Kathleen (Kay) Adams LPC is a best-selling author, speaker, psychotherapist and visionary. Her first book, Journal to the Self, is a classic that has helped define the field of journal therapy.

She has also written The Write Way to Wellness: A Workbook for Healing and Change, The Way of the Journal , Mightier Than the Sword , and Scribing the Soul.

Kay is a beloved teacher whose innovative work has helped hundreds of thousands of people heal, change and grow. Her dynamic presentation style is fluid, clinically grounded, intuitive and engaging. She is the voice of journal therapy at conferences, hospitals, mental health agencies and seminars around the world. A tireless advocate for the healing power of writing, Kay is a three-time recipient of the National Association for Poetry Therapy’s Distinguished Service Award. She was a finalist for the first Season for Nonviolence Peacemaker Award in Colorado for her work bringing journal therapy to populations as diverse as people with HIV/AIDS, breast cancer survivors, recovering addicts, and survivors of violent crime.

In an About.com poll, Kathleen Adams was listed (with Anais Nin and Anne Frank) as one of the three most significant influences on contemporary journal keeping.

Professional Profile

With more than 40,000 clinical hours in the field, Kathleen Adams is among the most experienced and respected journal therapists working today.

Clinical Experience

  • 1985-present: Founder/Director, The Center for Journal Therapy, Wheat Ridge, CO
  • 1992-present: Private psychotherapy practice with specialty in journal/poetry therapy, Wheat Ridge, CO
  • 1994-2008: Contract journal therapist, Denver Health and Hospitals, HIV/AIDS team
  • 1990-1992: Journal therapist, The National Center for the Treatment of Dissociative Disorders, Denver CO
  • 1988-1990: Group therapist and unit counselor, West Pines Psychiatric Hospital, Wheat Ridge CO

Education and Licensure

  • MM/S (Master Mentor/Supervisor, designated by National Federation for Biblio/Poetry Therapy [NFBPT] as a trainer of mentor/supervisors), 2007
  • M/S (Mentor/Supervisor, designated by NFBPT as a trainer/supervisor of certified applied poetry facilitators, certified poetry therapists and registered poetry therapists, 2000
  • PTR (Registered Poetry/Journal Therapist), 2000
  • LPC (Licensed Professional Counselor), 1993
  • MA, Psychology and Counseling, Boulder Graduate School, Boulder CO, 1988
  • BA, Journalism, Colorado State University, Ft. Collins CO, 1972

Awards and Achievements

  • Board of Directors, National Association for Poetry Therapy (NAPT), 1993-2007; pesident, 2001-2003
  • Board of Directors, NAPT Foundation, 1997-2001; president 1997-2001
  • Board of Directors, National Federation for Biblio/Poetry Therapy, 2003-2008; president, 2005-2006
  • NAPT’s Distinguished Service Award, 1998, 2003, 2005
  • Peacemaker Award (finalist), 1998, A Season for Nonviolence