Josh Montrenes, PhD, LP (They/Them)
Hi there! My name is Josh, and I am a neurodivergent and nonbinary therapist. I am passionate about working with neurodivergent and LGBTQIA+ children and teens and creating an affirming and calm therapeutic space for them. My work focuses on supporting children and teens who are struggling with executive skills. I also provide support for children and teens experiencing anxiety, OCD, and depression. Whether they need support with finding a way to regulate their emotions, or they need to find a way to keep things organized in a way that works for them, or if they need to learn ways to stay focused on day-to-day responsibilities, we can work on learning helpful strategies that are tailored to their needs. Maybe your child’s thoughts race or their heartbeat feels too fast when they are trying to concentrate on a test. Or they have intrusive thoughts that they cannot seem to control. Maybe your teen is feeling down and hopeless and they are struggling to make friends. Whatever they may be experiencing, I am here to provide unconditional support and help them learn ways to deal with these struggles and have self-compassion through it all.
When your child or teen and I are working together, things may look different from day to day, as I am always adapting the session to their needs. When we do skills-based work, I may talk to them about a therapy skill and practice it with them in the session, like practicing visualizing our favorite calming spaces together. When we do emotional processing work, I’ll gently ask them about challenging things they have experienced, help them identify emotions, meaning, and other insights, and reassure them that it’s okay to feel big emotions. I am always working at their pace and making sure they know that they don’t need to share things until they feel ready. I also always make time for fun activities: games, drawing, talking about a special interest, and sharing enjoyment together. I’ll build a trusting therapy space with them so that when there is something that your teen or child needs to talk about, we’re ready to explore it together. So if your child or teen is struggling right now, if they are feeling lost, stressed, or invalidated, then I would love to provide a calm, gentle, and supportive space for them to be themselves. I am always happy to talk more about what things might look like in therapy, so your child or teen can feel more comfortable with the process. Outside of my therapeutic work, I enjoy spending time in nature, playing video games, and cuddling with my cat, Walnut.
Specialties: Neurodivergence, LGBTQ, Gendernonconforming, anxiety, depression, trauma, executive function support, psychological testing
