MEET DR. HARTWIG
ELIZABETH KJELLSTRAND HARTWIG
PhD, LMFT-S, LPC-S, RPT-Sâ„¢
Dr. Elizabeth Kjellstrand Hartwig is the Owner and Director of Pawsitive Counseling, LLC. She has had the honor of working with clients for over 20 years. She is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist-Supervisor (LMFT-S), Licensed Professional Counselor-Supervisor (LPC-S), and Registered Play Therapist-Supervisorâ„¢ (RPT-Sâ„¢). She provides individual, couples, family, and canine-assisted counseling. She supports clients on a variety of issues including grief, trauma, self-compassion, anxiety, depression, and personal growth. Elizabeth provides couples and family counseling to support couples and families in reconnecting and communicating more effectively. She enjoys working with the LGBTQ+ community in both individual and relationship counseling and is affirming of all identities and cultures. She also provides play therapy to children ages 3-17. In her work with clients she utilizes expressive modalities, such as sandtray and expressive arts to support clients' growth. She is a solution-focused therapist and believes that clients have internal strengths and external resources to help them work toward clinical goals.
Elizabeth is also an Associate Professor in the Professional Counseling Program at Texas State University where she teaches play therapy, animal-assisted counseling, and marriage and family therapy courses. Elizabeth is the author of the book Solution-Focused Play Therapy: A Strengths-Based Clinical Approach to Play Therapy and co-author of the book Canine-Assisted Interventions: A Comprehensive Guide to Credentialing Therapy Dog Teams. She is a Past President of the Texas Association for Play Therapy and currently serves on the Association for Play Therapy Board of Directors. She is also the founder and director of the Texas State University Animal-Assisted Counseling Academy.
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On certain days Elizabeth partners with her certified therapy dog, Holly Rae. Holly is a 5-year-old goldendoodle. She was trained through the Texas State University Animal-Assisted Counseling Academy. Holly is loving, playful, and kind.
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