The Primary Witness

My name is Thiago Leão. I'm originally from Brazil. My name can be strange to pronounce if this is the first time you see it - however, I guarantee it's pretty straightforward. 

I am a Psychotherapist and licensed Professional Counselor based in Denver Colorado. My background includes a combination of Psychodynamic elements which speak to deep complexities that may exist inside of the self- inner conflict, and I combine that with Existential Psychology and also Buddhist and Zen Psychology, which I have been practicing and studying for most of my career. 

I do not approach psychological practice from a manualized point of view. I practice psychology synergistically, incorporating existentialism, Buddhist (Dharma) psychology, and a psychodynamic approach. 

This unique combination tends to produce a lot of movement and transformation where it’s needed which can happen very quickly, and at the same time can elicit areas of deeper work that may need longer support. Each journey is unique. I truly believe that if given the appropriate environment, humans can elicit their own sense of strength and agency inside. And that’s what I hope to provide with my practice.

The name of my practice – The Primary Witness –refers to old Zen and Buddhist stories. The Primary Witness is the one that’s connected with watching all of our experience, versus the Secondary Witness, which is busy with the noise, disturbances and confusion. My practice and the Primary Witness is about transforming confusion into sanity- or brilliant sanity as it would be called in the Dharma. 

If existential conflict, the unconscious, and waking up sound interesting to you, I would be honored to meet you and see how we can work together.