Jennifer Obenshain

Dr. Jennifer Obenshain is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with over 20 years of clinical experience working with individuals and families in the Treasure Valley. Her current focus is on working with individuals who are facing transitions and adjustments in their lives. Jennifer is aware that periods of adjustment bring challenges to individual coping and can result in feelings of anxiety, depression, and a decrease in functioning in day-to-day life. These periods of adjustment can come from career, relationship, family, and health changes. They can also emerge from more global periods of adjustment such as with the Covid pandemic or from grief and loss.

Jennifer has been trained in several forms of cognitive and behavioral therapies and brings these into her work with her clients. With this as a framework she helps clients recognize thought patterns, emotional responses, behaviors, and physical responses to stressors that they face. By bringing these responses (which are often unconscious) to the surface she and her clients can work collaboratively to identify new ways of responding, instead of reacting, to situations. All with the goal of decreasing their experiences of anxiety and depression, and increase their sense of calm, peace, and choice in their day-to-day lives.

Jennifer focuses first on building a trusting, non-judgmental, and collaborative working relationship as a foundation for change. She recognizes that this foundation along with a client’s own unique strengths and resources are what will allow change to occur. Jennifer is also keenly aware that clients are the expert in their own lives. With her training in attachment and trauma, she recognizes that early relationships and past experiences can impact current functioning. She also recognizes that while the past can impact the present, individuals are resilient and by addressing these issues a more peaceful future is possible.