THE OLSON
MARRIAGE AND FAMILY THERAPY CLINIC

James graduated from Iowa State University with a BA in Psychology and a minor in Human Development and Family Services. During his undergraduate James was involved in work on aggression research, mental health public policy, religious trauma, and sexual education training. 

As a student therapist James finds great importance in creating a space in which everyone feels open to being their authentic selves. Grounded in family systems theory, James is passionate about relational work and strongly encourages individuals to have their family members join their therapy journey. He believes that laughter really is the best medicine and strives to incorporate humor into the therapy space. In therapy James strives to help his clients create goals and challenges them to continually make progress towards what they hope to achieve in therapy. The process of therapy can be difficult, and James focuses on creating a therapeutic environment of warmth, trust, autonomy, and empathy. 

In his free time James can be found planning his next session for his Dungeons & Dragons campaign, starting another playthrough of a Fallout or Elder Scrolls game, or gaming/binging shows with his fiancé.