and guided self-compassion sessions. In addition to teaching in studios and work environments, Dallas offers free community yoga sessions for OUT in the Backyard, an LGBTQIA+ nonprofit committed to healthy, thriving queer communities, and uses trauma-informed and accessible principles. Click here to see upcoming events.

Gretchen has experience working with children, adults, families and couples in the areas of grief, hospice, trauma, autism, ADHD, and caregiving a family member with a chronic illness or disability. She has facilitated grief groups in the past for family members grieving the loss of a spouse, a sibling, a child, and a parent. Gretchen also has experience as a hospice volunteer and has been honored to support individuals and families through their end-of-life journeys.

Gretchen has a belief that we define ourselves through our stories. Those stories are created by the experiences we go through and the meaning we assign to them. Sometimes those stories are painful or unhappy and they limit us from reaching our full potential for connection and range of emotions. Utilizing attachment, emotion-focused, narrative, and cognitive therapeutic approaches, Gretchen works collaboratively with clients to encourage them to consider new choices and different possibilities to develop a more helpful, satisfying story. 

I value building a strong rapport with my clients through creating a safe, welcoming, non-judgmental space to begin walking and honoring your grief (or therapy) journey. In addition to providing effective skills and tools to help my clients manage whatever hardships come their way, I am sure to also focus on creating relationships with my clients to ensure they receive a well rounded successful therapy experience. 

 I am a Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist and have dedicated my work towards helping others normalize their grief experience; allowing them to grieve in a healthy manner. While the majority of this work takes the form of therapy with my clients, I also provide community educational workshops. Grief and loss is an inevitable part of life and it’s nothing we need to feel shame around or carry a belief that there is one right way to grieve. 

 Well, this sounds all fine and dandy, but how do we remove shame and limiting beliefs? Great question! We start by listening to the stories currently attached to your situation, yourself and the world. From there, we identify which stories serve you and which ones don’t. For the ones that don’t, we begin to rewrite your story; creating one that allows you to grow around the grief and learn to carry the loss with you. 

 In addition to grief and loss, I’ve guided many adults through anxiety, depression, and ambiguous/living losses (stemming from life transitions such as divorce and becoming a new parent). Regardless of the journey you are embarking on, I will provide you with a road map of various routes/paths to go down, and possibly some detours when appropriate (i.e. I respectfully challenge my clients to encourage growth). You get to decide the direction and at which pace we walk through your journey.

Corilyn blends traditional psychotherapy and art therapy to support her clients. With warmth and openness, she strives to create space for authentic connection and exploratory creative expression. She believes that everyone has the ability to look inward to find creative solutions to begin healing, bring balance, and make changes in their life. 

As an art therapist, Corilyn has found that the art-making process can be used to explore who we are, what has happened to us, and how we will move forward. Art therapy allows complex feelings, thoughts, and experiences to be expressed and honored. During the creative process, often narratives, metaphors, and discoveries emerge that provide opportunities for her clients to build awareness and create meaning. Art making has been transformative for Corilyn to cultivate wellness and process experiences of grief and loss in her own life. She is grateful to have the opportunity to share this work with others. There is no particular level of art experience or artistic ability required to do art therapy, and Corilyn will work with you at your own pace. 

Corilyn has her master’s degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling and Art Therapy and is working towards licensure under the supervision of Molly Ruggles PsyD, LP.  She has over ten years of experience in the mental health field, primarily facilitating expressive arts groups for clients with mental illness and substance use disorders. Her areas of clinical interest include grief and loss, life transitions, trauma, anxiety, depression, relationships, creative blocks, mind-body, family of origin, substance use disorders, and recovery. Corilyn is a certified yoga teacher and is happy to discuss integrating yoga, movement, or mindfulness in therapy. 

“You are allowed to be both a masterpiece and a work in progress simultaneously.” -Sophia Bush 

“This being human is a guest house” … Rumi 

Merra is a ‘seasoned’ integrative psychotherapist providing holistic, mindfulness-based, compassion-centered approaches in which to view and transform our relationship to human suffering. Her areas of expertise include: grief and loss, life transitions, anxiety, depression, existential / spirituality, relationships, self-esteem, family of origin, recovery, trauma-informed, body-centered healing, stress reduction work/ life balance, intergenerational trauma, ritual, creative & expressive arts, other issues & modalities.  

She has been practicing meditation and yoga since 1976.  She embodies a compassionate presence.  Merra is honored to companion and empower others in their journeys of healing, growth and transformation. She is passionate in her support for others to discover ways to connect with their innate wisdom, authenticity and resiliency - even joy amidst life's uncertainty and bittersweetness.

Merra also teaches courses in Mindfulness-based Stress Reduction, Happiness & Emotional Healing, Integrative Psychotherapy and offers supervision and consultation in other settings. She loves being in nature, walks, bicycling, poetry… with gratitude to be working at the center.

“My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor and some style” Maya Angelou