ABOUT

Hey! I’m Virginia.

IFS Therapist & Therapeutic Coach from the US, based in Barcelona, Spain.

My Mission

I support people to shift from feeling out of control of their lives to living in choice.

Together, we explore how the seemingly self-destructive (or, at the very least, unhelpful) things that we do are actually attempts to take care of ourselves or others.

This approach is directly informed by my many years in the addiction field. And there is nothing that I know of like addiction to shine a light on the vast chasm that can exist between what we’re trying to do and what actually ends up happening.

Early in my career, I ran court-mandated groups for people who were caught driving under the influence. At least once during each person’s time in the group, I would pose the question:

What did you get out of using?

At first, all of the answers would be negative:
Nothing!
A nice stay in jail.
Health problems.
Family issues.

But then I would ask again, but more specifically: What about the good stuff? And then the answers dramatically shifted.
Calm.
Freedom.
Relaxation.
Connection.
Stress relief.

Who doesn’t want those things? And of course people will do whatever they think will work to get them.

And while we may or may not use substances, we all have things we do to try to get our needs met that seem to never quite do the trick - at least not in the long run. And that often actually make things worse.

My job is to support you to understand what exactly those needs are, to deal with what’s keeping you from meeting them, and to actually have choice in how you move towards them.

MY STYLE

“I don’t want someone who just listens to me, nods, and repeats back what I say.”

If this is one of your concerns, I can go ahead and tell you now that there’s no need to worry.

While I can be very spacious and slow down when the moment calls for it, you will also find that I am engaged and communicative in sessions. I will challenge you (with care!) and offer reflections for you to bounce off of as we explore the different parts of you that come up.

My primary role is as the facilitator of your relationship with yourself - or, in the case of relationship work, your relationship with both yourself and the other person. However, there are also times that call for some practical support or some more “cereberal” information about how our systems work and what we need.

It’s my job to be responsive to your needs and to support all of the different parts of you as they come up in our work together. That includes both the parts of you that are more obviously emotional and tender and those that are (at least on the surface) more logical and practical.

MY STORY

From early on in my life, I have wrestled with the relationship between the everyday, mundane aspects of life and the larger forces that move and impact us.

This started me on my initial career path as an organic farmer. But life had other plans. Instead, my journey led me to cultivating my internal world and those of others as a therapist and coach.

Along the way, I:

  • studied Spanish language, immigration, and sustainable agriculture in undergrad at the College of William & Mary

  • started working with my first therapist at the age of 19 to start to untangle the knots of childhood trauma

  • spent 8 consecutive summers working (and at times living) on organic farms in both Virginia and Colorado

  • shifted course professionally to study mindfulness-based psychology at Naropa University in Colorado (where I also did a ton of salsa dancing and hiking!)

  • (accidentally) started specializing in addiction, trauma, and working with men, first as an intern at the Colorado AIDS Network and then as a court-mandated addiction counselor

  • made a wild move across the ocean to Barcelona to pursue a relationship that has led to my now-6-year-long marriage

  • took a break from therapy to explore coaching, including offering communication coaching in corporate environments

  • found IFS during my continuing education training to renew my therapy license and felt the call to step back into that role

  • started a project to support people in working with (not against) resistance, whether their own or their clients’

And this winding journey has ultimately led me to my calling: supporting others to live more fully by tending to all of the different (often conflicting) parts of themselves.

Each experience along the way informs my current work as a therapist & therapeutic coach, and together they provide the foundation from which I meet each of my clients right where they are at.

My background & training

Education

MA Contemplative Psychotherapy
Naropa University, July 2014

BA Environmental Policy and Hispanic Studies
College of William & Mary, May 2010

Certification

Colorado Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC)
License Number: LPC.0014040

Disclaimer: My current scope of practice does not include the diagnosis and/or treatment of any mental health condition.

While I am licensed as a professional counselor in the state of Colorado, the services advertised and provided by me outside of Colorado are conditioned by the laws and regulations of Catalunya, Spain. Under no condition are my services to be construed as a medical mental health treatment. As stated above, my scope of practice does not include the diagnosis and/or treatment of any mental health condition. The nature of our professional relationship will be clearly defined in our contract. If you have any further questions about the difference between medical mental health treatment (diagnosis, treatment of a mental health condition, etc.) and the services I currently offer, feel free to contact me at connect@virginiafcjenkins.com.

Training

  • Men in Mind - Movember

  • Internal Family Systems (IFS) Level 2 - Intimacy from the Inside Out (IFIO)

  • Internal Family Systems (IFS) Level 1

  • Internal Family Systems (IFS) Online Circle: Foundations of the Internal Family Systems (IFS) Model

  • Certified Professional Coach Training Program (ICF ACC Track)

  • Coaching for Self-Leadership - Internal Family Systems (IFS)

  • Introduction to Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR)

  • Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT)

  • Motivational Interviewing (MI)

  • Certified Addiction Counselor Training

  • Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) Training

  • Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) Training

  • The Art & Science of Liberation: Introduction to Acceptance and Commitment Therapy

  • Awakening the Core Self: An Introduction to the Hakomi Method

Kind Words

Virginia brings together a unique blend of evidence-based practices with the compassionate foundation of mindfulness and contemplative practice. This combination enables clients to get direct skills, coaching, and support, while also being in genuine relationship with an attuned helper who cares deeply.

Craig Salerno, LPC, LAC

Location

C. del Consell de Cent, 355,
08007 Barcelona, Spain