We, at Calming Presence Counseling, are offering Individual Counseling, Couples Counseling & Family Counseling sessions, with a personalized and holistic support element.
We aim to create results through one-on-one, conjoint and online sessions to positively impact the lives of our clients.
Learn to become a calming presence for yourself and those around you
ABOUT
Leif Peterson, LPC, NCC
Owner of CPC
Early traumas in my own life, including becoming paralyzed when I was 17 yrs. old, contributed to my interest in finding out how people get through life's most difficult moments. As a professional counselor, I have a genuine interest in people's stories and do not judge their past or current challenges,
ABOUT
Leif Peterson, LPC, NCC
Owner of CPC
Early traumas in my own life, including becoming paralyzed when I was 17 yrs. old, contributed to my interest in finding out how people get through life's most difficult moments. As a professional counselor, I have a genuine interest in people's stories and do not judge their past or current challenges,
EDUCATION
University of Colorado, Colorado Springs, M.A. in Counseling and Human Services, 2017
EXPERIENCE
I received my bachelor's degree in Psychology from the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs (UCCS).
SPECIALTIES
Adults, Adolescents, and Children 10 and above Individuals, Couples, and Families
Mental health conditions do not discriminate (and neither do we).
They can affect anyone regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, age, social status, physical ability or a variety of other circumstances.
OUR SERVICES
INDIVIDUAL COUNSELING
Individual counseling, also known as one-on-one therapy or psychotherapy, is a confidential and collaborative process where individuals work with a trained mental health professional…
COUPLE'S COUNSELING
Couples counseling, or relationship therapy (we do not assume your relationship involves only 2 people and are happy to work with polyamorous relationships), is a therapeutic service…
FAMILY COUNSELING
In a way, all counseling is family counseling. Family is our first contact with the world. We learn what to expect from the world based on how our family members interacted with us and each other.
SPECIALITIES
Leif Peterson
- ANXIETY
- DEPRESSION
- ADDICTION
- TRAUMA
- CHRONIC PAIN / ILLNESS / DISABILITY
SPECIALITIES
Sarah Tan
licensed professional counselor candidate
Specialties/Areas of Interest:
- Perfectionism
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Play therapy: using play, games, etc. with children and adolescents at a developmentally appropriate level to process psychological issues
- Body image/self esteem
- Identity exploration
- Cultural issues, identity, coping w/ discrimination and racism
- College students: academic issues, stress, relationships, transitioning, first-generation students
Calming Presence Counseling takes pride in forming relationships with other mental health professionals, as well as the community. Having a network of connections in the community helps us to serve you better, so all your dimensions of wellness can be addressed. Please read through some of the recommendations provided by other mental health professionals in the community about our providers.
Professional Recommendation
Dana Owens
Leif is a compassionate and skilled clinician who meets his clients where they are. He creates a safe space where healing and growth are possible. He is also the master of metaphor!
Sarah Miller
Leif is such a genuine and considerate therapist and creates such a beautiful space for a client to open up and explore new areas. Leif has expertise in many areas which supports many different clients but is especially skills in trauma work.
Blakely Madison Hunze-Austin
Leif is a wonderful clinician! He is compassionate and a wonderful presence to have in the room.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
The approach of CPC therapists vary based on their unique training and life experiences. Leif Peterson, and therapists he hires and supervises, value a person-centered approach to therapy. This therapeutic orientation emphasizes the therapeutic relationship and inherent worth of the client and the belief that people are inherently motivated toward achieving the best possible life for themselves. It is the job of the therapist to create an environment and relationship through which the client can reach this best possible life, however they define it. Qualities our therapists strive to exhibit include authenticity, empathy, nonjudgment and acceptance. Leif’s unique training includes EMDR (a treatment shown to be effective to reduce disturbance from trauma or adverse experiences) and motivational interviewing (a treatment approach for helping people work through the stages of recovering from addiction. He also used IFS (Internal Family Systems) which reframes “negative” thoughts and feelings as internal parts or characters, each of which are trying to do something good for the person but may have gotten stuck in an extreme role due to previous unresolved experiences.
Leif’s individual sessions are $130, couples and family sessions are $140 for 50-60 min sessions, $70 for 30 min or less. He takes most major private insurers. He maintains 3 slots for sliding scale clients who cannot afford the full self-pay rate and would like to request a reduced rate.
- Interns’ individual sessions are $60, couples and family sessions are $70. They can negotiate sliding scale.
- Pre-licensed clinicians (have their graduate degrees and are pursuing their post-degree hours for licensure): $100 for individual, $110 for couples and family.
Are you in pain and want to heal and/or feel stuck and want to maximize your potential, create stronger relationships and feel more meaning in your life? Then therapy is right for you. This does not mean any therapist is right for you. Like other relationships, compatibility is a factor. We hope to be a good match with you, but if we are not the right fit we will happily refer you to another provider. Our goal is to find you the best/most appropriate level of care, whether that is with us or with another provider or pactice.
For now, the best way to schedule an appointment is to call the office at 719-331-5463, or email Leif (Leif@calmingpresencecounseling.com) or our administrative assistant (admin@calmingpresencecounseling.com). We are working on integrating direct scheduling on the website soon.
