Mackenzie Gilliland. LPCC

Mackenzie is currently only available for a wait-list at this time. If you would like to be added to the waitlist, please continue with the scheduling process.

Credentials

Licensed Professional Counselor Candidate (LPCC)
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)
Art Therapist Registered – Board Certified (ATR-BC)

Hi! My name is Mackenzie Gilliland and I am a Licensed Professional Counselor Candidate (LPCC) in Colorado. I graduated in 2020 with my Master’s Degree in Art Therapy from The University of Louisville. I also hold an art therapy license (ATR-BC) and drug and alcohol license (LCADC) in Kentucky. I am fully trained in EMDR Therapy and am working towards certification. I enjoy working with adults who are struggling with anxiety, depression, trauma, and addiction. I have experience working in community mental health with all ages and struggles, as well as outpatient substance abuse treatment for individuals with addictions and their families.

My goal in the therapy room is to show up as myself to support the clients authentic self in setting, working towards, and meeting goals. It is important to me to build a genuine relationship with the client to then use gentle challenging with the goal of developing self-compassion and supporting behavior change.

Therapy Techniques and Focuses

Art therapy

Art therapy is a mental health modality that uses creative expression—such as drawing, painting, or sculpting—as a way for clients to explore emotions, process trauma, and enhance self-awareness. It is grounded in the idea that the creative process can help access and communicate experiences that are difficult to express verbally.

Benefits include:

Helps externalize emotions and internal conflicts.
Bypasses verbal defenses by using symbolic expression.
Encourages mindfulness and grounding.
Offers a non-threatening way to process trauma.

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is a structured psychotherapy method developed to help people process and integrate traumatic memories. It involves recalling distressing events while engaging in bilateral stimulation (e.g., guided eye movements, tapping), which helps “reprocess” memories so they no longer cause emotional distress.

Key Benefits:

Proven effective for PTSD, anxiety, and trauma-related conditions.
Does not require detailed verbal recounting of the traumatic event.
Targets the memory and physiological responses simultaneously.
Promotes rapid symptom relief and integration of adaptive beliefs.

When we bring art therapy into the EMDR process, something powerful happens.

Before EMDR, art can help prepare for reprocessing. We might create images of safety, strength, or inner resources—visual anchors that bring calm and clarity. We might draw what our anxiety “feels like,” so we can begin to meet it with compassion.
During EMDR, art offers a pause. Between sets of processing, a quick sketch or image can express a shift that’s hard to describe—or offer a moment of grounding when emotions run high. Art can also help us anchor to an event or the present, and change how we view the event.
After EMDR, art helps integrate the experience. Clients often create pieces that reflect new insights or a sense of empowerment. It’s a way of saying: “This is who I am now. This is what I’ve learned. This is my healing.”

Through this integrative approach, healing doesn’t just happen in the mind—it unfolds through the body, through the senses, and through the imagination.