Dr. Lauren Helm has extensive training in gold-standard, evidence-based treatments. These therapy modalities are supported by the highest level of scientific evidence, and are widely recognized for their effectiveness in treating anxiety, OCD, and related concerns.

The specific treatment approaches used will be tailored to your needs and goals. These may include:

• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) – to help you identify and shift unhelpful thought patterns and behaviors

• Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) for OCD – a highly effective method for reducing compulsions and managing intrusive thoughts

• CBT with Exposure Therapy for Anxiety Disorders, Panic, and Phobias – helping you gradually face feared situations in a safe, supportive way

• Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) – to support deeper emotional connection and healing, especially in the context of relationship distress or attachment wounds

These approaches are active, collaborative, experiential, and designed to help you build meaningful, lasting change.

In addition to well-established evidence-based treatments, Dr. Lauren Helm also integrates newer, cutting-edge evidence-based approaches.

Some of these include:

• Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) – helps you build psychological flexibility by focusing on values-based action and mindfulness strategies

• The Unified Protocol Treatment for Emotional Disorders (UP-CBT) – a transdiagnostic approach that targets the common emotional processes underlying anxiety, depression, and related disorders

• Compassion-Focused Therapy (CFT) – designed to cultivate self-kindness and reduce self-criticism, especially for those with shame or trauma backgrounds

• Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC) – an evidence-informed approach that combines mindfulness with self-kindness to reduce self-criticism and build emotional resilience

These integrative, forward-thinking models are tailored to your unique experiences, and aim to support healing in both mind and body.

Dr. Lauren Helm views therapy as a collaborative process. You bring your lived experience, values, and insight, and she brings clinical expertise, structure, and evidence-based tools.

Together, you’ll identify your goals and work toward meaningful, lasting change. Dr. Helm will offer guidance and support while honoring your autonomy, so you feel empowered and actively engaged in your own growth every step of the way.

Dr. Lauren Helm focuses on practical strategies that you can apply in your everyday life. Whether you are working on managing anxiety, setting boundaries, or building healthier habits, she will help you translate insight into action.

Your work together is rooted in real-world application—so you're not just gaining awareness, but also building tools you can rely on outside of session. Her goal is to help you make meaningful changes that feel achievable and aligned with your values.

Dr. Lauren Helm approaches therapy with warmth, curiosity, and compassion. It can be very vulnerable to open up, and she strives to create a space where you feel seen, respected, and safe.

Dr. Helm aims to understand your experiences in context—how you've adapted, what you've been carrying, and what matters most to you. Dr. Helm will work gently and intentionally, balancing change with deep self-acceptance.

Anxiety and OCD can be exhausting and overwhelming. You might find yourself caught in loops of overthinking, anticipating worst-case scenarios, or avoiding things that used to feel manageable.

Anxiety can show up as chronic worry, panic attacks, social fear, perfectionism, or a constant sense of unease.

OCD often includes distressing, intrusive thoughts and urges to do certain behaviors (compulsions) to feel “just right” or to prevent something bad from happening.

Some people experience high-functioning anxiety—they seem outwardly successful but feel constantly on edge, driven by fear of failure or not doing enough.

Others may struggle with health anxiety, frequently worrying about illness or misinterpreting body sensations.

Perfectionism can also fuel anxiety, creating pressure to meet unrealistic standards and a fear of making mistakes.

These are not signs of weakness—they’re patterns your brain has learned in response to fear, uncertainty, or past stress. And they are treatable.

At Rise Psychology, Dr. Lauren Helm specializes in evidence-based treatment for anxiety-related disorders, including:

• Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)

• Social Anxiety Disorder

• Panic Disorder and Agoraphobia

• Specific Phobias

• Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

• Illness Anxiety Disorder

• Somatic Symptom Disorder

Treatment is tailored to your unique experiences and draws from therapies like CBT, Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Exposure Therapy, and the Unified Protocol.

Together, you will work to reduce the grip of anxiety and help you build a life that feels more open, grounded, and aligned with what matters most to you.

Living with ADHD as an adult can feel like running a marathon with untied shoelaces. You may struggle with focus, time management, follow-through, or emotional regulation—even when you're highly motivated and capable. It’s not uncommon to feel overwhelmed, disorganized, or frustrated with yourself, especially if you’ve been told for years to “just try harder.”

ADHD can impact nearly every area of life: work, school, relationships, home responsibilities, and self-esteem. But with the right support, it's possible to build practical tools, shift unhelpful thought patterns, and create systems that work for you.

