Petia Sierschynski (she/her)

I was born in a small country on the Balkan peninsular with a rich history dating back to Roman times. Originally, I came to the US to pursue a graduate degree at the University of Washington, Seattle and then taught college courses for many years. After learning to teach Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction to adolescents, I decided to expand my training and become a mental health counselor working with children and youth. My own decade-long mindfulness practice has taught me the importance of self-compassion. I have learned to hold myself with understanding and tenderness when under the pressure of a challenge, or when I do not meet my own expectations. I am drawn to DBT because of its focus on radical acceptance and interpersonal effectiveness as means towards building a life that is worth living. My purpose as a therapist is to assist my adolescent clients in transforming the difficulties they are experiencing into rich opportunities for personal growth and milestones towards satisfying goals. Finding value and purpose in challenging situations has been a guiding principle in my own life.

Professional Biography:

Petia is an intern and is currently pursuing her master’s degree in Applied Child and Adolescent Psychology at the University of Washington. Petia has completed foundational training in Comprehensive DBT. She joins the DBT Center of Tacoma team as co-leader for our multifamily DBT skills groups and individual therapist working with adolescent and young adult clients.

Prior to enrolling in this master’s program, Petia earned a PhD in Comparative Literature from the University of Washington, Seattle with a focus on languages and culture. For over ten years, Petia taught a variety of undergraduate courses in Literature, Film, Writing, and Cultural Studies. Her interest in Philosophy motivated her to study at the Albert-Ludwigs Universität Freiburg, Germany and École Normale Supérieure, Paris, France. Petia received her bachelor’s degree from the American University in Bulgaria.