Samantha (Mac) McIntyre Ethridge, AMFT, MA

Overwhelmed? Heartbroken? Burnt out? Tired of your inner critic beating you up and invalidating your needs? Desiring more joy, ease and connection? Curious about embodiment and intergenerational trauma? Ready for your next chapter of healing and growth?

Allow me to hold space for you to clear out your busy mind, drop down into the body safely, and root into the wisdom of the present moment. Together we’ll examine patterns and beliefs not working for you anymore with curiosity, compassion and humor. Learning how to stop and smell the roses while living a fully realized life is possible. Spoiler alert: knowing and cherishing thyself (yes including the not so cute parts) is key.

My approach is a blend of bottom-up emotional processing and practical skill building. I bring compassion, curiosity and humor into the room to help folks remember their inherent worth. I am a trauma-informed, decolonial, gender-affirming somatic psychotherapist who fuses talk therapy and body-based inquiry, like Hakomi, to help you navigate life's stressors and orient towards what feels good. I’d love to teach you how to hug your sadness. It feels really good actually.

I am particularly skilled at supporting folx to sift out noise from truth, identify their needs and desires, and come away with a stronger sense of self and clearer steps forward, all without ever meeting in person. I draw on a variety of modalities to meet each client’ needs in any given moment and love getting creative with the virtual setting. In short, therapy is a super customizable space just for you.

I received my MA in Clinical Counseling and Somatic Psychology from the California Institute of Integral Studies. I chose this program because of the essential value I saw in getting back in contact with the body through my recovery. My thesis was on disordered eating, developmental trauma and energy healing. While in school I trained in a variety of somatic techniques from somatic experiencing, authentic movement, polarity therapy and yoga.

I have worked with individuals of many backgrounds, mental health challenges and life stages. I’ve worked at the Center for Somatic Psychotherapy, Seeds of Awareness, The Lotus Collaborative and Respire Therapy. I have over 25 years of movement and expressive arts experience, and on my off hours run a queer expansive arts collective and provide trainings on gender diversity and gender-affirming care through the Fed Up Collective. My BA is from UVM in Environmental Studies, Community Development, and Dance.

I believe clients are the experts of their own experience. Clients have all the wisdom they need within their bodies. Consent in the therapy room is essential whether it's a question or embodiment experiment. Clinicians must respect a client's No. I honor that a power dynamic inherently exists in the room, and must be named and held accordingly, especially when there are differences in race and ethnicity in the room. Systems are impacting our clients each and everyday so they must be an explicit part of the therapy. They cannot be bypassed, minimized or “fixed”. I believe gender, sexuality, and brain style live on a spectrum and must be affirmed through curiosity instead of assumption. Rupture and repair can be the most powerful, albeit uncomfortable. Everyone deserves to feel safe and connected to their body. My role is as guide, reflector and soother. Co-regulation and laughter are the best! Therapy is creative and can even be fun.