A little bit about Laurie Ganberg, therapist & supervisor…

Image of Laurie Ganberg, LICSW, a white, cis, mid-fat woman sitting at a table, wearing a plaid shirt and holding a mug with fiddlehead ferns. She has visible tattoos and short, curly grey hair. Photo by Native Light.

My social work career started 25 years ago providing pregnancy options counseling, birth control education, and HIV testing and counseling at a Planned Parenthood clinic. I thought I wanted to be a nurse midwife, but realized that I preferred talking to the folks who came into the clinic, rather than dealing with bodily fluids! I eventually made my way to graduate school and obtained my Masters in Social Work (MSW) from Smith College School for Social Work in 2006.

In the time since then, I've provided supportive, nonjudgmental counseling for people seeking abortions; offered in-home family therapy and youth crisis intervention services; coordinated services provided under the Children's Behavioral Health Initiative in Massachusetts; facilitated groups for new parents; built a private practice in Cambridge, MA and Seattle, WA; and been part of the early team leading an innovative partial hospitalization program specifically for women in pregnancy and postpartum in Seattle at the Swedish Center for Perinatal Bonding and Support.

I feel deeply honored to have been a witness and support to the resilience of each of the people with whom I've worked. ​

Because we all bring all of us into the room, I think it’s worth sharing a little bit more about me. I am a white, cis, queer, fat, currently able-bodied woman. I believe where we’re from – our families, communities, cultures, places – shapes our experiences and the ways we make sense of the world and our place in it. I’m deeply appreciative of the years I lived outside the United States and the immigration experiences within my family. As a former New Englander, I think I will always be in awe of the mountains and the water here in the Seattle area where I work and reside on the traditional territories of the Duwamish, Snohomish, Suquamish, and Stillaguamish people. 

I’m often asked if I have children…I am a parent. For me, parenting has been a humbling exercise in patience, connection, sleep deprivation, failure, laughter, and remembering I can only be "good enough," as well as profound grief.

My outlets include almost anything that's creative. These days, I practice imperfection and mindfulness by tap dancing, knitting, and relearning instruments I used to know how to to play. I relish our PNW summers for opportunities to hike and camp with my family & our dog, Toby, and I'm learning to appreciate the rain.

Laurie Ganberg, a white, fat, cis therapist, sits on the ground wearing a purple sleeveless top and feeds a treat to Toby, a black lab mix dog. Photo by Body Liberation Photography

Education and Select Post-Graduate Trainings

  • Tufts University, BA in Environmental Studies and History

  • Smith College School for Social Work, Masters of Social Work

  • Postpartum Support International, Perinatal Mental Health Certification

  • Smith College SSW, Advanced Clinical Supervision certificate

  • EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing)

  • Circle of Security Parenting

  • Health at Every Size®

  • Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR)

  • Intro to Embodied Recovery for Eating Disorders

  • Body Trust® Certification Training​, in progress

  • Becoming a Neurodivergent-Affirming Clinician

Chat with me

If you are interested in working with me, please schedule a free, brief phone or zoom call.

Professional Bio for Laurie Ganberg, LICSW, PMH-C

Laurie Ganberg, a white, fat cis woman and therapist smiles at the camera wearing an ivory cardigan and teal shirt.

Laurie Ganberg, LICSW, PMH-C (she/hers) obtained her MSW from Smith College in 2006 and has had the privilege of working with individuals and families in their homes, medical settings, community agencies, and in private practice. She moved from the Boston area to Seattle to join the Swedish Center for Perinatal Bonding and Support’s Day Program, a perinatal partial hospitalization program, when it opened in 2016 and worked as the lead therapist there until 2019 when she returned to private practice to offer therapy and supervision. She brings a social worker’s focus on systemic context and social justice to her clinical work, supervision, and trainings, centering anti-oppression, fat liberation, and affirmation of BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, disabled and neurodivergent groups. Laurie writes, speaks, consults and facilitates trainings for multidisciplinary professionals with a goal of destigmatizing mental health complications and ensuring providers can respond compassionately using effective, trauma-informed interventions.​