Portrait of Blue Spruce Counseling Therapists Abbey Pope, LPC, Sophia Cuni-Mertz, LPC, and Shannon Toalson, LCP.

Welcome to Blue Spruce Counseling

We’re a therapist collective in Lawrence, Kansas. Our mission is to provide empowering, strengths-based mental health therapy. We’re accepting new clients today!

We believe that:

  • Effective therapy helps you utilize your strengths and values to embrace the joys and hardships of life.   

  • Your environment and cultural identities shape how you move through the world. By examining both internal and external influences on your mental health, you will gain perspective and self-compassion.

  • You deserve therapy that works. That’s why we draw from evidence-based therapies like ACT, DBT, and positive psychotherapy to equip you to be your own mental health advocate.

Meet our therapists:

  • A portrait of a therapist, Abbey Pope, LPC.

    Abbey Pope, LPC

    Licensed Professional Counselor

    Pronouns: she/her

    Interests: Chronic illness and disability, identity development, LGBTQ+ issues, self-worth, anxiety, and emotion regulation.

  • A portrait of a therapist, Sophia Cuni-Mertz, LPC.

    Sophia Cuni-Mertz, LPC

    Licensed Professional Counselor

    Pronouns: she/her

    Interests: Anxiety and OCD, trauma, women's issues, strengths-based counseling, and multicultural counseling.

  • Portrait of therapist Shannon Toalson, LCP

    Coming soon: Shannon Toalson, LCP

    Licensed Clinical Psychotherapist

    Pronouns: she/her

    Interests: Overcontrolled coping, communication challenges, behavioral patterns, emotion regulation, and mindfulness.

    Shannon will begin seeing clients on October 16th, 2025.

We use counseling techniques from:

  • Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (ACT)

    ACT teaches you to accept painful thoughts and feelings, get in touch with your core values, and conquer your fears.

  • Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)

    DBT-informed therapy helps you learn coping skills and shift from “black-and-white” thinking to “both-and” thinking.

  • Positive Psychotherapy

    Positive psychotherapy improves your wellbeing by capitalizing on your strengths and cultivating hope.

Blue Spruce Counseling Therapy Office in Lawrence Kansas
Blue Spruce Counseling Therapy Office in Lawrence Kansas

We’d love to hear from you.

Reach out for a free therapy consultation, to refer a client, to collaborate, or just to say hello!