Joey Ward is an Associate Therapist at Bellevue Trauma Recovery Center, bringing a fresh, highly relevant specialty to the BTRC team: treating compulsive sexual behaviors, particularly as they show up through technology, in teens and young people. His Washington State Licensed Mental Health Counselor Associate (LMHCA) application is currently pending; in the interim, Joey is practicing under the state’s 120-day provisional practice period (WAC 246-809-097), under the close supervision of BTRC’s licensed clinical team. He earned his Master of Arts in Counseling Psychology, with a Clinical Mental Health concentration, from the University of Denver, where his training centered on trauma-informed care, ethics, intimate partner violence, and multicultural approaches to therapy. 

Joey’s clinical focus centers on treating compulsive sexual behaviors in teens and adolescents, particularly as they relate to technology and social platforms, a niche shaped by his own background in digital media. Before entering the counseling field, Joey worked as a Digital Media Technician and social media strategist, giving him a rare, firsthand understanding of how apps, platforms, and online spaces are engineered to capture and hold young people’s attention. That insider perspective makes him especially equipped to help teens and their families recognize compulsive and problematic sexual behavior patterns online, and build healthier, more intentional relationships with technology, an increasingly urgent need for today’s families.

In session, Joey uses an integrative, trauma-informed approach, blending existential, relational-cultural, narrative, and psychodynamic theories, to help clients build insight, process trauma, and interrupt compulsive behavior cycles. His clinical training spans work with clients presenting significant trauma histories, substance use concerns, and anxiety, depression, and personality disorders. 

Joey has a longstanding passion for working with teens and young people, including several years spent mentoring LGBTQ+ youth through challenging social and family circumstances, further shaping his commitment to creating an affirming space for clients of all backgrounds.

Outside of the therapy room, Joey draws on years of experience as a photographer and digital media producer, having led a university photography team throughout his undergraduate career.

Education & Credentials:

M.A., Counseling Psychology (Clinical Mental Health Concentration) — University of Denver

B.S., Sociology — Texas A&M University

Washington State LMHCA (Licensed Mental Health Counselor Associate) — application pending; practicing under WAC 246-809-097 provisional period, under supervision