Tess Richardson, LGPC

Healing Work

Therapy with me: balances compassion with guidance. By creating a safe and collaborative relationship, we’ll work together to help you find and embrace what you need to heal. I aim to help you identify which pieces of your current strategy are serving you well, and which might be holding you back from reaching your full potential.

My impacting identifies/roles that inform my work: include being a White cisgender woman from a rural community. I feel particularly attuned to women’s issues and the unique challenges they face. While I recognize my privileged identities, I actively work to ensure cultural humility remains at the forefront of my practice with all clients, continuously educating myself and maintaining an open, transparent approach.

I feel informed and knowledgeable about: substance use, trauma, and the body-mind connection. We often carry stress and trauma in our bodies long after those experiences occur. By integrating EMDR, somatic (body-focused) techniques, and internal family systems (parts work), I create a pathway for you to reclaim control of your life rather than being defined by your past experiences.

I work best with clients who: aren’t afraid to provide honest feedback when something isn’t resonating. Therapy thrives on collaboration and ensuring you’re getting what you need from our sessions is fundamental to the healing process. Your active participation and willingness to explore challenging emotions is a necessary piece of the work.

I am not a good clinical fit for clients who: seek immediate solutions without commitment to the process. Therapeutic change requires effort, with our in-session work being reinforced by your engagement between appointments. Clients expecting to feel “fixed” after only a few sessions may find my approach challenging, as I believe in sustainable, meaningful change that develops over time.

What makes me unique: I am bringing with me three years of specialized experience as a psychedelic-assisted facilitator at Johns Hopkins Center for Psychedelic and Consciousness Research. This allows me to provide informed continuing care for individuals who have received psychedelic-assisted therapy through study and/or research settings—bridging experimental treatments with ongoing therapeutic support.

Learning and Growing

I develop professionally and personally through a variety of avenues. I aim to diversify my perspectives by engaging with books and podcasts that challenge and expand my worldview. My regular yoga practice deepens my mind-body connection while cultivating skills like patience and presence. I also bake, which teaches me to remain calm when things don’t go to plan!

Fun Facts/Resilience Building

What resources me to build resilience: I nurture my own resilience through a consistent gratitude practice. Taking time to acknowledge what already exists in my life provides perspective when facing challenges. This practice grounds me and reminds me that even during difficult periods, there remain sources of joy and strength.

Fun fact: I recently adopted a 5-year-old dog who is the light of my life and my greatest troublemaker!

Education

• Bachelor’s – University of Michigan – graduated 2020
• Master’s — Johns Hopkins University – graduated 2024

Certifications/Trainings/What I’m Reading Currently 

• Certified in EMDR and Motivational Interviewing
• Trained in Cognitive Processing Therapy and Exposure
• Currently reading: Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi

Tess Richardson is supervised by Christine Coyle, LCSW-C.