Psychotherapist · Certified Sex Therapist
Valerie
Wood
Therapy for individuals and couples navigating the passages that matter most; identity, grief, intimacy, and the relationships that hold it all.
At the heart of this work is a belief that when we are genuinely seen by another, something opens within us. We start to develop a capacity to know and love ourselves more fully which can transform our lives and our relationships.
Over more than three decades of clinical practice, I've developed deep expertise in the experiences that tend to arrive together and rarely travel alone: the hormonal and psychological upheaval of perimenopause and menopause, the grief that quietly reshapes a life, the intimate and relational shifts that come with it, and the old wounds that sometimes resurface when the nervous system is already under strain.
My work is integrative, unhurried, and genuinely collaborative. Whatever brought you here, you don't have to leave any part of it at the door. I welcome LGBTQIA+, Queer, gender-expansive, and non-monogamous clients in my practice.
Many of the clients I work with have spent years, sometimes decades, attending to everyone else's needs before their own. By the time they find their way to therapy, they've often minimized their own experience so thoroughly that naming it out loud feels almost self-indulgent.
It isn't. The fatigue, the disconnection, the anxiety that arrived without warning, the relationship that used to feel solid and now feels strained, these experiences are real and they are worth attending to.
I bring both clinical insights and genuine connection to my work with clients. I'll be honest with you, curious with you, and steady with you, particularly in the moments when things feel least steady.
What we can work through together
These specialties aren't separate silos, they're deeply interconnected. Real healing often means holding more than one thread at a time.
Hormonal transitions are profound neurological and psychological events. I help women understand and navigate the anxiety, mood shifts, brain fog, sleep disruption, and identity questions that accompany this stage without pathologizing any of it. I work in close partnership with your medical care team when relevant.
Changes in desire, arousal, body image, and intimacy are among the most common, and least discussed, experiences women face at midlife and beyond. I provide a non-judgmental, evidence-informed space to explore your sexuality, address physical or relational barriers to intimacy, and reconnect with your own desires on your own terms. I welcome clients exploring gender and identity as well as queer and ethically non-monogamous relationship structures.
Grief is not only about death. It can be the loss of a relationship, the ever transitioning roles we embody across a lifetime, a future you are just imagining, or a version of yourself you've lost touch with or long to discover. I am comfortable sitting with ambiguous and unnamed grief, the kind that doesn't have a ceremony or a clear endpoint, and together we can reflect and understand what might come next upon your path.
Relationships are living systems, and they are affected by everything their partners carry. I work with couples navigating the strain of midlife transitions, communication breakdown, intimacy challenges, grief, and the slow distance that can develop when two people stop finding their way back to each other.
Trauma held in the body doesn't always announce itself clearly. It can look like anxiety, numbness, relational patterns that don't make sense, or pain that resurfaces during periods of hormonal or life transition. I use trauma-informed, somatic, and evidence-based approaches, including EMDR, to support healing at a pace that feels safe.
Who am I now? What do I want, maybe for the first time? These are not small questions, and midlife is often when they become impossible to ignore. I help women explore and deepen their sense of self with the understanding that growth is possible at any point upon our journey.
Your very human struggles, your relationship strain, your grief, your hormonal transition, these are often experienced as interrelated issues. Together we will explore the impact and understanding of where and how these aspects of life intersect and how healing and growth can happen.
I bring somatic awareness and an understanding of the physiological dimensions of your experience into our work. The body holds what the mind sometimes can't say, and therapy works best when close attention is given to both.
I don't believe in one-size-fits-all treatment. I draw on aspects of psychodynamic, insight-oriented, somatic approaches, EMDR, trauma-informed and relational therapy in my work with clients.
Education & Credentials
Valerie Wood, LMSW, CST-S
You've been taking care of everyone else for a long time.
If something brought you here; curiosity, a quiet longing for change, or simply a sense that you are ready, that's enough. Let's find out if we're a good fit.
Click here to request a Consultation 20 minute introductory calls available via phone or video