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Get to Know Me

I was born a poet before I became a psychologist.

My name is Kayden and my pronouns are they/them. I am a scholar, activist, counseling psychologist, and coach living on Yakama land in rural Washington. I currently provide services via telehealth in Washington state, and participating PSYPACT states

I grew up in a small town of 2,000 and am a first generation scholar psychologist. I am a faculty member by day at Heritage University, and maintain a small, intimate private practice. I find that I am creative in how I explore client's inner worlds, and so prefer to keep my caseload small in order to tailor my work to meet each individual's unique goals. 

I am an artist, a poet, a parent, and fluent in English and Spanish. As such, I provide services in English and Spanish, and utilize creative approaches in my clinical work. I specialize in working with folks wanting to explore gender identity, sexual orientation, spirituality and religious deconstruction (and reconstruction), as well as working on eating disorder recovery and restoring our relationships to our bodies. I am a firm believer in fat liberation, harm reduction, and meeting you where you are at - my liberation is bound up in yours.

I love working with other artists and people who are really invested in doing the work of understanding themselves and the worlds we inhabit.

If this sounds like you, please reach out. I am so excited to meet you.

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Stay Connected

509-402-2208

3240 Fort Rd. Toppenish WA

Recent Publications & Trainings

Here is some of what I've been up to lately.

July 2023

[Dead Name] with Kith Books

https://www.kithbooks.com/shop/p/vargas 

In [DEAD NAME] The Names of My Dead Kayden Vargas troubles our notions of (home)town and family. Are we the people and places that birthed us or are we each our own creation of home? Is there grief in revisiting the landscapes that launched you? Why must we read shame into the handcraft of building a body, a future, a home? Not all can or want to be salmon. Some of us will always be happier to face into the future, backs firmly turned on everything we’ve left to become.

 

Release Date: July 25, 2023

June 2023

Gender Equity On the Front Lines: Washington State Hospital Association

Invited Speaker

Keynote speaker with Washington State Hospital CEOs about the important and applicability of gender affirming healthcare.

Snoqualmie Health 

Pronouns 202: Neopronouns, gender affirming healthcare, and more!

Workshop as a followup on how to utilize pronousn and other best practices to support TGNC and gender expansive patients in the medical context. 

May 2022

[Bottom] Growth

Poetry publication

Vargas, K. M. (2022). Bloom Magazine i05. https://issuu.com/bloomxmagazine/docs/issue_05-final 

To purchase in print: https://www.peecho.com/print/en/1128604 

May 2022

Columbia Communion

Poetry publication

Vargas, K.M. (2022) Shrub steppe Poetry Journal, Spring 2022.

More information about Shrub steppe poetry here: https://shrubsteppepoetry.org/

May 2022

Bright & Beloved Bang

Poetry publication

Vargas, K.N. (2022). Shrub steppe Poetry Journal. Spring 2022.

More information about Shrub steppe poetry here: https://shrubsteppepoetry.org/

December 2021

Gender Pronouns 101: Cascade Medical

Invited Training

This training provided an introduction to gender equity in the work place, an introduction to pronouns, trans inclusion, and assistance in launching pronoun badges within a medical context at Cascade Medical in Leavenworth, WA.

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