Dr. Lauren Helm offers:

• Skills coaching for planning, prioritization, organization, and routines

• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) to challenge internalized self-criticism and develop flexible thinking

• Support for emotional dysregulation, rejection sensitivity, and executive functioning challenges

• Help identifying your strengths, needs, and values so you can work with your brain, not against it

• Tools to navigate perfectionism, procrastination, and task initiation

Whether you’ve been diagnosed recently or have lived with ADHD for years, therapy can help you build a more empowered and self-compassionate relationship with your brain—and create structures that support your goals and well-being.

Perfectionism often looks like high standards and hard work on the outside—but inside, it can feel like never being good enough. You might spend hours overthinking, reworking, or second-guessing yourself, only to feel like you’ve still fallen short. Mistakes may feel unacceptable, and self-worth might depend on constant achievement or others’ approval.

While perfectionism can sometimes drive success, it often comes at a steep cost: chronic stress, burnout, anxiety, procrastination, low self-compassion, and difficulty relaxing or enjoying life. It can also impact relationships, making it hard to be vulnerable, ask for help, or tolerate your own humanity.

In therapy, you can explore how perfectionism developed, how it's maintained, and—most importantly—how to loosen its grip while still honoring your goals and values.

Therapy may include:

• Identifying perfectionistic thinking and behavioral patterns

• Developing more flexible, realistic self-expectations

• Practicing self-compassion and emotional resilience

• Letting go of all-or-nothing thinking

• Learning to value effort, rest, and progress over performance

You don’t have to keep striving endlessly to prove your worth. Therapy can help you create space for rest, joy, and connection—without sacrificing what matters most to you.

When you're burned out, everything can feel like too much—and not enough—at the same time. You might feel physically and emotionally drained, disconnected from your motivation or sense of purpose, and constantly behind no matter how hard you try. Overwhelm can show up as irritability, mental fog, exhaustion, or a sense of emotional flatness. You may find yourself pushing through, even as your inner resources feel depleted.

Burnout is not a personal failure—it’s often the result of chronic stress, perfectionism, caregiving demands, or unsustainable expectations in your work or personal life. It can affect anyone, but is especially common among high-achievers, helpers, parents, and those juggling multiple roles.

At Rise Psychology, Dr. Lauren Helm help clients:

• Understand the psychological and physiological signs of burnout

• Identify internal and external sources of overwhelm

• Set compassionate boundaries and redefine productivity

• Reconnect with meaning, values, and sustainable motivation

• Develop skills for nervous system regulation and emotional resilience

Together, you’ll work to restore your energy, clarify your priorities, and help you build a life that feels more spacious, intentional, and aligned with your values.

It’s common to feel stuck, lost, or conflicted when it comes to work—especially when your career doesn’t align with your values, identity, or sense of purpose. You might feel torn between stability and change, unsure whether to stay, leave, or pivot. Maybe you're successful on paper but feel disconnected or unfulfilled. Or perhaps you're struggling with self-doubt, imposter syndrome, or decision paralysis in the face of competing pressures.

Career ambivalence isn’t just about choosing a job—it’s about navigating identity, meaning, and the expectations you carry from family, culture, or past experiences. This kind of uncertainty can be mentally and emotionally taxing, but it can also be a powerful invitation for growth and clarity.

Therapy can help you:

• Explore what’s driving your ambivalence or dissatisfaction

• Clarify your values, strengths, and vision for meaningful work

• Work through perfectionism, fear of failure, or fear of success

• Navigate transitions, burnout, or mismatches between you and your work environment

• Develop a more grounded, self-compassionate approach to career decision-making

Whether you're early in your career, mid-transition, or simply reevaluating what matters most, therapy can offer space to slow down, reflect, and move forward with more confidence and alignment.

Academic life can be deeply rewarding—but also incredibly demanding. You might feel pressure to excel, keep up with heavy workloads, manage deadlines, or meet expectations from professors, family, or yourself. Stress may show up as procrastination, burnout, imposter syndrome, test anxiety, or perfectionism. You may find it hard to rest, focus, or enjoy learning the way you once did.

For many students and high-achievers, college or university becomes a source of anxiety, self-doubt, and exhaustion. You might feel like you're constantly running on empty—trying to prove yourself while quietly questioning whether you’re really cut out for it.

Therapy can help college and university students and lifelong learners:

• Navigate performance pressure, fear of failure, and self-criticism

• Develop tools for emotional regulation, time management, and focus

• Understand the impact of perfectionism, ADHD, or anxiety on learning

• Reconnect with intrinsic motivation and a sense of purpose

• Find more balance and compassion in the pursuit of academic or professional goals

Whether you're in college, graduate school, or pursuing a major transition in your academic path, therapy can help you move forward with clarity, confidence, and well-being.

