About Me
Hi, I'm Ana (she/her).
Who I Am
Ana identifies as queer and androgynous. She recognizes the complexities of identity, working to understand the intersection of her own areas of privilege and oppression among dominant systems that allocate power to some to the exclusion of others, and how this can show up in clinical work. She sees it as her personal and professional responsibility to always be learning, both to hold herself to account and work to interrupt these systems that have real consequences on our health.
She is a first-generation college student and a lifelong learner, crediting her education as a place of her own healing and development.
Outside of healing work, Ana loves to read and reflect and watch movies and spend time with her partner and their dogs (Annie [Banannie] and Audrey [Lorde Hepburn]). She loves to be in nature, plant things, and write. She loves food – cooking it, eating it, and sharing it. She engages in political work and writes for an online publication working to address mental health stigma.
Ana is based in California and offers telehealth-only sessions to clients located in Washington state.
Languages
English.
My Counseling Approach
How we experience life in and outside of our bodies is profoundly informative. Dr. Ana Ruediger operates from the perspective that individuals have an innate wisdom and collection of strengths that guide their ability to heal and grow. Trauma, or dislocation from the self, whether experienced individually or systemically, influences how we live, how we love, and how we interpret the world. Painful experience or trauma can also connect us with our humanity and be deeply transformative. Ana believes in the therapeutic relationship as core to the process of healing, so long it is ethical, consensual, and equitably designed by all involved. Ana works closely with her clients to build safety and understanding around how they identify, how they experience living in their body, and what they value.
Ana strongly believes in an individual's natural progression towards healing. Our suffering can too be helpful information about how the mind and body want to heal, and she takes to heart the importance and potential of the therapeutic relationship in helping to encourage the process of meaningful growth and change.
Areas of Specialization
Queer-, Gender-, & Sex Worker-Affirming Care
Ana has specialized training in addictions, counseling for chronic illness, existentialism, family systems, mindfulness, and biopsychosocial modalities. She is dedicated to the sincere practice of queer-, gender-, and sex worker-affirming care and does not believe that there is a place in healthcare for anti-fat bias.
Addictions & Dual-Diagnosis Recovery
Ana's extensive training, with specialized practice in addictions and dual-diagnosis recovery, contributes to her comprehensive approach. She works closely in collaboration with her clients to get to the root causes of what they're experiencing, considering how dominant structures and systems may have contributed to their health and history.
Career Counseling
Ana draws on Happenstance Theory and an existential lens to help clients navigate career exploration and transition, treating chance events, curiosity, and uncertainty as valuable parts of building a meaningful vocational path.
Gender-Affirming Surgery Letters
Ana writes letters of support for gender-affirming surgeries. See the Services page for details.
Relevant Training & Experience
Ana first came to healing work while training to become a Naturopathic Physician. In medical practice, many patients shared their stories of misrepresentation, disenfranchisement, or even harassment based on gender identity, body size, ethnicity, and ability while seeking healthcare. She became acutely aware of the politicized nature of healing and healthcare, wanting to provide alternate space and representation for people of all identities. Her deep desire to understand and engage a social justice-minded, whole person approach led her to pursue additional training in counseling psychology and practice intently from a place of dismantling systemic and medicalized trauma and oppression. She completed an integrative medical residency in Connecticut.
Education
MA, Counseling Psychology (MACP) and Doctorate in Naturopathic Medicine (ND); Bastyr University, 2015
BA, Art History; Bryn Mawr, 2005
License and Certifications
Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC), Washington State DOH