Emma Wright

Marriage and Family Counseling Intern

I am a practicum student currently completing my master’s degree in the Marriage, Couple, and Family Counseling track at Duquesne University. I found the counseling field in a roundabout way, obtaining my undergraduate degree in English with the hopes of becoming a professor. After discovering academia was not what I wanted in a long-term career, I began working in technical schools as a career advisor where I learned to listen to students’ stories and empower them with resources they needed to succeed. It was here where I began developing my passion for advocacy and healing work through deep human connection.

I find myself drawing from existential-humanistic lenses as a backdrop to the therapeutic process: it is always present, although not always seen. In addition to my existential lens, I am drawn towards holistic frameworks such as Internal Family Systems (IFS), Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT), and Gestalt lenses that acknowledge the importance of the embodied encounter that coincide with deeper emotional discovery. At its core, I find the therapeutic process to be an endeavor of ongoing curiosity and willingness to face the unknown.

The process of holistic healing requires an acknowledgement of the individual as part of a system–it is imperative to my therapeutic identity to provide space to deconstruct systems of oppression in order to acknowledge one’s resilience and capacity for growth. As a queer-identifying person myself, I am neurodivergent and LGBTQIA+ affirming, holding space for the nuances of identity development throughout all stages of life.

Healing is a communal process, and it is my hope that I have the opportunity to participate in community with you on your journey towards authenticity and transformation.