About Sarah Blanning, LCSW

Hello!  I’m honored you’re here.

If you’ve come to this page, you are probably trying to find out if you will get along with me and if I know what I’m doing.  I’ll give you the resume-type stuff in a minute, but you and I both know that that stuff is details and you want to make this decision based on whether it feels right.

So here’s the scoop:  I’m really good at what I do and I’ve spent a lot of time with people from all walks of life and all sorts of goals.  I’ve created space for hope and healing for those that have experienced trauma, including violence, disasters, childhood abuses, and losses to suicide, homicide, and tragic accidents.  I’ve provided comfort and connection as people have grieved children, partners, brothers and sisters, parents, friends, pets, and even their own sense of self.  I’ve provided reassurance to every one of those people that they aren’t going crazy, and that it’s possible to find meaning in their lives even in the face of unspeakable heartache.

I’m passionate about this work and I’m so honored to have the opportunity to support you.

I’ve also spent hours upon hours with people that didn’t have anyone who could hear their grief or trauma without being overwhelmed.  People that have a story that was too painful for other people.  People that have really complicated or contradictory feelings and are beating themselves up for how they feel.  People whose recovery is “taking too long,” at least in the eyes of someone who thinks it’s okay to say something like that.

I believe that everyone deserves a space that they can say the things they’re too afraid or uncomfortable to share with anyone else. 

A space that is about you and only you, and where you aren’t responsible for anyone else’s needs or feelings.

And from all that came Hopeful Path Counseling.  Alaska is my home and I want to make sure my fellow Alaskans have the support they need when life gets really hard.

If you’re still interested in the details, here they are:

• Graduated from Duquesne University with a Bachelors in Sociology in 2005
• Graduated from the University of Pittsburgh with a Master of Social Work in 2010
• Currently working on my Doctorate in Social Work at Barry University in a trauma-focused advanced clinical practice program.  I expect to graduate in 2024
• Received my Licensed Clinical Social Worker license in Alaska in 2015
• I’ve worked in child welfare, substance use treatment, adoptions, domestic violence and child abuse prevention, medical social work, and behavioral health care in primary healthcare
• I do volunteer work supporting individuals and families experiencing loss and distress due to natural disasters
• In addition to working with trauma and loss, I’m experienced in working with depression, anxiety, and bipolar disorders, substance use disorders, attention problems, and relationship problems
• I’m trained in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Gottman Method Couples Counseling, Narrative Exposure Therapy, and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing.

Features in the media:

• HealthU interview – November 11, 2021

• Frontiersman article – September 18, 2020 – Take the time to check in with yourself when life is hard

• KTNA interview – September 11, 2020 – SCHC Check In

• KTNA interview – July 10, 2020 – SCHC Check In

• KTNA interview – April 18, 2020 – SCHC Check In

• KTNA interview – August 27, 2019 – Counseling Services available in Upper Susitna Valley for McKinley Fire

• JBER Public Affairs article feature – January 20, 2016 – Anger management classes are available, and not just as a commander-issued corrective tool

   

Vision

Provide the highest quality care for those navigating trauma and traumatic loss throughout the entire state of Alaska, so that they may heal and have meaningful and purposeful lives while continuing to hold space for what has been lost.