Kristin Becker grew up near Boulder, CO where she developed an early interest in Psychology. She went on to major in Psychology at the University of Colorado, Boulder where she specialized in cognitive psychology and research. She began volunteering with young adults living with significant mental illness in a residential setting. In this role, she created a curriculum based on the Hero’s Journey. She has gone on to develop this curriculum into a training, workbook, and research project and continues to use it to inspire a variety of populations.
Her clinical work is heavily influenced by myth, ritual, and the Hero’s Journey. She became interested in becoming a mental health counselor due to her love of helping people gain perspective and hope after suffering with mental health challenges. She attended graduate school at Lenoir-Rhyne in Asheville, NC, and graduated with her master’s in Clinical Mental Health Counseling in 2017. She completed her internship at Trails Carolina in wilderness therapy and went on to become a general therapist there, leading mindfulness and creative arts groups as well as supporting graduation and post-graduation activities. She is passionate about experiential therapy, the importance of nature in the healing process, and transforming those who feel like victims of their diagnoses or circumstances into the heroes of their own journey.
She feels inspired by the creativity and energy of the students at Asheville Academy and continues to learn and grow from them. In her free time, Kristin spends time with her 18-year-old feline best friend, goes hiking, or cooks dinner for friends.