About us!
Therapist & Co-Founder
Michaela Uttley (she/her), MS, LPC, CCTP, NLC-P, EP
Michaela is the co-founder of Whole Hearted Healing. She is a Licensed Professional Counselor and Certified Clinical Trauma Professional with a longstanding passion for equine-assisted therapy. Her early love for horses evolved into a meaningful avenue for healing and personal growth, ultimately shaping her path toward a career in counseling.
Michaela specializes in integrating equine-assisted psychotherapy with traditional counseling methods. She is dual certified as an equine professional and a mental health professional (NLC-P, EP) through Natural Lifemanship. She draws on extensive training in Attachment Theory, EMDR, Internal Family Systems, and Natural Lifemanship to support clients in navigating relational trauma and emotional wounding. She combines all of these uniquely and uses them to support clients who come to her EMDR intensives in Golden, Colorado. Curious about what an EMDR intensive is? See the ‘Equine Therapy & EMDR Intensives’ tab on this site.
Her clinical focus includes the treatment of trauma, PTSD/cPTSD, and eating disorders. Michaela is committed to fostering safe, attuned therapeutic relationships as a foundation for lasting healing and transformation.
Outside of her professional work, Michaela enjoys exploring new music and eateries, writing/reading poetry, and being in the mountains. You are most likely to find her at the horse farm, though! She is also attuned to both human and animal Reiki and offers Reiki sessions as a complementary practice to support overall well-being.
Therapist & Co-Founder
Darby Pistilli (she/her), MS, LPC, CCTP
Darby is the co-founder of Whole Hearted Healing. From the time she was twelve, Darby’s dream was to be a therapist. She found herself searching the internet tirelessly in an attempt to absorb all of the information that she possibly could, never fully knowing her dream would one day come to life.
Several years and life experiences later, she found herself pursuing that dream of being a therapist. Through time, she found the modalities she is most passionate about today: EMDR, attachment theory, internal family systems, and somatic experiencing. Darby’s specialty areas include: trauma, PTSD/cPTSD, eating disorders, addiction, PANS/PANDAS.
In her free time, Darby loves spending her time with her guinea pigs, friends, crafting, and playing her guitar. She also hangs upside down in her free time and is an aerial arts instructor!
Visit Darby’s author page here
Danica is a Licensed Professional Counselor. She has a passion for making meaningful connections and supporting others on their journey toward healing. She specializes and uses a Cognitive- Behavioral approach in addressing anxiety, depression, emotional/mood difficulties, grief and chronic illness. Danica values building strong therapeutic relationships and strives to create a safe, compassionate space where clients can gain clarity, understanding and peace in their lives.
In her down time, she enjoys reading murder mysteries, going plant shopping, being with close friends & family along with her Golden Retriever, Josie.
Danica Flinchbaugh, MA, NCC, LPC
Therapist
Vic Yamasaki, MS
Vic is a master 's-level therapist who is passionate about social justice and believes in integrating a systemic approach to her therapeutic work to better capture all the complexities and realities of the human experience.
She works with clients experiencing anxiety, trauma, depression, and body image concerns. Vic integrates Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) to provide alternative ways to manage and navigate day-to-day life, while grounding your experience in developmental frameworks to add depth and context.
Vic often describes her therapeutic approach as going to driver's ed. You'll always get to drive the car and decide which road to take. However, Vic will be there to press the brakes when things feel out of control, or to encourage you to pause and take in the scenery along the way. Vic encourages clients to be active in their therapeutic journey and believes in the power of building a collaborative relationship.
Outside of the therapy chair, Vic loves to listen to music, paint watercolors, and become a member of every public library of every city she's ever lived in. Vic is fluent in both Brazilian Portuguese and English, and as a queer person and immigrant, is committed to creating a therapeutic space and approach that honors diverse lived experiences.
Therapist