Stacey Allen
Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, Certified Child Life Specialist, Psychomedical Consultant
Stacey Allen provides therapy services to individuals, families, couples, adults, teens, and children who are living with cancer, chronic illness, medical issues, or grief, whether personally or within their close circles. She has served patients and their families around medical issues in many different contexts, including group private practice therapy, as a Certified Child Life Specialist in local pediatric hospitals, 8 years of holding weekly support groups at Gilda’s Club Minnesota for adults living with cancer, community grief support groups, and various speaking engagements.
Stacey has over 25 years of experience working with individuals and families in various settings. In her professional career, she has gained invaluable experience helping patients emotionally navigate the medical community, and address issues of intense stress around procedures, tests, scans, surgery, treatment, and prognosis. She assists in managing anxiety and depression through psychoeducation and draws from a variety of therapeutic theories and techniques, including but not limited to mindful awareness techniques, self-calming strategies, insightful processing, creative outlets, and social and community connections.
Stacey supports her patients during both long- and short-term illness, through post treatment phases, and in the event of a terminal diagnosis, impending death, or the devastating death of someone close. Stacey will join you where are you are emotionally and help you move toward an increased understanding of this situation. She can help re-organize your thinking, re-evaluate roles and responsibilities, explore changes and identity, process guilt, resentments, and fear, and explore meaning. Stacey focuses on helping you rediscover your strength and improve your overall well-being.
Education:
- Master of Arts (MA) in Marriage and Family Therapy; Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota - Minneapolis
- Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Child Psychology; University of Minnesota - Twin Cities
- Certified Child Life Specialist (CCLS), Association for Child Life Professionals
Experience:
- 25+ years working with families in various settings including education, pediatric hospitals, private and group therapy
- 7 years as Group Facilitator at Gilda's Club Twin Cities, a cancer support clubhouse in Minnetonka, facilitating two weekly support groups for adults living with cancer
- Trained in Gottman Level One for couples' counselors
- Certified in Prepare/Enrich, an assessment and counseling program for new and long-term couples
- Certified Child Life Specialist with experience working in Twin Cities pediatric hospital settings offering psychosocial care and education for patients
- Child Life Internship at John’s Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland
- Minnesota Marriage and Family Therapy Board Approved Clinical Supervisor
Specialties:
- Psycho-Medical Consulting
- Cancer
- Chronic Illness
- Grief & Loss
- Individual Therapy
- Family Therapy
- Couple Therapy
- Child Development
- Anxiety
- Depression
- End of Life
- Caregiving
- Mindfulness
