Hello
I’m Melanie
Bikis
I’m a Licensed Mental Health Counselor Associate in the state of Washington.
I offer individual counseling services to youth and their families for private pay via in-person and remote telehealth appointments.
I am accepting new clients and take insurance (BCBS, Aetna, Regence, Premera and Kaiser.)
My practice fuses inspiration from existential psychotherapy and expressive art. I specialize in working with young clients who are struggling with everyday emotions, anxiety, grief, depression, challenging relationships or trauma. During our therapy settings we organize our sessions based on the child and family’s goals and motivations. Working together we find a wide variety of interventions to help them improve their everyday experience and meet the objective at hand. We identity road blocks, map what success looks like and trouble shoot together as a team using a combination of art practices and talk therapy.
Along the journey with my client, we unpack and depict harmful bias, stereotypes or unhelpful self-perceptions that they may be getting in the way of growth and healing. As a counselor, I aim to create a therapuetic environment for all families with an abolitionist lens that is anti-racist, LGBTQAI+ Positive, and rooted in a framework of disability justice.
Collaboration with School Supports
As a school counselor, I have experience working in education settings and can support and collaborate with school administrators and teams. I’m comfortable jumping in and creating effective and thoughtful therapeutic interventions for both home and school settings for my clients.
Flexible and Accommodating Scheduling for Families
I offer flexible scheduling options for families with both in-person and tele-health. I also offer drop-in and emergency appointment offerings for urgent needs as they arise.
Connect to Additional Community Resources
I work to cultivate a rich knowledge of community sources for social supports in our region, rather that be enriching activities that improve social-emotional help, groups, or parent education offerings.
Pricing based on need
No family should be denied counseling services due to financial hardship. If you are worried about the cost of counseling services, please shoot me an email to discuss financial options and a sliding scale cost structure.
ABOUT ME
I have been working with children for over 15 years as a counselor, school counselor, teacher, arts administrator, and creative movement instructor. I use this rich tapestry of experiences to create a interdisciplinary approach to building positive relationships with each child.
I was raised in small town south of Kansas City, Kansas and moved to the PNW in 2009. I received a B.S. in Social Sciences at Portland State University where I focused on community Development, nonprofit administration and indigenous studies. I graduated with a M.Ed in School Counseling from Lewis and Clark College Graduate School of Education and Counseling.
ROLE
Licensed Mental Health Counselor Associate
PHONE
My approach as a counselor is person-centered, non-directive and rooted in my Existential philosophy. Existential philosophies explore issues such as freedom of choice, the quest for meaning or purpose. For children who are just learning to make sense of the world, the existential focus on meaning-making is an intuitive therapeutic match for a wide variety of issues:
Anxiety and Depression, separation anxiety, poor self-esteem, children struggling with friendship issues, family changes and grief or trauma.
In therapy sessions, I use a wide variety of artistic mediums with clients based off their interest and passion for creativity; from drawing, story telling, collage, and ceramics to Zine making and mandala creations. Together these artistic tool help children examine the stories in which they have learned about themselves and others. Unhelpful stories can be re-written, reconsidered and explored deeply. I utilize interventions from Buddhist psychotherapy, neurobiology, cognitive behavioral therapy, and narrative therapy.
Common Concerns Addressed Through Therapy
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ADHD
How have we internalized our differences? How do we share and demonstrate our needs to others and advocate for ourselves?
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Anxiety
What purpose does this anxiety serve? How and when does anxiety show up? When we are feeling anxious what are our options? What can and can’t we control?
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Depression
What are the stories we are telling about our self and have been told about us? What kind of thinking patterns prevent us from growing? What does the opposite of stagnation look like in our lives?
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LGBTQAI+
How do I go about understanding my identities and sharing them with others? What does a new learned identity mean for my long-term plans? How do i navigate relationships within the context of my gender identity?
If you are experiencing a mental health crisis, please call a crisis line (below), go to your local hospital emergency room, dial 911.
Multnomah County Crisis Line: 503-988-4888
Washington County Crisis Line: 503-291-9111
Clackamas County Crisis Line: 503-655-8585
Clark County Crisis Line: 360-696-9560
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1.800.273.TALK(8255)
CONTACT
You can schedule an appointment with me by contacting me at the email address below.
If you need to speak to my supervisor, you can find her at Bene Therapy (Jessica Wozniak) or 206 – 681 – 6270.
FULL NAME: Melanie M. Bikis, Mental Health Counselor Associate
ADDRESS: Email to inquire about in-person sessions.
PHONE: (913) 244 7885
EMAIL: melanie@mbikis.com
WEBSITE: www.mbikis.com
