About Lillie

Lillie Duncan holds a Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from the Townsend Institute at Concordia University of Irvine. Her clinical training is deeply rooted in attachment theory and relational healing. She studied under Dr. Dan Allender at The Allender Center and holds an educational certificate in Narrative-Focused Trauma Care.

Lillie’s work centers on understanding how early relationships, lived experiences, and attachment patterns shape the way people relate to themselves and others. She is trained in Emotionally Focused Therapy for individuals and couples, Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), and Parts Work. Her approach integrates nervous system awareness, story work, and relational repair to support healing from trauma and attachment injuries.

With a background in yoga therapy, holistic care, and functional medicine, Lillie brings an embodied and whole-person perspective to therapy. She works with individuals, couples, and mothers who are seeking deeper emotional safety, clarity, and connection. Her work is grounded in empathy, presence, and the belief that healing happens in relationship and unfolds at the pace of trust. She's passionate about creating a therapeutic relationship where clients feel genuinely seen and supported. Her approach combines clinical expertise with deep warmth and practical wisdom.

Training & Credentials

• Master of Arts - Clinical Mental Health Counseling

• Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy Trained: Core Skills

• Emotionally Focused Individual Therapy Trained

• Narrative Focused Trauma Care: The Allender Center

• EMDR Trained : EMDRIA

• Gottman Level 1

Approach

Lillie’s approach is grounded in attachment and the understanding that our earliest relationships shape how we experience safety, connection, and trust. The ways people protect themselves emotionally often make sense when viewed through the lens of lived experience and relationship. Her work focuses on understanding these patterns with care rather than trying to correct or override them.

Drawing from attachment theory and relational neuroscience, Lillie attends to emotional responses, nervous system states, and the strategies that developed in response to connection and loss. Symptoms are understood as meaningful signals rather than problems to be eliminated. This perspective allows clients to relate to themselves with greater clarity and compassion.

Lillie is trained in Emotionally Focused Therapy for individuals and couples. With couples, the work centers on identifying cycles of interaction and supporting emotional responsiveness and repair. With individuals, the focus is on developing a more secure relationship with the self and with others, especially in the presence of anxiety, trauma, or long-standing relational patterns.

Story work is an essential part of Lillie’s approach. Influenced by the work of Dan Allender, this process explores how meaning has been shaped through experience, including love, loss, and survival. Story work is not about revisiting events for their own sake, but about understanding how the past continues to influence the present and how new meaning can emerge over time.

When appropriate, Lillie integrates trauma-informed care and EMDR within an attachment-based framework. Trauma work is approached with careful pacing and attention to nervous system capacity, supporting integration without overwhelm. The body’s responses are honored as part of the healing process rather than something to push past.

Across all areas of work, the emphasis remains on emotional safety, presence, and relationship. Change unfolds through understanding, responsiveness, and experiences that gradually reshape how trust and connection are felt internally and between people.

Lillie works with individuals, couples, and mothers who are seeking depth, not quick fixes. Her approach is relational, thoughtful, and grounded in the belief that meaningful healing happens when people are met with honesty, care, and respect for their full story.