About Us

Hello there and Welcome to the Conifer Wellness page! I am so proud of you for making a big step in your mental health journey by looking for a therapist that works best for you. I’m a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and believe strongly in making sure people have the tools to live their best life. Together we can find resources, coping skills, support systems, and interventions that work best for you. My theoretical approach to therapy is strengths based and I utilize trauma informed cognitive-behavioral techniques during sessions. I believe that we’re on the path towards healing together and you’re leading the way. I am here to help meet your goals and will ask what works best for you throughout our sessions to ensure that we remain on the same page and I am meeting your needs. I believe that everyone is trying their best and strives to provide a supportive space in which we can make progress towards your goals. I use art, games, and music in my therapy practice to talk about the link between our emotions, thoughts, body sensations, and behaviors. I am a total geek and will definitely reference things like Star Wars or Harry Potter in sessions. Outside of work, I enjoy hanging out with my dog, Sunshine, visiting the coast, and tending to the flowers in my garden. Mental Health matters and so do you!

We seek out therapy in order to improve our lives by both creating the life we want and by pursuing the potential of who we could be. Challenges to achieving our potential can be complicated and troublesome and therapy can help to identify the parts that are unhelpful and unworthy of us and to develop a plan with actionable steps to address them. Therapy can assist to determining our strengths, values, goals and priorities as well as to identify what variables are present when happiness manifests. It will also answer the question ‘what am I doing right’?

My studies and practice specialize in depression, anxiety, and trauma related disorders as well as other various mental health challenges. Stress, anger, thinking patterns, healthy living skills (sleep, diet and exercise), interaction and relationships, grief and loss are all areas that I have proficiencies in intervention. My primary modalities of care are evidence-based treatments and strategies to include Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) and CBT based approaches such as Exposure Therapy, Behavioral Activation, Problem Solving Therapy, Dialectical Behavior Therapy.

My goal is to assist you in overcoming the challenges and hardships that life presents by individual care to your needs. Through developing a healthy therapeutic relationship, we have the potential to increase optimism, bolster hope, improve character, become disciplined in order to follow our conscience, and to develop a life that is worthwhile. Your motivation and appetite for change are welcome, and I look forward to begin working with you and in seeing all of the positive consequences that come from you getting your life in order.

“Aging is an extraordinary process where you become the person you always should have been.”

• David Bowie

Hello! My name is Brittany- I grew up on the east coast and received my Master’s in Clinical and Counseling Psychology from Chestnut Hill College in Philadelphia. Seven years ago, I moved to Portland and have loved calling the beautiful Pacific Northwest home ever since. I am a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) and hold my license in the state of Oregon. I believe that meaningful change begins with a strong therapeutic relationship. I hope to earn your trust by creating a space in which you feel accepted, heard, and supported. My therapeutic style is warm, person-centered, humanistic, and trauma-informed. Over the years as a therapist, I have worked with clients around depression, anxiety disorders, PTSD, generational trauma, grief and loss, life transitions and stress management, ADHD and neurodivergence, and the LGBTQIA+ community and exploring identity. I utilize therapeutic interventions from CBT and TF-CBT, DBT, EFT, Collaborative Problem Solving, Mindfulness, narrative therapy, and attachment-based therapy based on your own unique needs, struggles, experiences, and goals for therapy. With compassion, empathy and some humor, I am here to walk beside you as we navigate a path towards healing, transformation, and wellness in your life. Together we will identify patterns that exist in your life, build insight and coping skills drawn from your strengths, talk about the hard stuff, and celebrate the unique goodness you bring to the world.

When I’m not in the office you will most likely find me outside in nature somewhere running, hiking, or backpacking, reading a book in my hammock, playing soccer, gushing over my goofy pup, Willie, and spending time laughing with those I hold close to my heart.

Martha Christy Shimeall MS, LPC-Associate, has been working as a mental health therapist for over 20 years. She began her career working with youth in a wilderness setting addressing both substance abuse and mental health disorders. She then worked in various therapeutic roles within a children’s residential psychiatric setting for 10 years, followed by a school setting  for 5 years.

