Cara Gruhala, EdS, LPC, NCC - Owner
Pronouns: she/her/hers
816-508-5934
Telehealth link: https://doxy.me/caragruhala
Cara received her Master's and Education Specialist degrees in counseling from the University of Central Missouri. Prior to working in a private setting, Cara worked as a certified Missouri School Counselor, and also currently teaches graduate level counseling courses. She sees clients across the lifespan, as young as age 4, and specializes in the areas of anxiety, trauma, body image, perinatal (pre-conception through postpartum), LGBTQIA+ identity, and neurodivergence, particularly Autism/ADHD and learning differences. Cara utilizes a blend of approaches, tailored to fit each client's need. Cara is trained from a person-centered perspective, where client and counselor partner to reach the client's goals. In this mindset the counselor treats each client as the expert on their own life and believes that partnering can help the client discover solutions they already possess. The relationship between counselor and client is key, and Cara strives to create trusting, safe, non-judgemental, and compassionate relationships with all her clients in order for them to reach their highest potential. Person-centered therapy involves mostly talk, with the counselor in the primary role of listener and reflector. Cara also utilizes a variety of other therapeutic approaches, including Internal Family Systems (IFS), Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT), humanistic, and Play Therapy, depending on to each client's needs and strengths.
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MO#2019047155
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Samantha Kates, MS, PLPC, NCC - Counselor
Pronouns: she/her/hers
Supervised by Cara Gruhala
816-200-0124
Samantha received her Master’s in Counseling from the University of Central Missouri and is dedicated to helping individuals aged 10 and up navigate life’s challenges. Her approach is integrative, meaning she uses a combination of evidence-based therapeutic modalities to meet each client where they are and help them find their path to personal growth and well-being.
Samantha draws from a range of techniques, including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Play Therapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), as well as Person-Centered and Humanistic approaches. This blend allows her to tailor the therapeutic experience to each individual’s needs, ensuring that they receive the support that resonates with them the most.
Creating a safe, compassionate, and non-judgmental space is at the heart of her work. Samantha believes in the power of genuine connection and aims to foster a warm and welcoming environment where clients can explore their thoughts and feelings openly. Whether you're navigating anxiety, stress, life transitions, or just looking to better understand yourself, Samantha is here to help guide you on your journey.
Samantha loves to work with clients to bring clarity, healing, and growth to their lives!
Krista Gomez Gonzalez, MS, PLPC, NCC - Counselor
Pronouns: she/her/hers
Supervised by Cara Gruhala
816-200-2367
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Krista is passionate about walking alongside others in their journey to unlocking and embracing their authentic self. Krista graduated with her Masters in Counseling with an emphasis in clinical mental health from University of Central Missouri. Krista primarily uses a person-centered approach to counseling, meaning that the individual, couple, or child directs the session as they are the experts of themself. In counseling, Krista works alongside her clients to aid them in reaching their goals and uncover the tools and solutions they already possess. Krista sees the counseling relationship as transformative, and seeks to fully understand her clients. She is gifted in creating a safe, accepting, and non-judgemental environment that allows people to explore their fears and pain, develop their strengths, try out new behaviors, and experience healing and integration.
Krista sees clients from age 4 to 99+ and has experience working with individuals with depression, anxiety disorders, attention-deficit/ hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), people exploring their LGBTQIA+ identity, and Autism. She is also passionate about supporting people as they navigate body image issues, relationship challenges, and spiritual and religious trauma. Alongside person-centered counseling, Krista also uses a variety of approaches based on her clients needs, including self-compassion practices, sand tray therapy, narrative therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), and play therapy techniques.
Mackenzie Shanks, MS, PLPC, NCC - Counselor
**Not accepting new clients at this time**
Pronouns: she/her/hers
Supervised by Cara Gruhala
816-200-7684
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Mackenzie is a counselor dedicated to providing her clients with a safe, accepting, and understanding space. She values a collaborative, person-centered approach, prioritizing strong, trusting relationships in a warm, nonjudgmental environment. Mackenzie believes that each individual is the expert on their own life, and she is committed to walking alongside them—offering evidence-based tools to help navigate challenges, build on strengths, and achieve personal goals.
Mackenzie works with individuals of all ages, from young children to adults. She holds a Master’s in Counseling with an emphasis in Clinical Mental Health from the University of Central Missouri, as well as a Bachelor of Science in Sociology with a minor in Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies. Her experience includes supporting individuals navigating anxiety, depression, trauma, relationship and friendship challenges, LGBTQIA+ identity exploration, and neurodivergence. She is especially passionate about working with the LGBTQIA+ community and helping those struggling with body image and self-esteem.
Recognizing that every person’s experiences are unique, Mackenzie does not believe in a “one-size-fits-all” approach to therapy. She integrates a variety of interventions tailored to each individual’s needs, including coping skill development, self-compassion practices, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Trauma-Focused CBT (TF-CBT), Internal Family Systems (IFS), sand tray therapy, and play therapy techniques.
Outside of counseling, Mackenzie’s friends and family describe her as intentional, creative, and compassionate, with a calming presence. In her free time, she enjoys reading, baking, going to the movies, hiking, doing DIY crafts, exploring local coffee shops, and searching for unique antique finds.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who needs counseling?
Most anyone can benefit from counseling! There is almost always room to grow in our relationship with ourselves and others. Some people might decide to seek therapy if they find that intrusive thoughts or unhelpful coping patterns are affecting their daily life in ways that prevents them from functioning at the level they would like to. Some people come when life situations are extra stressful and they want non-judgmental support from a professional outside of the situation. Many of us have experienced something traumatic in life, and would like to process through the thoughts and feelings with someone trained to help.
Parents sometimes choose to bring their child if things at school, home, or in both settings are stressful, or a child is reacting in ways that parents or teachers are having a hard time understanding or responding to. Sometimes parents come because they would like more effective ways to interact with their child.
People sometimes need support in communication or boundary setting in relationships with others. Some people want to check in prior to a big life event like the transition to college, marriage, addition of a child, or career retirement. Some need support after a large event like a death, job loss, health event, or other highly stressful/traumatic incidents.
What will counseling be like?
Each person is an individual with individual needs, and no two sessions are exactly alike. As a broad overview the first session is usually spent going over intake paperwork to gain a full history, talking about information the client needs to be successful in counseling, an idea of how many sessions counseling may last and what techniques may be used, and some time for the client to ask questions and begin work. Subsequent sessions usually begin with where we left off the previous session, or with whatever the client brings that particular session.
Counseling with adults involves back and forth conversing, typically the counselor is in a listening role for much of the time, psychoeducation (gaining information to better support and cope with struggles and mental illness), skills practice, goal creating, problem solving, and a number of creative therapeutic techniques as needed. The client drives the speed and direction of each session
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For children play is a primary language of communication, and play therapy can look very different than traditional talk therapy. Our therapists have a variety of items in their offices to allow children to access play as their primary agent of change. For more information on play therapy please visit: https://cpt.unt.edu/what-play-therapy
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