My Education & Background

Heather McMillen, Ph.D., LMFT, EMDR-C

M.A. in Counseling Psychology (Emphasis in Depth Psychotherapy) | Pacifica Graduate Institute
Ph.D. in Depth Psychology & Integrative Therapy | Pacifica Graduate Institute 

I specialize in working with highly creative adults and couples who have experienced developmental, relational, or single-incident trauma. I am certified as an EMDR trauma therapist by EMDRIA, trained in the Trauma Resiliency Model (TRM) through the Trauma Resource Institute, and in Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy (EFCT) through ICEEFT. I align with the neurodiversity paradigm and movement, drawing on both lived experience and professional training  to support gifted, creative, and neurodivergent individuals.

My history as a professional fine artist has given me a nuanced understanding of both the gifts and challenges that accompany a creative mind. As a seasoned integrative psychotherapist, I work with many professionals in the fine art and entertainment industries, but I also recognize that a creative life extends far beyond one’s career. Creativity is a vibrant inner essence—a wellspring of inspiration, joy, and personal transformation. This background profoundly informs my therapeutic approach, creating a space infused with curiosity, innovation, and vitality.

Philosophy

Each of us is a kaleidoscope of light and shadow, a vivid interplay of nuance, complexity, and color. Creative individuals often experience the world through deeply patterned, symbolic ways of seeing and being—sensory, emotionally complex, and intensely felt. In a warm and attuned space, even confusing or painful experiences can be held and reshaped. Through this process, our natural capacity to adapt and integrate reveals new constellations of insight, vitality, and self-trust.

The creative process is more than artistic expression: it is a way of knowing, a living authoring of identity, and a path toward healing. Therapy can become a place to explore what shaped us, what animates us, and what longs to emerge. At its heart, this work is about belonging—to ourselves and to the world. That belonging begins when we see our differences not as flaws, but as invitations to return home to who we are.