In her current capacity, Martha enjoys working primarily with adults providing CBT and somatic therapy to individuals and groups in an outpatient setting. In addition to her mental health skills, Martha is a 500 level yoga teacher and teaches an on-going community yoga class for Linn Benton Community College. Her passion lies in the integration of the mind-body interface and enjoys assisting clients and students to experience embodied self-awareness.

Originally hailing from the East Coast, Melissa earned her Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Georgian Court University in Lakewood, New Jersey. Recently, Melissa received her master’s degree in clinical psychology from Pacific University and will be in her fourth year of Pacific’s PsyD program where she is working to attain her doctorate in clinical psychology, with an emphasis in health psychology (anticipated August 2026). She has experience working in primary care, school-based health care centers, and community mental health settings. Melissa has had experience treating a variety of concerns including depression, anxiety, trauma, and various chronic health conditions (i.e., chronic pain, insomnia, diabetes management). Melissa’s theoretical orientation has a strong foundation in behaviorally based theories, with experience providing Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT), and Motivational Interviewing (MI) interventions. In her work with patients, one of Melissa strives to work collaboratively with patients to identify meaningful goals and construct treatment plans that align with her patient’s needs. Since Melissa has a strong interest in health psychology, she aspires to work with patients who are adjusting to life with chronic illnesses, like diabetes, chronic pain, and other chronic conditions and help her patients identify ways to continue living a meaningful life.  

Dr. Brassell (she/her) earned her PsyD in clinical psychology from Pacific University, completed her internship with Providence Medical Group in Lake Oswego, Oregon and residency with Conifer Wellness – Portland. She has experience working in a variety of settings including primary care behavioral health, telehealth, community mental health, and college/university counseling. She is a generalist clinician who uses CBT, ACT, and solutions-focused approaches to help patients navigate a variety of social, emotional, physical, and psychological concerns including anxiety, depression, life transitions, interpersonal/relationship distress, identity exploration, trauma, and chronic condition management. She is passionate about fostering caring, collaborative, safe, and transparent relationships with her patients. In doing so, she aims to keep the patients’ goals at the forefront of the therapeutic process while creating a unique space where they can gain insight into their own strengths and how they may be able to utilize them in new ways. She also provides supervision to masters-level clinicians in pursuit of their doctoral degree and found a passion for training and supporting the next generation of mental health providers. In her free time Dr. Brassell enjoys cooking, gardening, paddleboarding, reading, and exploring the Pacific Northwest with her two dogs!

Helen earned her B.S. in Human Development & Family Sciences from Oregon State University in 2006, and after working in the Human and Social Service fields for nearly a decade, she attended the University of Southern California where she earned her MSW. Helen has clinical experience working with individuals across the lifespan. She is a Cognitive Behavioral therapist who specializes in the treatment of anxiety, depression, stress management, and grief. Helen is an animal lover who enjoys spending time hiking, paddleboarding, crafting, and yoga.

Kayrene, our Patient Manager, graduated from the University of Wisconsin- Lacrosse in 2021 with a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy and Women, Gender, Sexuality Studies. Soon after, she moved to Oregon in search of adventure and clarity. What she found was a growing interest to be involved more directly with advocacy for mental health. Now, Kayrene is studying to become a licensed clinician so she can continue her goal of helping her community heal. In her free time, you can find Kayrene reading, writing, hiking, bartending or competing in endurance events (including an Ironman in 2018).

Bob Olin, our Administrative Manager, has over 40 years of experience as a Customer Representative in multiple fields including Automotive, Security, Photography, Theater and others. Whether in offices, rehearsal spaces, at sporting events, or anywhere his career journey has taken him he has built excellent team building, interpersonal, phone and scheduling skills.  Bob believes that he’s found his calling since joining the Conifer Wellness team. He looks forward every morning to talking with our clients, Clinicians, staff, and anyone who may have a question with kindness, empathy, and a desire to assist them efficiently and with a friendly smile. Bob enjoys music and sports of many kinds, movies, being outdoors, writing, being creative, artistic and spending time with his family and friends.