Our providers want to understand the history of the issues bringing into counseling, and your vision (as much as you can verbalize) for healing and creating your ideal life.
(at least 1 in 4 people will experience mental health issues in their lifetime, but some families don’t talk openly about these issues so they may have appeared as anger, conflict, disconnection, excessive substance use, frequent divorce/separation)
(Many people don’t know how to answer this because they have never been to therapy or have not had a good experience with therapy. But generally we are looking to understand if you want a more challenging/direct approach or softer/gentler approach, or if you are looking for a specific treatment approach, e.g., EMDR, CBT) Are you having, or have you had, suicidal thoughts or attempts? How safe do you feel in your environment?
Yes, with legal exceptions: imminent risk of harm to yourself (suicidal, out of touch with reality to the point that you are imminently going to bring harm to yourself), harm to others (having plans to hurt or kill others, talk about ongoing child abuse, elder abuse or threat to national security). If you are concerned that a legal exception may risk your right to confidentiality, please ask us more detailed questions. We want to help people who have harmed, or are harming, others due to anger, fear, confusion, overwhelm, or unprocessed abuse.
Ideally, we would like at least 4-6 sessions to get an idea of how effective therapy is for you. This doesn’t mean all your problems will be solved by then, but with a good therapeutic relationships you should start to feel more comfortable sharing and expressing deeper emotions and have clear goals and objectives for the changes you would like to see in your life.
We do! Therapynotes, the electronic records program we use, offers a HIPAA-compliant telehealth platform.
We do not provide emergency or crisis services outside of regular business hours/availability. The providers need to have time outside of work to take care of their own self-care and mental health in order to provide you with the empathetic, calm counseling we strive to afford. You may request an additional session, outside of your regularly scheduled session, if you have experienced a recent stressor or an escalation in symptoms. Your provider can speak with you about their availability. If you need immediate care outside of scheduled appointments, please call 911 or Colorado Crisis Services at 1-844-493-8255 or text “TALK” to 38255.
Absolutely! We see the best results when counseling is provided alongside other support, including other mental health professionals. If you might benefit from psychotropic medication, we can refer you to a psychiatrist or psychiatric nurse practitioner. If you need a psychological assessment, we can refer to a psychologist. If you need crisis services we can refer you to inpatient or intensive outpatient facilities. If you need community support for addiction, we can help you find an appropriate support group. If you need practice connecting your mind and body, we can refer you to yoga, massage, physical therapy, etc. Let’s get you a team!
For individual and couples’ therapy, the initial intake session typically lasts 60 minutes, with subsequent sessions lasting around 50 minutes each. For family therapy, the intake session is typically conducted together and lasts approximately 60 minutes, though the duration may vary depending on the specific issues being addressed. Additionally, your therapist may schedule individual meetings with members of your family, which typically range from 30 to 45 minutes each.
The frequency of sessions depends on the level of challenge presented by the issue and its impact on daily functioning. This decision is made collaboratively between you and your therapist. Sessions typically occur on a weekly or bi-weekly basis
The duration of therapy depends on the complexity of the presented by the issue and its impact on daily functioning. This decision is made collaboratively between you and your therapist. On average, a therapy case spans from 3 to 6 months. However, therapy can continue beyond this timeframe if preferred by the client. Additionally, previous clients are welcome to return for refresher sessions as needed.
- Aetna
- Aetna Allied Benefit System
- Aetna AmeriBen
- Aetna CoreSource
- Aetna EBMS
- Aetna GEHA
- Aetna Meritain
- Aetna WebTPA
- Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield (HMO)
- Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield (PPO)
- Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield – Pathway
- Apostrophe
- Cigna
- Cigna TPA
- Cigna-EAP
- Foster Source
- Friday Health Plans (CO)
- Justice Reskill Benefit Network
- Optum – Carveout
- Optum/United-EAP (CO)
- Oscar Health Plan
- TriWest
- United All Savers
- United GEHA/Shared Services
- United HealthScope Benefits
- United Healthcare (CO)
- United Healthcare Golden Rule
- United Oxford (CO)
- United Student Resources (CO)
- United Surest
- United UMR
CONTACT US
- 3225 Templeton Gap Rd., Suite 211
- Colorado Springs, CO 80907
- Leif@calmingpresencecounseling.com
- Hour Of Operation
- Mon-Fri: 08:00am - 05:00 pm
- Sat 09:00am - 03:00pm
in case of emergency
Calming Presence Counseling does not provide emergency services, so if you feel in danger from yourself or others, please call 911. If you want to talk with your provider urgently, before your next scheduled appointment, you can email (admin@calmingpresencecounseling.com) or call (719-331-5463) the office and your provider will get back to you within 48 hrs. Providers do not respond to calls, emails or text outside of their working hours to protect their own mental health. If you have a mental health crisis outside of working hours.
Please contact the crisis services listed here:
Colorado Crisis Services: 1-844-493-8255,
Text “TALK” to 38255,
https://coloradocrisisservices.org.