A Trusted Clinical Partner for Children & Families
With 16 years of specialized clinical experience, Genevieve Giddings, LCSW, brings a depth of expertise, warmth, and grounded presence to families across Durango, Cortez, and Southwest Colorado.
A Calm, Predictable Space for Healing
16 Years Practice
Genevieve Giddings
LCSW • Founder & Clinical Director
Meeting Families Where They Are
Throughout my 16 years as a licensed clinical social worker, I have worked with families facing complex transitions, severe behavioral challenges, trauma histories, and court-involved custody conflicts.
I believe that children do not act out in a vacuum—behavior is always communication. When a child is melting down, defiant, or shut down, their nervous system is signaling that safety or connection has been disrupted.
"My role is not to 'fix' a broken child, but to empower caregivers to become the secure haven their child instinctively needs."
The Modalities Guiding Our Clinical Work
Our practice translates cutting-edge relational neuroscience into intuitive, compassionate interventions that parents can readily apply at home.
Neurosequential Model
Dr. Bruce Perry's 3 R's
The brain develops hierarchically. An overwhelmed child cannot process logic until their brainstem is quieted (Regulate) and they feel bonded (Relate). Only then can we Reason.
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Whole-Brain Parenting
The Power of Repair
Informed by Dr. Dan Siegel's Whole-Brain child framework, we emphasize that conflict is natural. What creates emotional security is the intentional, warm repair that follows.
DBT Skills Training
Adolescent & Family DBT
Dialectical Behavior Therapy balances unconditional acceptance with active change skills—teaching teens and parents mindfulness, distress tolerance, and respectful assertiveness.
Earned Security
Attachment Play Therapy
Children communicate their inner world through play. We use experiential attunement to decode hidden anxieties, break generational cycles, and cultivate earned secure attachment.
Four Non-Negotiable Values in Every Session
When you welcome a therapist into your family’s vulnerable struggles, you deserve absolute clarity regarding how we operate.
Unconditional Emotional Safety
Safety is not merely a warm room—it is neurobiological predictability. We never rush a guarded child or shame an exhausted caregiver. True vulnerability requires deep trust.
The Relationship is the Client
We actively resist isolating children as "the problem" to be fixed. Our work treats the interactive dance, attunement patterns, and communication cycles between parent and child.
Honoring the Child's Pacing
Children communicate distress in their own timing. We utilize play, somatic rhythm, expressive arts, and gentle observation so children never feel coerced into disclosure.
Empowering Caregiver Capacity
Therapy is 50 minutes a week; life happens at home. We ensure parents leave every session with concrete, trauma-responsive strategies that de-escalate real-world household stress.
What to Expect in Our First Sessions
Taking the first step into family counseling can feel vulnerable. Here is how we make the intake and therapeutic progression clear, collaborative, and unhurried.
Caregiver Discovery
We begin with an in-depth conversation dedicated to parents. We map family history, current stressors, relational triggers, and clarify your core hopes for therapy.
Child & Relational Mapping
Through playful, child-centered interactions and gentle parent-child engagement, we observe attachment cues, sensory sensitivities, and nervous system regulation windows.
Collaborative Action
Together, we establish a practical roadmap. Sessions integrate play therapy for the child, dyadic reconnection exercises, and direct parent coaching for sustained progress at home.