McKenzie Altmayer attended Bradley University for both undergraduate and graduate schooling. Her undergraduate degrees are in English, creative writing, and women’s and gender studies. She also holds a masters degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling. McKenzie also has experiences working with clients ranging in age from seven to seventy, conducting counseling over various life stressors.
McKenzie’s areas of focus within counseling include life transitions, grief, trauma, anxiety, depression, behavioral challenges, mood disorders, interpersonal relationship challenges, and social phobias. She has experience in a therapeutic day-school setting, working with various neurodevelopmental disorders and conduct disorders.
McKenzie’s counseling approach stems from Acceptance Commitment Therapy, foundations from Internal Family Systems and Emotionally Focused Therapy. She believes that events across a lifetime can impact our present and future, but if we grow awareness of our histories, beliefs, and emotional experiences; we can take ownership of our lives. She also recognizes the ways our intersectional identities and environments can impact our overall wellness.
In her work, McKenzie believes in fostering a safe and nonjudgmental environment for all clients to feel confident working through anything that feels pertinent to them. She provides an approach that best suits the individual client, always holding that the client is the expert of their story.