Susan Curtis

I am a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker living in Gig Harbor, Washington. I provide

individual and couples therapy in Washington and California using a HIPAA compliant

Telehealth video platform. I also provide trainings to those in caring professions.

I spent several years in San Diego, California providing in-home and in-office clinical counseling to Active Duty military members and their families. The strong connection I have with my military clients comes from the many years of being a military spouse.

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My passion is working with those experiencing  grief and loss. I feel so privileged to walk with

clients through their worst moments. Our society is not comfortable talking about death and

dying. I am working to help change the narrative so we are more open, compassionate, and

understanding about our own feelings and beliefs surrounding grief and loss, and I believe this is the moment! All of our different and unique experiences over the last couple of years has opened the door for this conversation. More people are willing to talk about grief since the pandemic, so let's talk! 

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In 2020, my husband and I decided to move back to Washington State, our home state, to be

closer to family. I began to consider opening a private practice. In the meantime, my path

crossed with Dr. Rizzo. Call it luck, call it fate, call it the Universe, I knew we would work well

together in some capacity to help a community in need. I opened my private practice and also found a new love and connection working with veterinary healthcare workers.

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One reason I love working with this community so much is the caring hearts and compassion

and empathy I see expressed towards animals. The human-animal bond is so important in filling positive emotional needs for both, so witnessing compassion fatigue and professional burnout many veterinary healthcare workers experience, I can clearly see the need for mental health services in this community.

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I learned quickly that veterinary healthcare workers were already experiencing burnout and

fatigue prior to the pandemic, as well as other mental health issues, and that the pandemic

added more stressors and we pet owners asked, and continue to ask, a lot of you. As I became more familiar with this community, I quickly understood that veterinary healthcare workers experience a high rate of suicidal ideation. There is still a stigma towards mental health, and barriers to access care, that prevents some from getting the help needed. So, what I know for sure, we need veterinary healthcare workers, and we need you healthy!

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The same passion I have working with those experiencing grief and loss, I have found in working with veterinarian healthcare workers. There is much grief and loss in this community. I provide psychotherapy for those in this field that experience anxiety, depression, burnout and compassion fatigue in the states I am licensed. I also provide check-ins with pet families who are experiencing different and difficult emotions due to the health of their beloved pets.

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I also provide seminars nation-wide that educate and provide tools that can help decrease

compassion fatigue and professional burnout, and increase overall well-being to veterinary

healthcare workers, and I am excited to provide one or more of these seminars to you and your staff.