Meet Therapist and Owner Sarah Schwalbach, MA, LMFT
Hello! I’m Sarah. I’m grateful you’re here.
I am a dually licensed marriage and family therapist in Minnesota and Wisconsin. I have worked in the mental health and addiction recovery field for over 10 years in a variety of roles. I pursued my dream of starting in private practice in June of 2025, and Embrace Therapy and Recovery was born.
I love being a therapist. I get to come alongside people as they navigate challenges they never expected to face, and offer tools and support to make these obstacles more manageable. I get to witness changes, big and small, happen consistently, which makes it all worth it.
Professional Background and Experience
I am a licensed marriage and family therapist in Minnesota and Wisconsin. I graduated with my masters from Saint Mary’s University in Minneapolis, MN in 2016. I was accepted to a practicum experience at the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation, where I became employed upon graduation. I continue to work for Hazelden in an on-call capacity. At Hazelden, I have lead hundreds of Family Programs, worked on the treatment units facilitating mental health groups, and held a caseload of clients in outpatient mental health.
I took a special interest in learning about Community Reinforcement and Family Training (CRAFT) through my work in family services, and became certified in 2022. CRAFT is an evidenced-based approach to supporting family members who love someone struggling with substance use.
Any party can work toward repair in relationships. Therapy is a great place to work on identifying unhelpful patterns and making changes to move you toward what you want.
Therapeutic Approaches for Change
Through our therapy, I will use several approaches to help you repair relationships, find more clarity, uncover deeper understanding, and make moves toward the change you're seeking. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Internal Family Systems, and CRAFT skills are commonly used approaches in sessions.
Community Reinforcement and Family Training
CRAFT (Community Reinforcement and Family Training) is a set of skills specifically designed to help family members encourage treatment engagement when necessary, in a non-threatening way, while making non-substance-using behaviors more rewarding than substance-using ones.
Sarah is a CRAFT-certified clinician, and she would love to speak with you more about this evidenced-based approach to recovery!
Building Healthier Relationship Patterns
I work with clients to identify their own and their family members' strengths while learning to implement skills to cope with a range of symptoms and scenarios. My goal is for each client I work with to feel more empowered in their relationships, including in their relationship with self, while increasing their hope for the future.
Virtual Sessions and Consultation
I work with individuals, couples, and families in virtual therapy sessions. Clients have described feeling that my approach is warm and encouraging. Reach out for a FREE 15-minute phone consultation to see if we're a good fit.
Uplifting Care through Every Recovery Stage
Build healthier relationships with yourself and others through therapy grounded in empathy, emotional understanding, and meaningful support.