Sports Psychology Therapists in Hillsboro, OR

I enjoy helping clients with Sports issues and feel that my foundation in classical yoga teaching can offer solutions to almost any related problem.

You spend countless hours practicing the physical skills necessary to be great at what you do. But do you invest in the mastering the mental side? Common performance struggles include performance anxiety, low confidence, inconsistent performances, and returning from injury. Let's collaborate to help you perform your best and to enjoy what you do.

As a practitioner of traditional martial arts for 55 years, I have trained thousands of students reach their potential as athletes, competitors and teachers. It has been my privilege to have produced hundreds of black belts, who live all over the world. I have worked with team sport members and coaches, the women's Olympic ski team, martial artists of other systems, and have produced teachers, coaches and mentors to pass on this approach to the next generations. I have trained with some of the most well known teachers,competitors, musicians and movie actors as well as the average person and families to achieve a higher sense of accomplishment and purpose. I work with students from age 8 to older adults in their 80's or beyond.

Hypnosis is a valuable tool for those seeking a competitive edge in sports performance. I have been involved with sports performance improvement since the 1970’s through my work with sports competitors to include recreational golfers, collegiate middle-distance runners and swimmers, marathon runners, and others. Noteworthy, among my clients, has been a CIF track and field champion, a swimmer on Cal Berkeley’s 2X national championship team, a collegiate middle-distance champion, and a marathoner who successfully completed the Mount Everest Marathon. Addressing the performance aspects of sports through hypnosis complements physical training and can lead to breakthrough performances. My use of hypnosis works by reprogramming negative self-talk, empowering performance through affirmations and guided imagery, boosting confidence, and reducing anxiety. In that pre-competition jitters or fear of failure can derail an athlete’s mindset, hypnosis employs subconscious relaxation techniques and guided imagery to reduce cortisol levels and promote a calm composed state of mind, while fostering a winning attitude. Studies have shown the efficacy of hypnosis in sports. For example, a 2016 review in the International Journal of Sports Science highlighted significant performance improvements in athletes who used hypnosis compared to those who did not. Those who used hypnosis reported better focus, reduced pre-competition anxiety, and enhanced execution of skills after hypnosis sessions. In sports performance counseling, my use of hypnosis facilitates vivid mental imagery, allowing athletes to visualize successful performance. Research has shown that mental rehearsal can strengthen neural pathways, helping the body to perform as if it has already achieved the desired outcome. Using hypnotic relaxation to tap into an athlete’s subconscious allows the competitor to tap into their commitment to training, discipline, and goal achievement in a stress-free manner.

Dr. Sari is beyond an expert in sports psychology and recognized as an award winning leader in sport & performance psychology. She works with athletes, coaches, teams and performers from every premiere sport. She works with World Champions, Olympians, elite athletes, and rising stars from nearly every sport imaginable.

Hillsboro is home to Intel's largest site and the anchor of Oregon's Silicon Forest technology corridor, hosting a dense concentration of semiconductor, electronics, and technology companies that makes it one of the most significant tech manufacturing hubs in the United States. The city has grown substantially as a result of tech sector employment and has a notably diverse population including significant Latino and Asian communities alongside the technical workforce, many of whom have relocated for Intel or other tech employment. Washington County Mental Health provides public behavioral health services, and a growing private therapy sector serves the professional community. Common therapy concerns include tech industry stress and burnout, immigration and acculturation for the city's large immigrant workforce, economic anxiety amid semiconductor industry cycles, and the relocation and community-building challenges of a workforce that has often moved significant distances for career opportunities.

Gender ID

	60%	Male
	40%	Female

Session Type

	60%	In Person and Online
	40%	Online Only

Top Treatment Approaches

50%	Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
40%	Gestalt Therapy
40%	Hypnotherapy
40%	Integrative Therapy
40%	Psychodynamic Therapy
30%	Behavioral Therapy
30%	Eclectic Therapy

Ages Served

100%	Adult
80%	Young Adult
60%	Senior
40%	Teen
30%	Children

Client Focus

70%	Men
70%	Women
50%	Black / African American
50%	Christian
50%	Hispanic / Latino

Sports Psychology therapists in Hillsboro, Oregon OR

Catherine Saunders

Katie Steinert

Peaceful Warrior Wellness Services, LLC / Dr.Steven Ruiz Bettencourt, Psy.D.,LPC, Cht, EMDR

Stuart Hellebrand, M.S., C.Ht.

Dr. Sari Shepphird