Therapy isn’t only for when things feel unmanageable—it can also be a space for reflection, growth, and becoming more fully yourself. You may be feeling a quiet sense that something needs to shift, even if nothing is “technically wrong.” Or you may want to deepen your self-understanding, break out of old patterns, or explore what a more meaningful life could look like.

Therapy can support clients who are seeking:

• A stronger sense of identity or direction

• Greater emotional awareness and self-compassion

• Healing from past patterns that no longer serve them

• Support navigating life transitions or choices

• A deeper connection with personal values, purpose, or creativity

Personal development is a powerful process—one that invites clarity, courage, and the ability to live with more intention. Whether you're in a season of change or simply want to reconnect with what matters most, therapy offers a collaborative and supportive space for growth.

Relationships are central to our well-being, but they can also be one of the most challenging parts of life. You might find yourself feeling disconnected, unheard, overly responsible for others’ emotions, or stuck in painful patterns with a partner, friend, or family member. You may struggle to set boundaries, express your needs, or repair after conflict.

These difficulties often stem from deeper emotional experiences, attachment wounds, or learned relational patterns—and they are worth exploring with care and compassion.

At Rise Psychology, Dr. Helm helps clients navigate a wide range of relationship concerns, including:

• Communication difficulties

• Emotional disconnection or avoidance

• Fear of intimacy or vulnerability

• People-pleasing and boundary challenges

• Conflict and rupture repair

• Attachment insecurity (anxious, avoidant, or disorganized patterns)

• The impact of anxiety or OCD on relationships

Therapy work may involve identifying unhelpful patterns, practicing assertive communication, and building skills for emotional attunement and repair.

Dr. Helm draws from evidence-based approaches such as Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Compassion-Focused Therapy (CFT), and Interpersonal Effectiveness strategies from DBT.

Whether you're navigating challenges within a relationship or processing a painful relationship history, therapy can help you foster deeper connection, greater clarity, and more secure, fulfilling relationships.

Even the strongest relationships can go through periods of disconnection, conflict, or uncertainty. You might find yourselves caught in the same arguments, feeling misunderstood, emotionally distant, or unsure how to move forward together. It’s common to struggle with communication, unmet needs, differences in attachment styles, or the pressures of parenting, life transitions, or past hurts.

Couples therapy provides a supportive space to slow down, listen differently, and begin rebuilding trust and connection. You don’t have to wait for things to fall apart to seek support—therapy can help you strengthen your relationship before small issues grow into larger ones.

Couple therapy can help partners:

• Improve communication and emotional responsiveness

• Understand each other’s needs, fears, and attachment patterns

• Repair past hurts and rebuild trust

• Navigate life transitions, parenting, or differing values

• Rekindle intimacy and connection

Dr. Lauren Helm draws from Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT), Integrative Behavioral Couple Therapy (IBCT), and the Gottman Method to support couples move out of cycles of conflict and into deeper emotional connection.

Whether you’re hoping to reconnect, work through a rupture, or make decisions about your future, therapy offers a space for honest, compassionate exploration—together.

Ready to take the first step?

If you are a Washington resident, schedule a complimentary 25 minute phone consultation so that we can discuss your needs and how my practice may be able to support you.

You can schedule an appointment by clicking “Request Appointment” to book your consultation.

Intake Assessment: In your first few sessions, Dr. Lauren Helm will spend time getting to know you (this is called an intake assessment). She will ask about your current concerns, past experiences, and what’s most important to you, so she can understand you as a whole person.

Treatment Planning: Dr. Helm will work with you to clarify your goals and decide on an approach that feels right for you.

Therapy Sessions: As you move forward, your therapy sessions will be focused on helping you make meaningful progress toward your goals.

Sessions might include exploring patterns, working through difficult emotions, learning and practicing new skills, reflecting on what’s working (and addressing what’s not using problem-solving tools).

Over time, you can expect to walk away with a deeper understanding of yourself, new tools to manage challenges, and a clearer sense of how to move toward the life you want.

Individual Therapy:

• For individual psychotherapy, Dr. Lauren Helm currently accepts Lyra Health and Aetna in Washington state.

• If you have a different insurance provider, you may still be eligible for out-of-network benefits.

• Private pay options are also available.

Couples Therapy:

• Only private pay is accepted.

Please visit the billing and insurance page for details.

If you are a current client, you may log into the secure Client Portal to view your upcoming appointments, request new appointments, download documents, and retrieving Superbills by clicking the Current Clients button.