Salem Therapists
Kathleen “Kitty” Root-Bunten
Professional Counselor Associate
Kathleen “Kitty” Root-Bunten specializes in individual counseling/coaching, nutritional and movement consultations. She has lived in the Pacific Northwest for the better part of 30+ years. In her time as a co-healer she has helped individuals find their unique path to holistic wellness using therapeutic, coaching, nutritional, and movement resources. She approaches the therapeutic relationship as a collaborative endeavor that is solution focused and growth oriented. Kathleen combines a number of theoretical modalities including mindfulness, cognitive behavioral, and client centered with nutritional and fitness modalities. In using an approach that respects your lived experience she is able to focus on your unique needs as you work together to develop a process that leads to actualization of your personally define wellness status.
Kathleen's Approach
Kathleen believes that change and personal growth happens as a result of our relationship to ourselves, others, and the environments we live in. That as one explores those relationships, they have the right to feel heard, respected, and safe in both mind, body, and spirit. Her approach is based on a cognitive behavioral perspective, but she does draw from an array of theoretical approaches depending on the needs of the client(s). Kathleen feels that therapy is a conversation that can include creative visual art projects, use of workbooks and homework, guided journaling, creative writing, and nutritional and/or movement adjustments.
More About Kathleen "Kitty" Root-Bunten
Experience
Kathleen did her practicum and a portion of degree internship at the Russell Street LGTBQ Clinic in Northeast Portland. After graduating in 2010 she worked in both the private practice forum and in agency in rural Oregon as a Mental Health Counselor and as Life Coach. She has over 20 years of experience in the area of Life and Nutritional Coaching and has been on the Professional Counseling licensure track with the state of Oregon for just over two years. Kathleen’s work experiences in fields of Real Estate/At Risk Housing, Non-Profit Management, and Education coupled her lived experiences of raising a family as a single parent, blending families, being a military wife, and grief provide her with a depth of understanding of the challenges one faces as we process through life.
Education
Kathleen earned her undergraduate degree at Portland State University and has a Master of Science in Clinical Mental Health Counseling (MS-CMHC) from Walden University in Minnesota. She has certification as a Holistic Nutritional Consultant Certificate (HNCC) from the AFPA and holds additional certifications in Trauma, Cognitive Behavioral and Cognitive Processing Therapies, and Integrative Medicine for Mental Health from PESI.
Can I Help You?
I treat patients for:
- Anxiety
- Depression
- LGBTQIA+ Related Issues
- Traumatic Events, Trauma, PTSD
- Relationship Struggles
- Bipolar Disorder
- Veteran Issues
