Lara Symonds

Lara Symonds, founder and owner of OptimalLife Wellness Center, is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and a Diplomate of Comprehensive Energy Psychology. Lara opened OptimalLife Wellness in 2013 as a center to offer clients mind-body approaches to mental wellness, such as Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) and Comprehensive Energy Psychology (CEP). Lara works with clients who are survivors of abuse and trauma; suffer from PTSD, anxiety, and depression; or have poor self-esteem or poor emotion regulation to help them move from feelings of brokenness to feelings of wholeness.

Recognizing that what we do impacts other people, and that other people impact us, Lara works systemically with her clients, whether they are families or individuals, by pulling together all of the pieces of their life’s puzzle to better help them. She works in collaboration with her clients as a team to develop goals, while relying heavily on client feedback.

One of Lara’s preferred methods of helping her clients heal is by working with Comprehensive Energy Psychology, a field in which she has received extensive training. This modality combines intervention with several subtle energy systems, such as tapping on meridian points, chakra clearing, and working with a body’s biofield or aura.

When not working, Lara enjoys daily yoga for its balancing, grounding, and calming qualities. She also likes to garden, cook, eat, and travel. And Lara loves to laugh because laughter is incredibly healing.

Cost Per Session	$$$
Insurance	Yes
State Licensed	Washington
Specialization	Abandonment Active Duty ADD/ADHD Adoption Adult Children of Alcoholics Ambiguous Grief Anxiety Attachment Autism Spectrum Childhood Emotional Neglect Childhood Trauma Childhood Traumatic Grief Children of Military Members Codependency Combat Trauma Complex PTSD Complicated Grief Depersonalization/Derealization Developmental Trauma Dissociation Dissociative Disorders Dysregulation Emotional Abuse Emotional Neglect Family Estrangement Foster Care Gender Based Violence Gender Identity Grief/Bereavement Helping Professionals Highly Sensitive People Incest Insomnia Intersectional Approach Intimate Partner Violence Kink LGBTQ+ Loss Medical Trauma Military Military Families Military Spouses Moral Injury Motor Vehicle Crash Multicultural Counseling Natural Disasters Nerd Culture Neurodiversity Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Oppression/Discrimination/Marginalization Pandemic Related Stress Panic Attacks Physical Abuse Physical Neglect Polyamory Relational Trauma Relationship Issues Relationship Violence Ritualistic/Cult Abuse Self-Harming Behaviors Sensory Processing Sexual Abuse Sexual Assault/Rape Social Justice Perspective Substance Abuse Suicidality Survivors of Conversion Therapy Survivors of Suicide Loss Terminal Illness Traumatic Grief Veterans Vicarious Trauma/Burnout Victims of Crime
Types of Therapy	Attachment Based Attachment Focused EMDR Behavioral Therapies CBT Cognitive Therapies Compassion Focused Therapies Complementary and Alternative Approaches EFT Tapping Emotionally Focused Therapy Energy Medicine Energy Psychology Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing Integrative Approaches Internal Family Systems Mindfulness Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction Parts Work Psychodynamic Psychotherapy Somatic Therapies Strengths Based Approach Talk Therapy Trauma Focused CBT
Population Served	Adolescents Adults Adults in Midlife Geriatric Adults Young Adults
Services	Consultation Couples Families Individuals Supervision