February 5, 2024February 5, 2024
Morgan McCowan
Morgan McCowan (she/they): To me, healing necessarily occurs within the context of authentic relationships, particularly when healing from traumas, be they interpersonal, collective, and/or systemic. As a queer clinician, I am passionate about providing affirming and empowering care that honors clients’ unique resilience, adaptability, and sociocultural values. Using a relational-cultural lens, I enjoy taking a collaborative and strengths-based approach, curiously and compassionately exploring with clients all aspects of their identities, relationships, and experiences of the world. I strive to hold a grounding space for clients to find safety within their own bodies and minds, while remaining sensitive to the impact of intersecting systems of oppression, which also necessitates my own ongoing self-reflection, accountability, and community-connectedness.
I take a very collaborative and affirming approach to therapy, connecting with clients where they are at and working together towards their self-identified goals. I engage with each client through a uniquely tailored and trauma-informed lens to support them in understanding their symptoms and coping behaviors within the context of their past experiences and survival adaptations. I believe that healing occurs within relationships and so often use here-and-now dynamics within the therapeutic relationship to build insight with clients into their interpersonal patterns and the relational cycles in their lives. To me, a successful therapy session leaves clients feeling heard, validated, and empowered to show up for themselves, others, and their communities in healthy ways. Therapy, from my perspective, is at its best when both client and therapist can show up authentically in the room as humans oriented towards curiosity and mutual growth.
Education and Credentials
- PsyD from Adler University
- MA in Clinical Psychology from Adler University
- Post-baccalaureate certificate in Pre-Clinical Psychology from Northwestern University School of Professional Studies
- BA in International Studies from DePaul University (minors in Intercultural Communications, Spanish, and Marketing)
What specific modalities do you practice and are you certified?
- Phase-oriented trauma treatment, STAIR, CPT
- Relational-cultural approaches
- Sex & Gender-affirming care
- Mind-body therapies
- Humanistic & feminist approaches
- Narrative Therapy
- Family systems approaches
- DBT, ACT, TF-CBT
- Harm-Reduction
- Mindfulness
What do you like to do when you are not working? What do you do for fun?
I love going to the lakefront, walking on the beach, cook outs at the beach in the summer, and watching the full moon rise over the lake. Time with my friends & loved ones and my cat, Fox, are all big priorities for me.
What are you excited about? What is your passion?
So many things! As a queer therapist, I am very passionate about providing affirming and empowering care that honors clients’ unique resilience, adaptability, and sociocultural values. I love taking a systemic perspective and exploring the emergence of resilience, creativity, and joy in response to systemic oppression.
More generally, I get very excited talking about anything somatic (body-based) and relational. Reciprocal relationships and community connections are areas I love to explore in both my personal life and as a therapist. I also get very excited and inspired by nature and the elements, and have fun thinking about the way the elements come together to create something new (air + water = clouds, fire + earth = magma/lava; air + earth = seeds on the wind & thunder, air + water + fire = rainbows, etc.). I also really love rocks and always am excited to learn more about the earth, the universe, and the emergence of life.
What do you like about being a therapist?
My favorite part of being a therapist is without a doubt the amazing connections and relationships I am able to cultivate with clients, colleagues, and supervisors. I am constantly amazed by what can emerge when people mutually connect in authenticity. It’s such a privilege and an honor to be able to support people through difficult times and see how their resilience and joy can still blossom in such unique ways. I feel so lucky to be part of others’ life journey and love exploring here-and-now dynamics that come up in therapeutic relationships and supervisory relationships!
What’s your “go to” creative or restorative outlet?
It really depends! Recently it’s been jewelry making and neurographic art, but in the past it’s been cross stitching, needle felting, and sewing. I tend to be a crafty person, and I like to cycle through different crafts depending on where I’m at at the time! I also really enjoy puzzles!
