Bringing Meaningful Education to Western Washington
Customized, evidence-informed education for organizations supporting mental health and community well-being throughout Western Washington.
We partner with organizations to create engaging, practical learning experiences that strengthen helping professionals, foster resilient teams, and support sustainable, trauma-informed care.
Education changes behavior. Behavior changes culture. Culture changes organizations. Healthy organizations create better outcomes for the people they serve.
We believe that education is one of the most powerful tools for preventing burnout, reducing compassion fatigue, and creating healthier organizations. When people understand trauma, human behavior, nervous systems, and themselves, they become more confident, more connected, and better equipped to support others while sustaining their own well-being.
Organizations We Support:
Community Behavioral Health
Nonprofits & Community Action
Housing & Shelter Programs
Schools & Youth Organizations
Crisis & Emergency Response
Public Health & Healthcare
Disability Service Providers
Advocates & Legal Teams
Family Support Organizations & Mentorship Programs
Child Welfare & Family Advocacy Groups
Foster Care Support Networks
Professionals We Train:
Direct Support Professionals
Peer Support Specialists
Recovery Coaches & Crisis Counselors
Case Managers
Community Health Workers
Educators & Support Staff
First Responders & Medical Providers
Volunteers
Justice Workers & Advocates
Why Choose OTS
Education First:
We believe understanding creates confidence. When people understand the "why" behind trauma, behavior, and human connection, they're better equipped to respond with skill, compassion, and confidence.
Relationship-Centered:
Before we teach, we listen. Every organization has its own culture, strengths, and challenges. We believe meaningful education begins with understanding the people we're serving.
Evidence-Informed & Practical:
Our trainings are grounded in current research while remaining accessible, engaging, and immediately applicable to real-world work.
Sustainable Helping:
Supporting others shouldn't come at the expense of your own well-being. We believe education can help professionals build careers that are both meaningful and sustainable.
Areas of Learning
Our trainings have covered topics such as:
Trauma - Informed Care:
Build a deeper understanding of how trauma shapes the brain, body, behavior, relationships, and healing. These trainings help professionals respond with greater confidence, compassion, and effectiveness.
Example learning experiences:
Trauma & the Brain: Understanding Trauma's Effects
Trauma 101
Understanding Trauma Across the Lifespan
Recognizing Trauma Responses in Everyday Practice
Creating Trauma-Informed Organizations
Foundations of Trauma Informed Support for Helping Professionals
Burnout, Compassion Fatigue & Sustainable Helping:
Supporting others is meaningful work, but it can also be emotionally demanding. These trainings help professionals recognize the impact of helping, strengthen resilience, and develop sustainable practices that support both themselves and the people they serve.
Example learning experiences:
Combating Compassion Fatigue & Burnout
Trauma Stewardship: Helping the Helpers
Building Sustainability and Restoring Purpose in Helping Professions
Working Through Vicarious Trauma & Building Stronger Connections
Navigating Vicarious Trauma, Compassion Fatigue & Fostering Resilience in Shared Collective Trauma
Navigating Grief, Loss & Difficult Experiences:
Helping professionals often carry the weight of supporting others through grief, crisis, and trauma while navigating their own emotional responses. These trainings explore ways to care for others without losing ourselves in the process.
Example learning experiences:
Working Through Workplace Grief & Trauma
Supporting Individuals Through Crisis
Holding Space for Loss and Uncertainty
Caring for Ourselves While Caring for Others
Our trainings are designed to be:
Interactive
Practical
Discussion-based
Evidence-informed
Grounded in real-world application
Tailored to your organization
Participants leave with tools, resources, and strategies they can immediately begin using in their work.
Getting Started:
Step 1: Reach Out: Complete our form to tell us a little bit about what you are looking for and how we can contact you
Step 2: Listening Session: We meet with leadership to learn about your organization, your staff, your clients, and your goals.
Step 3: Custom Proposal: You'll receive a proposal outlining the training we will develop, objectives, and logistics we covered.
Step 4: Training Design: Once we get your approval, we build your training using your organization's needs, examples, and learning goals.
