Our Mission & Vision

Existential-Humanistic NorthWest enlivens and enriches human experience through our commitment to being present with ourselves, others, society, and the mystery of life. We serve the healing professions, our clients, and the public through dialogue, education, training, and advocacy.

We are here to impact the world through our commitment to and passion for existential-humanistic values of authenticity, integrity, responsibility, inter-connectedness, inclusion, and awe.

Meet the Board

Bob Edelstein

LMFT, MFT

I am passionate about the existential-humanistic perspective in both my personal and professional life. To me, the perspective embraces all of what it means to exist and values each unique, individual journey. I value that we always have a choice to change our attitude and behavior, even in the most limited of conditions or circumstances. I take on the powerful responsibility that our choice matters in that we impact the world by our feelings, thoughts and actions. This perspective also embraces that as human beings we are always moving towards health and wholeness, both individually and collectively.

Beth Swain

LPC

I have been a licensed professional counselor (LPC) working from an Existential-Humanistic (EH) and Jungian framework for over twenty years. Currently, I have a private practice in Salem, Oregon. Coming from an EH perspective, my clients are often seeking a sense of meaning in their lives. We work to discover what blocks them from pursuing their reason for being and explore ways to live more fully and authentically. I am, also, a certified Archetypal Pattern Analyst which helps me further identify life patterns that stand in my client’s way from fully embracing their life purpose.

Prior to becoming a mental health counselor, I was an early childhood educator and director of an early childhood program for over ten years. Then, I spent several years teaching personal and career development courses in a community college where I primarily worked with single parents who were seeking a path out of poverty.

Clare Knudsen

I am a student in Western Seminary’s CACREP-accredited Master’s program in clinical mental health counseling, and in the fall of 2025, I will resume seeing clients as part of my clinical internship at Charis Counseling. My previous clinical experience took place at A New Day Counseling in Portland, Oregon, and I have received additional training in Existential-Humanistic psychotherapy core skills from the Existential-Humanistic Institute (EHI). Since 2024, I have been a member of the Western Seminary chapter of Chi Sigma Iota (CSI), the international honor society of professional counseling. In November 2024, I joined the board of Existential-Humanistic Northwest (EHNW).

As I have studied the tools of counseling and found my fit in the field, the Existential-Humanistic perspective and its values have become a home. I seek to show up to every relationship authentically and to cultivate presence in my own life as well as between myself and others. As a human and as a counselor, I seek genuine connection, hold great respect and curiosity for the unique experience of each person, and believe that despite limitations of self or circumstance, we are always free and responsible to make meaningful choices. In addition, my approach is influenced by interests in ecotherapy, spirituality, and interconnectedness, a focus on meaning-making, Stephen Porges’s polyvagal theory, and an ever-growing awareness of oppressive systems. I am happy to always be learning through books, people, and continuing education.

Lisa Sloan Strom

LPC cadc-I

I’m a second-generation psychotherapist, raised on warm beach sand with a passion for humanity and an unquenchable thirst for deeper meaning. Early adulthood exploration as: actor, dancer, college DJ, skateboarder, bike messenger, filmmaker, music video producer, foreign publicist, and world traveler have made for a diverse background. In mid-life, I’ve also served as a bilingual teacher (Spanish-English), parent educator, and radio producer. Life experience in the education, communication and creative industries inspired me to become a Licenced Professional Counselor. I have a private practice in Portland, where I work with adult individuals, and engage in an integration of existential, feminist and Jungian approaches with my clients. I am an addiction specialist, serving both those seeking recovery and also their loved ones. In addition to sitting on the EHNW Board of Directors, I also enjoy serving as Advisor to the Council for Sati Sangha.

Marc Turkel

MA LMHCA - Associate

I’ve lived in the PNW for 25 years via Miami and originally, from New York City. I received a BFA from the Rochester Institute of Technology and worked as a professional photographer. I came to Seattle to work for Microsoft and lead self actualization seminars before earning a Masters in Existential Phenomenology Psychology from Seattle University. I interned at Sound Behavioral Health and currently work in a private group practice in Seattle, WA.

I practice Existential Integrative therapy which is defined by Kirk Schneider (1999) as, “that confluence of artistic, philosophical, and clinical disciplines that employ what might roughly be called a phenomenological method of arriving at an understanding of human existence”. That is, for each client, a framework to purposefully examine life’s experience, to distinguish that which lies below the level of our consciousness and to generate the freedom to walk an intentional pathway forward. I’m grief and loss informed, I study mindfulness, eastern philosophy and a variety of selected modalities. I’m interested in the ways these all converge, how people construct meaning and how it relates to finding new capacities for generating wellbeing.

