Meet Julia

Julia Ward, LPC-A

Fee: $130 / 45 min session Supervised by: Eva Escobedo, LPC-S
Pronouns: She / Her
Session Format: In-Person & Virtual / Telehealth / Walk & Talk (as arranged) Works with: Children 7+, Tweens & Teens, Young Adults, Adults, and Parents  Practice passions: Mindfulness, Creativity, Client- and Strengths-focused

Areas of Focus:

• Emotional Regulation

• Anxiety and Depression

• Mindfulness

• Neurodivergence Affirming

• ADHD & Giftedness

• Skill Building

• Creative people

• Activism and empowerment

• LGBTQIA+ community

• Parenting and co-parenting

Therapeutic Approach:

Julia practices with the basic idea that every client is an individual and deserves to be treated as such. She utilizes an eclectic approach tailored to the needs of each client drawing from multiple theoretical frameworks. Her primary focus is building a safe, warm, and positive relationship with her clients and drawing on their strengths to develop new strategies for improving both their relationships with themselves and the people in their lives. She has a particular interest in incorporating mindfulness, art, poetry, music, and physical movement into the therapeutic relationship. 

Professional BACKGROUND:

Julia’s career working with young people started with a post-high school stint as an Americorps volunteer in Los Angeles, providing after school educational support, community outreach, and art education as well as running community gardens with a local nonprofit organization. After completing her undergraduate degree in Anthropology and Linguistics at UT Austin, she did what every young grad does: she became a bespoke cowboy bootmaker. During her apprenticeship, she also worked as a costume designer, vegetarian caterer, began advanced training in yoga, and continued her lifelong career as a professional musician. 

Always intrigued by education, Julia began volunteering her time as an arts educator in 2007 and transitioned to a career as adjunct art and music faculty at an Austin-area private high school. She then began taking on an administrative and counseling role at the school and fell in love with working with adolescents in a more therapeutic capacity. In 2021, she returned to UT-Austin, where she earned a Master's Degree in Educational Psychology with a concentration in school counseling. 

Julia lives in Austin with her artist mother, 10 year old son, 3 dogs, big garden, and many musical instruments. In her spare time, she enjoys bouldering (badly), practicing yoga, playing music (some instruments better than others), gardening, cooking, crafting, reading, and building with legos with her kid.