Step 5: Training Delivery
Step 6: Resources & Continued Support: Participants receive resources and practical tools to continue applying what they've learned long after the training ends.
Who We Are
Our journey began in Portland, Oregon, where we partnered to develop and deliver customized, trauma-informed trainings through Integrative Trauma Treatment Center (ITTC). Together, we worked with organizations and helping professionals to create educational experiences that were practical, engaging, and tailored to the unique needs of each team.
Today, while Libby continues her work with ITTC and Catherine leads Olympic Trauma Specialists, we've both found a new home in the Puget Sound region. Libby in Port Orchard and Catherine in Union.
We've been inspired by the dedication of the organizations and professionals serving these communities. We see the compassion, commitment, and hard work happening every day, and we're excited to bring the same customized educational approach that has been so meaningful to organizations in Oregon to the communities we now call home.
We are educators at our core.
Olympic Trauma Specialists
Founder & Owner
Catherine Sims brings over twenty years of behavioral health expertise and practice leadership directly to the local community, delivering specialized training and education designed to build resilient, healthy workforces. As a founder, practice consultant, and former Clinical Director for the Integrative Trauma Treatment Center, she focuses on addressing the systemic impact of burnout, chronic stress, and communication breakdowns on workplace health.
Her educational workshops and training programs translate advanced psychological concepts into practical, actionable strategies for modern workplaces. Specializing in trauma-informed leadership, sustainable workforce development, and operational transparency, Catherine helps organizations move away from rigid, top-down dynamics to cultivate environments rooted in integrity and shared accountability.
Her work is backed by a deep foundation in academic instruction and curriculum design, including her time as an Affiliate Faculty Member and Regional Site Supervisor at The Family Institute at Northwestern University, where she integrated trauma-informed care practices into the core curriculum. As a multi-state Licensed Professional Counselor, Approved Clinical Supervisor (ACS), and Board-Certified TeleMental Health (BC-TMH) provider, Catherine provides local businesses and clinical owners with the concrete, evidence-based tools necessary to safeguard workplace well-being, optimize retention, and drive sustainable professional agency.
Integrative Trauma Treatment Center
Co-Owner
Libby DeFehr is a trauma-informed educator, business leader, and mental health professional dedicated to transforming the way individuals, organizations, and communities understand trauma, resilience, and human connection. She is the co-owner of Integrative Trauma Treatment Center (ITTC) in Portland, Oregon, where she has helped build a thriving outpatient mental health practice known for its commitment to clinical excellence, innovation, and compassionate care.
As the co-founder of KALOS Learning Community and co-content creator of Olympic Trauma Specialists, Libby is passionate about making high-quality education accessible to helping professionals. She develops and delivers engaging, evidence-informed trainings for therapists, educators, healthcare providers, nonprofit organizations, first responders, and community agencies throughout the Pacific Northwest. Her work bridges research with practical application, equipping professionals with tools they can immediately use to improve the lives of those they serve.
Libby believes that education has the power to change behavior, shape organizational culture, and ultimately improve outcomes for entire communities. Her teaching style is interactive, relationship-centered, and grounded in the understanding that meaningful learning occurs when people feel safe, respected, and engaged. Rather than relying solely on lectures, she creates learning experiences that encourage reflection, discussion, and real-world application.
Beyond education, Libby enjoys building organizations that support both clients and clinicians. She has led the development of innovative clinical programs, professional education initiatives, supervision models, community partnerships, and systems that strengthen accessibility and sustainability within behavioral healthcare. She is particularly passionate about reducing burnout among helping professionals and creating environments where both providers and the people they serve can thrive.
Whether speaking to a room of clinicians, collaborating with community partners, or mentoring emerging professionals, Libby brings warmth, curiosity, and a genuine belief in people's capacity for growth. Her work is guided by the conviction that understanding ourselves and one another is one of the most powerful tools for creating lasting change.
Every organization is different, and we'd love to learn more about yours.
Whether you're looking for a single workshop, a full-day training, or a customized educational experience, we'll begin by listening.
Complete the inquiry form below and we'll be in touch to schedule a Listening Session.