Meet Kate Hellen

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Kate Hellen. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Kate, so great to have you on the platform. There’s so much we want to ask you, but let’s start with the topic of self-care. Do you do anything for self-care and if so, do you think it’s had a meaningful impact on your effectiveness?

As someone who has struggled with perfectionism from a young age, I’ve had a lot of practice ignoring my body when it’s telling me to slow down. For the majority of my adult life, I was stuck in a pattern of taking on too much and only stopping when I got sick or injured. When I was diagnosed with an autoimmune condition 10 years ago, it was a wake up call that I needed to create more balance so I could manage my symptoms and maintain the parts of my life that had become important to me, specifically within my work and relationships.
My self-care revolves around the prioritization of taking care of my body and putting energy in to play and connection with both people and nature. This includes sleep, exercise, long walks, reading, spending time with my loved ones and playing video games. I’m fairly certain all of my clients would agree that we regularly discuss self-care in sessions, and the ways in which we benefit from engaging with the things that allow us to feel rested, whole and loved. Being able to find and prioritize this balance, especially as we move through a particularly difficult time in the world, is hugely important to maintaining our collective mental health and capacity to move forward.

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?

My name is Kate Hellen, and I’m a licensed marriage and family therapist and AASECT certified sex therapist. I run a private practice out of Pasadena, where I work with adults and couples, as well as supervise pre-licensed therapists. I opened my private practice in 2022, and specialize in working with trauma and sexuality, both in the context of relationships as well as individuals. Early in my clinical work, I became aware of how prevalent shame was when discussing sexuality and the deep connections between shame and trauma. In my clinical training, we often discussed how to work with the trauma but ignored the ongoing impact this had on many survivors capacity to be present in their bodies. This disconnect led me to becoming a certified sex therapist in order to treat both the trauma and help people enjoy sex again.
I am also a co-founder of Southern California Therapy Collective, a holistic practice that aims to provide resources for therapists as well as clients. We have grown to 40 clinicians over the past four years, and focus on the healing power of community and activism. We have therapists all over Southern California, including Pasadena, Studio City, West Hollywood and Santa Barbara, and offer clients a variety of approaches and specializations.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

Three of the qualities or areas of knowledge that helped me grow my skills and practice have to be community, balance and a genuine interest in the field. I was incredibly lucky to have an amazing support system, both through therapists and colleagues who were farther along than I was in my journey, and a close group of friends who provided support during stressful periods. It was a lesson in learning to ask for help, and I’ve now found a lot of joy in being able to help therapists earlier in their training in the ways that I was supported in the past.
I’ve always been fascinated by psychology and the human mind, so getting to be in spaces where we learned about this in depth was really exciting, and still is. I’m someone who has benefited from therapy first hand, and I feel so lucky to be able to support people looking to create positive change in their lives. With this, also learning how to balance work and my own time has been challenging but also necessary and rewarding.

Awesome, really appreciate you opening up with us today and before we close maybe you can share a book recommendation with us. Has there been a book that’s been impactful in your growth and development?

One of my all time favorite books, and one I have gone back to over and over again would have to be When Things Fall Apart by Pema Chödrön. I was given this book after losing someone very close to me, and it gave me perspective on the grief process in a time where I was overwhelmed by the world. We all create and engage with mechanisms to avoid hard and uncomfortable feelings, but those repressed emotions show up in other ways. Learning how to be present with the uncomfortable feelings is one of the hardest things any of us can learn how to do, but it also allows us to let go of patterns that may not be serving us anymore.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.katehellen.com
• Other: SCTC Website- www.sctc.care

Image Credits

Headshot- Stephanie Girard