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Donovan Bigelow

 

psychotherapy

 

I am a Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC) and am in private psychotherapy practice in the heart of downtown Seattle on Third Avenue between Pike and Pine Street.

My clinical focus is on adolescent, adult, and couples therapy. I believe that therapists cannot take a patient deeper than s/he has been willing to go themselves.

I have been in psychoanalytic therapy or psychoanalysis for years and continue to explore my own mind with senior clinicians.

Beyond my psychological training and clinical experience, I like to think that I bring a unique background of athletic, military, and legal experience, as well as decades-long immersion in the study and practice of Zen Buddhism, martial arts, and the philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche to my work as a psychotherapist.

I was a tenured instructor in the community and technical college system teaching various psychology courses. I find that combining my psychotherapy practice with teaching psychology provided advantages for both my patients and my students. I have taught classes in several Seattle area colleges on the following topics: Introduction to Psychology, Developmental Psychology, The Psychology of Human Relations, as well as developing classes on Human Sexuality and Psychopathology. In addition I have taught other subjects such as: The Philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche, Terrorism: Sources and Solutions, US History, American Government, Criminology, Introduction to Law, Introduction to Business Law.

I have also developed a variant of sport psychology that I apply to athletes and those desiring more effective and efficient training programs and deeper motivation. Combining a life-long commitment to athletic achievement with my psychoanalytic research, I have developed a unique program designed to enhance competitive performance, remove inhibitions to achievement, and understand the deeper meanings of athletic participation. I hold a third-degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do. My competition in full-contact matches led to the following championships: National Champion, Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) Tae Kwon Do (1987); Four-time Georgia State Champion, United States Tae Kwon Do Union (USTU) (1986 – 1988); All-Army Tae Kwon Do Team (1990); Instructor at various schools since 1978. I have competed since childhood in a variety of other sports including gymnastics, wrestling, football, and baseball among others.

Prior to my psychological training, I was a Military Intelligence Officer in the U.S. Army. I successfully completed the Army’s most rigorous training: Airborne and Ranger schools. I had extensive training in Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical (NBC) weapons systems and counter-terrorism with operational experience in tactical and strategic intelligence missions. I received the Army’s Funded Legal Education Program Scholarship and transferred to the JAGC where I served as both a prosecutor and public defender. I have been a private criminal defense attorney in both federal and state courts. I received my law degree from Cornell Law School, a Master of Arts degree in military law from the Judge Advocate General’s School — Army.

I have studied the works and life of Friedrich Nietzsche for over 25 years and founded the weekly Seattle Nietzsche Reading Group.

I am the proud father of two wonderful daughters and two amazing grandchildren.

For more information please download my resume.