About Ilesa Bauer
(she/they)
Your hands are shaking and sweaty.
There is a pink door in front of you and you stare at the knob, holding your breath, you grab the knob and you step inside. You are meeting me in person for the first time. Your eyes meet the soft pink hues and hanging pothos about the office and your lungs remember how to breathe again. You sit in a soft chair, I meet you, we walk back. You stay with me and we gather in my office. You sit on the soft green sofa and I sit across from you in one of those criss-cross chairs that I can never find a way to actually use in the criss-cross way without falling out of.
We get into it.
You tell me your history, I ask you follow up questions. You are doing it, you are doing therapy. You are surprised that I curse a good amount and you also love that. You feel you might be able to trust me, unlike so many counselors before. It is unfair how many counselors you have had to work through. It’s exhausting to hope that the new one will be different. Your hands are still a little damp. Your body relaxes into the sofa. We talk about your goals, we make a plan, we see you next time.That is, more or less, how most of our sessions will go.
Sure, sometimes there will be crises or other life events.
We handle those when they come up. Over a few months you find you are able to breath without reminding your lungs how. You have started to check off small goals and settle into routine.
Most of the work you do will happen outside of the therapy office. It’s my job to ensure you have the tools to work on your goals, and you take on the job of trying new things in life.
You try a few things and some of the skills we work on start to really change how to navigate your life. You start to be able to see the life you imagined but never thought could be real. Feeling returns to your body.
You’re walking in the produce section of a grocery store and your chest does not feel as tight as it used to and your hands aren’t white-knuckling the shopping cart handle.
My practice will center you and your needs in the community you live in.
About Ilesa
At PORTAL, we know that you are your own best expert. I will listen to and empower you. I am passionate and driven by community care. It has helped me immensely in times I have needed it and I am happy that I get to use my own skills to pour back into my town.
It is my life’s goal to empower strong individuals to strengthen communities. I have struggled coming from a family that did not meet my needs growing up and found out during my own treatment that I am a bit of a nerd for emotional regulation and trauma healing.
I am queer and gender non conforming and my hair changes constantly to reflect that horrible stereotype that nonbinary people have blue hair.
I started my Music Education degree at James Madison University, dropped out several times and never finished that since I got more nerdy about feelings and social justice and wanted to dig in more with people. Since that is not what a music teacher does, I decided to switch to Social Work.
I got my Bachelor’s of Social Work and Master’s of Social Work at Virginia Commonwealth University. I’ve worked in many settings and done several trainings. Some of my favorite settings I’ve had the opportunity to work in include doing work with local jails to provide mindfulness courses, sober living homes to provide the same.
I have provided art and music therapy in groups and individual sessions and worked with LGBTQ+ youth at a local nonprofit. I also have experience working in crisis and emergency service settings and other community mental health.
I’ve trained in Solutions Focused Brief Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, and Crisis Intervention. I’ve learned so much about expressive therapy and other modalities we can explore as well. I love to make music and go see local bands. I love to hike with my partner and our dog, Cosmo, named after Cosmo Kramer from Seinfeld.