I work with people dealing with depression, anxiety, grief and loss, life transitions, relationship issues including polyamory and ethical non-monogamy.

Justin Rock

LPC, LMFT (Past President & Founding Board Member)

Justin is a Portland-based existential-phenomenological therapist, supervisor, and educator who helped launch Existential-Humanistic Northwest and later served as its President. He is currently a PhD scholar in Social Justice Leadership & Change, where his research centers on epistemic justice in mental-health care. Grounded in the conviction that being-with is the catalyst for growth, Justin works with individuals, couples, and groups to explore freedom, responsibility, and meaning: especially at life’s thresholds of loss, identity shift, and becoming.In addition to his clinical practice, Justin teaches graduate courses in family therapy, theories, development,  existential-humanistic theory and supervision, mentors early-career clinicians, and designs community dialogues that weave philosophy, social justice, epistemic justice, and the arts. He speaks and writes on relational ethics, systemic perspectives on mental health, and the creative tensions between awe and anxiety.

Leif Moa-Anderson

Psychotherapist, MA, LPC, LMHC

My journey toward being part of EHNW started in my childhood with the way I was raised, with a lot of influence from humanistic psychology. It was refined by my undergraduate degree in Philosophy and Comparative History of Ideas. After a break from academic pursuits, doing residential construction, I returned to study clinical psychology. I acquired a masters degree in Systems Counseling and Psychology from Saybrook University in 2010. Although my degree and my private practice, Relationship Centered Counseling, focus on relational systems, I prefer doing deep work with individuals and their relationships with themselves. When I stumbled upon EHNW, I immediately felt at home. Here is a place where relationship is central to the work of being a therapist, where it is through the relational dynamics between therapist and client that transformation occurs. This group understands that the therapist is the instrument and the hard work is on the relationship with the self. So that one can show up and be present with their clients, wherever their clients need to go, even to the depths of the existential conundrums of the human condition. I humbly strive for this audacious goal and extremely grateful for the support of this organization in that journey. I only hope to help EHNW spread this philosophy.

Chuck Craytor

LPC, Psychotherapist, Consultant, Life Explorer

For over 25 years, I’ve helped individuals and organizations navigate uncertainty and change — including 14 years as a psychotherapist. My work weaves together psychotherapy, facilitation, leadership development, and international research on trauma and resilience. Whether working one-on-one or with groups, I aim to support people in living and leading with greater authenticity and purpose.

I grew up on a farm along Oregon’s Willamette River, where the natural world became my first teacher. The river’s quiet strength, the rhythm of the seasons, and the interconnectedness of all things sparked a lifelong curiosity about how we relate — to ourselves, to each other, and the world around us. That sense of wonder and compassion has guided my journey across industries, cultures, and countless conversations with mentors, colleagues, and clients.

I believe life’s difficulties and uncertainties can be turning points for growth and meaning. Drawing on existential-humanistic therapy, contemplative practices, and a deep respect for each person’s story, I help individuals reconnect with what is already whole and alive within them.

Beneath all these roles runs a simple conviction: that every life, no matter how complex or painful, holds the potential for meaning, love, and renewal.

Sofia Elias

MA

Since I read my first self-help book at fifteen, it has been a passion of mine to understand the human psyche and to help people to make positive, meaningful and lasting change in their lives. In my private practice in Portland, OR, I work with adolescents and adults, couples+ and families, supporting the challenging yet rewarding journey of being in intimate relationship. 

My Master’s degree in Spiritual Psychology keeps me grounded in my eclectic approach using a blend of humanistic, systems and attachment, developmental and solution-focused modalities. I have grown in my relational work from training in Terry Real’s RLT (Certified), Hendrix & La Hunt’s Imago Relationship Therapy (Certified), Sue Johnson’s Emotionally-Focused Therapy, Bader-Pearson’s Developmental Model, and Martha Kauppi’s work with sexual issues. All of my work is supported by the Existential-Humanistic model, which I see as the foundation for all other methodologies.

Outside of the office, I enjoy spending time with my loved ones and two cats, learning new things (ukulele and salsa dancing at the moment), geeking out on psych and spiritual books, doing crosswords, perusing Little Free Libraries, and spending lots of time in nature in the beautiful Pacific Northwest, especially the beach!

EHNW Provides

  • Education
    Providing educational training for clinical practitioners in the areas of E-H theory and therapy practice

  • Advocacy
    Advocating for E-H psychotherapy with the aim of having better representation within both professional communities and to the public.

  • Membership, Peer Support, Outreach
    Offering dynamic support through intentionally-committed membership and professional/community outreach.

  • Interdisciplinary
    Dialogue with a diverse range of academic and professional disciplinary perspectives to enhance the creative applications of E-H concepts and values.