Harm Reduction & Empowerment Therapy

Harm Reduction & Empowerment Therapy

Therapy for people who use drugs, survivors of complex trauma, and anyone abstinence-only or one-size-fits-all treatment hasn't worked for. Serving Madison, WI and clients across Wisconsin via telehealth. 

Why this practice is different

Old approaches to therapy assume you're living in a safe, stable environment and that your symptoms are an abnormal reaction to a normal experience. For most of us right now, that's simply not true.

My approach starts from a different premise: living in a dysfunctional society, signs of mental health struggles and substance use are a normal response — not a personal failing. Together we'll build skills that calm your nervous system, meet your actual treatment goals, and tap into the resilience you already have.

Who I work with

• People for whom abstinence-based treatment hasn't worked

• Co-occurring substance use, mental health conditions, and complex trauma

• Clients who want a therapist with lived experience of recovery

• Family members carrying trauma from a loved one's substance use

• Trauma survivors ready to reclaim their power

• LGBTQ+, Sex-Positive, and Kink-Affirming clients seeking gender-affirming care

• Pregnant or parenting clients managing substance use disorder

• Therapists processing the loss of a client

Specialties & training

20 years of experience in harm reduction psychotherapy, including:

• Substance use & co-occurring disorders

• Complex trauma, including EMDR

• Ketamine-assisted psychotherapy

• Motivational Interviewing, ACT, DBT, CBT

• LGBTQ+, Sex-Positive & Kink-Affirming care

• Attachment-based, person-centered, empowerment-based approaches

About Skye

Founder and Clinical Director of CAYA Clinic, Wisconsin's first Harm Reduction Psychotherapy Clinic. 20 years working on the front lines of the substance use and mental health crisis, with lived experience of recovery from opioid and stimulant use disorder, anxiety, depression, and complex trauma. There is no room for shame or judgment in this practice — you are always the expert on your own experience.