About Us

Portland Therapy Project is founded and run by Sawyer Salameh, LPC and Roza Skenderova, LPC. We share in our passion for giving back to our communities by providing OHP clients access to quality, queer knowledgeable care and supporting student interns in building sustainable practices.

For more information on us, check out our individual practices:portlandsomaticcounseling.com
ruggedheartcounseling.com

Tate Sprite

(They/Them)

Mental Health Intern

An authentic, down-to-earth connection with clients is essential to me. I see people as inherently good and capable of ongoing learning. We experiment together to recognize habits and see what else is possible. A huge aspect of my approach is attention to the present moment, feeling emotions and sensations in the body, relating to different parts of yourself with compassion, and getting comfortable with not knowing.I was born in Slovenia. My love for languages led me to a degree in Translation Studies, and I eventually came to the United States as a translator. Psychology and personal growth have been my passion since I was very young: I kept doing trainings and eventually leading workshops. Since 2013, I've been facilitating Authentic Relating and Circling events in the Portland area and online. Seeing participants transformed in beautiful ways has inspired me to get into therapy as a profession.I'm currently doing my Masters in Mindfulness-Based Transpersonal Counseling at Naropa University. I've also completed several extensive continuing education programs for therapists: Comprehensive Training in Mindful Experiential Therapy Approaches (META), which includes Hakomi, Re-Creation of the Self, and Primary Attachment; Inner Relationship Focusing Teacher Training (guided self-discovery process based on accessing the body's implicit knowing); and the Art of Circling (a relational mindfulness and applied emotional intelligence practice).I look forward to supporting you on your journey.

Sara Jannette Sutter

(They/She)

Mental Health Intern

I believe that every person holds the map to their own healing. Within the therapeutic relationship, I support my clients in connecting with the inherent wisdom of their wounding and the tools needed to further liberate it. Through work that is curious and embodied, we will deepen attunement to all parts of ourselves in a meandering adventure of reclaiming wholeness.My approach is shaped by somatics, yoga, and wilderness immersion; my writing practice and transformation through arts’ communities; the cohort and coursework of California Institute of Integral Studies; deep dives into psychedelic healing with particular focus on integration through an Internal Family Systems lens; my journey of understanding how trauma has shaped me— the losses and the fortifications; and, most significantly, the relationships that bless my life with ongoing opportunities for mutual evolution.I am a queer, femme, white, Pacific Islander, first-generation college student, an oldest sibling, temporarily able-bodied, settler on Indigenous lands, and a lifelong learner. I am a lover of poetry, philosophy, astrology, backpacking, all ways of being in water, and pups.It is an honor and delight to be on this path with you.

Kapu Dancel

(She/They)

Mental Health Intern

I am a Kanaka ʻŌiwi, mixed heritage, queer, counseling intern with an eclectic background including movement arts, social work, and oration. Born and raised in Central Maui, I grew up in an interwoven community of Indigenous, immigrant, and transplant populations all trying to survive on a small island in the Pacific. This place of origin, and the people connected to it, have imbued me with a respect for the many ways that we as people creatively adapt in pursuit of survival, growth and even healing.As a counselor, I am interested in how we can foster imaginative, embodied, and relational space to explore the story you carry while creating more awareness, choice, and freedom. I believe therapy is a relational space of healing. Whether the relationship is with yourself, your partner(s), your friends, your colleagues, or your chosen or bio family–relationships impact our experience of the world around us. In therapy, I have the immense privilege to come alongside folks as they cultivate a life with space for healing, connection, and nuance.In my free time, you can find me creating visual short stories, playing with my rescue pitties, and facilitating creative movement classes through my non-profit, ‘Iolana Collective.

Kalpana Krishnamurthy

(She/Her)

Mental Health Intern

I am a graduate student in the marriage, couples, and family therapy program at Portland State University. I believe therapy can help us build a greater understanding of ourselves, and also be fun and also super weird. I am excited to work with clients of all kinds, and have a special love of bicultural issues for individuals and families, grief, transitions, and medical trauma.Before changing careers to therapy, I mostly worked at community-based organizations that worked on policy and organizing. A lot of my work was around making sure that people of color and other folks from marginalized backgrounds have the rights, recognition and resources they need to thrive. I have a cat named Whisper, a family with two teenage children, I love to cook and knit, and am an avid reader of romance novels.

Janay Wright

(She/Her)

Mental Health Intern

I am a graduate student at Portland State University studying Clinical Rehabilitation Counseling. In short, that means I study the dynamics of systems and the individual through the Disability Justice lens. I focus on social justice, equity, and empowering minoritized people. My belief is that therapy is a space to learn how to feel more connected to others and one’s self. As well it’s a place of healing. Everyone has experiences and stories that shape their worldview. As a counselor I hope to support an exploration of those experiences and empower clients toward liberation.I’m originally from Northern Illinois and moved to Portland to study and expand my worldview. I feel passionately about community and became keenly aware of its importance when I moved away from home. I’ve been having so much fun meeting new people and cultivating new experiences. I identify as Black, femme, and spiritual. I hope to bring honor to my ancestors who fought for me to be where I am today. I hope to spread love and kindness wherever I am!

Sawyer Salameh, LPC

(They/Them)Licensed Professional Counselor
Clinical Supervisor

I am so excited to be in a place where I can help clinicians grow and explore. The journey to become a therapist is way bigger than I ever imagined. I feel so lucky to be on this journey myself and learning new things. I had no idea how much personal growth I was in for when I started and now, I get to support other clinicians while they expand into themselves and learn. In understand how big of an undertaking this is for clinicians, I hope to create a space to grow and challenge one’s self without judgement, but rather with curiosity. The more we can learn about ourselves the more we can expand with our clients. I believe learning is about making mistake with openness and growing with new knowledge.
I will ask you to connect with your body to gain a larger understanding of yourself and your relationship with your clients. I will help you focus on your client’s relationship to their body, what comes up for you in yours when in session, inner child work and healing, and holding the complexity of everything we create in this world.

Roza Skenderova, LPC

(She/They)Licensed Professional Counselor
Clinical Supervisor

As counselors, our own selves (bodies, minds, hearts) are the tools of our work. Good support in growing our therapist self and sharpening our skillsets can provide opportunity to create deeply meaningful and sustainable work for oneself and our own clients. My supervision style is relational, emotionally attuned and guided by social justice principles. I am predominantly somatically trained (Neo-Reichian Therapy), draw on attachment theory, gestalt and work with trauma and developmental trauma with queer and trans individuals.My hope is that we can create a trusting, transparent, and collaborative space that can nourish your goals, learning edges, clinical skill set, interests and excitements in the vast field of therapy.

Bree Koenig

(She/Her)Office Administrator

I am honored to connect with you as the first line of contact and compassion at Portland Therapy Project. As the dedicated office administrator, my mission is to ensure that every interaction with our center is infused with warmth and efficiency. Beyond my administrative role, I am equally passionate about my work as a psychotherapist in private practice. With a commitment to fostering emotional well-being, I support clients through various life challenges, providing guidance for self-discovery and growth. My dual roles allow me to seamlessly blend administrative expertise with therapeutic insight, creating a holistic and nurturing environment within Portland Therapy Project. It is my privilege to be a part of your transformative experience.For more information on Bree, please visit her psychotherapy practice website:
aylacounselingandwellness.com

Katya Stark

starkcounseling.com

ISABEL GRUSKA MCCUNE

www.isabelmccune.com

Anya Ludwig

www.bowerbirdwellness.com

Rose Novak

rosenovakcounseling.clientsecure.me

Katie Solomon

Coming soon!