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Jacqueline Abeling,
Ma, LmFT, RmFT

Goes by Jackie
(she/her)

WA License #LF61117197
MN License #2774
BC Registration #20171267

Owner of Embodied Journeys Psychotherapy | Licensed/Registered Marriage and Family Therapist | AAMFT Board-Approved Supervisor | Certified Body Trust® Specialist

Hi, I’m Jackie!

I work with neurodivergent and high-achieving folx (ages 16 and up) to help them think, believe, and act in more flexible ways—so they can feel freer in their lives. I help people understand the coping strategies they use and how these can create strict personal rules that often show up as perfectionism; high expectations for themselves and others; a need for control that sometimes gets turned on food, body, and movement; procrastination; and self-criticism. I recognize how exhausting and overwhelming it can be to try to keep it all together in a world that isn’t designed for neurodivergent minds.

Areas of Focus

  • Neurodivergent experiences, including late diagnosis of ADHD or Autism

  • Tendencies toward high standards, challenges with starting tasks, and fixed thinking patterns

  • Anxiety/depression

  • Challenges with food, movement, and body image

  • Self-compassion

  • Trauma-sensitive care

  • Liberation-based practices, including weight neutrality, Body Trust®, Health At Every Size®, and abolitionism

My Journey

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I didn’t always see myself as a therapist and the journey to get here was a bit meandering. As a kid, I loved animals and I initially saw myself as a veterinarian, but various instances taught me that I didn’t have the stomach for it.

At 16, my dad and I went on a whitewater rafting trip through the Grand Canyon and that was it…I was going to be a whitewater rafting guide! I went to college in Alaska and initially majored in Outdoor Studies before finding my real interest lay in psychology and helping people. More than that, I was introduced to the concept of wilderness therapy and realized my passion for psychology and the outdoors could be combined. I’ve worked with various wilderness outfitters that had a therapeutic bend, in addition to other, more traditional therapeutic settings.

I’m not just a therapist: I’m an avid outdoor enthusiast, animal lover, a recovering perfectionist, and fiercely loyal. I’m an activist, a rebel, and I’m a little rough around the edges. I actively work toward anti-racism, call out injustice where I see it, and I hope someday body liberation can be achieved for all.

In my spare time, I enjoy relaxing with a good book, enjoying a hot cup of coffee, and petting a purring cat in my lap. I am an introvert and find myself most content spending quiet time alone in nature or going for a drive with the windows down and the radio turned way up!

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Why I Love What I Do

I am deeply honored when people open up and share their journeys with me. I feel even more honored when I am asked to accompany them as a guide across the wilderness of rejecting diet culture toward embodiment and healing. This work is so fucking hard and I am constantly awed by the hard work that goes into clients’ inspiring stories. I am continually surprised by the tenacity and resiliency of the human spirit!

Diet culture has taken way too much from my life and from those around me, and I want to dismantle the systems that cause harm to every body. My sister introduced me to Intuitive Eating in 2017, and it BLEW. MY. MIND! It made so much sense based on my own experience, so I dove in and I’ve been swimming in the deep end ever since. The most rewarding part of Body Trust®, Health At Every Size® (HAES), and intuitive eating is the lightness clients experience after years of being blamed for their body size and health. I appreciate empowering others to advocate for themselves, challenge oppressive systems that have hurt them, and discover the freedom of no longer being stuck in the trap of worrying about their bodies and food choices.

My
Experience

 I’m not a fan of the term “expert”, but I can say that I have a lot of information to help combat the all-encompassing nature of ablism surrounding ADHD and anti-fat bias in diet culture, which I am more than happy to share with those willing to listen. I try to practice what I preach every day — yes, even a professional still experiences the struggle — and I can say that this path is, in fact, effective for improving quality of life.

I have over a decade of experience in the mental health field and I have worked with people from all walks of life. My journey began by working with teenage girls in a residential treatment setting in Alaska. I, then, turned my passion toward wilderness therapy where I spent time in both Washington state and northern Minnesota working with troubled teens in Outward Bound-like programs. I now focus on anti-racism and body liberation at both the individual and societal level because every body deserves respect and dignity.

I am a Certified Body Trust® Specialist from the Center for Body Trust in Portland, OR and I pledged my commitment to the HAES community in 2017. I am an AAMFT-Approved Supervisor from the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapists and I supervise graduate students and Associate-level clinicians on their way to licensure in Minnesota and Washington.

Professional Stats