About Katherine Burns, LCSW, and Origen Stories
I live in Northern New Mexico with my husband and four good dogs. I love walking in nature with my pups, exploring historic sites throughout the world, doing personal genealogy work and reading.
I have been lucky enough to have a wide variety of life experiences, from being raised on a ranch in Kansas, to living in Central America and countless odd jobs to make a living. All of these experiences led me to study Cultural Anthropology where I developed a deep curiosity and appreciation for cultural inheritance; how identities are formed and our most fundamental need to belong.
I also studied Physical Anthropology and was introduced to genetics and an understanding of the complexities of biological inheritance. These two areas of study instilled a fundamental “nature vs. nurture” debate that I am continuously intrigued by.
I eventually became a therapist because I wanted to get to the root of individual’s suffering. After years as working with children and adults, I realized that we do not just express our individual suffering through dysfunctional patterns and decisions but we are expressing our ancestors struggles as well. Understanding intergenerational trauma has helped me personally and professionally and led me to the work I do today.
My Approach
I love helping people who are struggling to know who they are. That may be because of a big life change such as a DNA discovery, job change, children leaving the house, becoming a parent or a nagging feeling that you aren’t living their authentic life. It is a very rewarding journey for me to walk beside clients as they uncover their truth and identify what resonates with them.
I understand that our family identity is at the core of who we are. When there is a disruption in this fundamental identity, we must go back to the basics and rebuild.
When possible, I use genealogy and family stories to provide historic and cultural context clues for clients to help increase their compassion, self understanding and provide insight into their lived experience. Understanding the complexity of history helps to put our current life in a natural order and provides a greater understanding of patterns and traumas that have been passed down through the generations.
I also use Family Constellations in one on one sessions to help heal intergenerational traumas and patterns that do not serve the client and that often didn’t originate with them.
Narrative Therapy, Art Therapy, and Internal Family Systems informed modalities are also an important part of my practice that I find very effective at helping clients integrate new identities with curiosity and kindness.
—Katherine Burns, LCSW
