I founded Tree of Life Counseling & Art Therapy in May of 2016. The formation of the practice came after leaving a successful practice in Pittsburgh, PA. My family moved to Virginia Beach to follow my husband’s career goals. However, this life transition granted me the opportunity to start my own private practice.
I chose Tree of Life Counseling & Art Therapy as the name for my practice as part of a very intentional and purposeful process. I wanted a name that would share my overall belief in the power of connection of the mind, body and spirit (the word spirit can take on one’s own meaning, not only a religious association). I also wanted the name to be able to have an acronym that would be associated to the mission of the practice and be recognized for marketing/advertising purposes, hence TLC-AT (Tree of Life Counseling & Art Therapy) was formed.
Being an art therapist, it felt important for me to include the art process in the creation of my practice. I felt creating a logo would be a personalized way of sharing about myself. I also hoped creating my logo would allow others to experience the power of art being able to speak visually; communicating feeling, values, personality, life approach and visual recognition/association.
I spent many hours sketching out the logo for the practice. Again, I wanted the logo to “stand” for something and be able to “stand” on its own. I included symbolism and metaphors to support my intention. I chose to use the human figure in the middle of the tree, to represent the base of a tree. The figure is positioned in the yoga pose ‘tree’. The tree pose is a beginner pose in yoga, but is one that facilitates balance, growth and a basic foundation for future yoga practice. I also wanted to communicate my belief that we have all the strength and resources needed within ourselves for limitless growth and nourishment. The growth above and below the figure represents the different phases of one’s life; the roots being connected to past or foundations, the present the human figure and the future the foliage or growth of the branches. It also felt important for me to include the Om symbol (phonetically pronounced, “aaah,” “oooh,” and “mmm). I use this symbol and sound to center myself throughout my day. The Om symbol represents what is called “the sound of the universe” and is proven to calm the autonomic nervous system, which is where anxiety/stress responses originate. The symbol is my own interruption and inconspicuously placed in the image.
I hope in sharing the intentional creation of this image will create a sense of connection for you to my image, my practice and me. I hope to get to know your story through the therapy process.
Now, slow your mind down, focus on your breathing and be in the moment. Take the image in…. Can you locate the Om in the image?
Best, Stefanie
About Tree of Life Counseling & Art Therapy
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