Ambryn Melius, LPCC, BC-DMT (she/they)

I approach therapy and mental health from a holistic, body-based and social-justice framework, acknowledging impacts of white supremacy and systemic oppression within the intersections of social identity and relationships. Informed by a Health At Every Size (HAES) approach, my framework further respects and celebrates body diversity and body liberation, as well as honoring embodied lived experiences. 

I received my Master's Degree in Dance/Movement Therapy and Counseling from Columbia College Chicago, and am a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor (LPCC), as well as a board-certified dance/movement therapist (BC-DMT) with the American Dance Therapy Association. I work with children and teens (8yrs-18yrs), as well as adults and families who are struggling with issues of self-identity, life transitions and relationship challenges, grief and loss, impacts of trauma, disembodiment, as well as experiences and issues unique to the queer/LGBTQI experience. Currently I co-facilitate a movement, mindfulness and creative arts skills group for teens impacted by the trauma of sexual abuse or assault. Past academic research has focused on the phenomenon of vicarious trauma and its embodied impacts on professionals within the trauma field.

As a queer, cisgender, able-bodied, European-descendant, I remain committed to my own ongoing internal and external process of dismantling white supremacist, anti-black and homophobic beliefs and behaviors. I’m passionate about inviting others into their innate wholeness and resilience, alongside healthy doses of humor and irreverence.