About Us

Everyone has a unique perspective on life’s challenges. The advice of friends and self-help books can be good at identifying common issues, but it often falls short of addressing your unique feelings in a meaningful and lasting way. A good counselor doesn’t simply recite stock advice, but draws on years of training and experience to coach you through an individual process of finding your OWN answers.

Hafnium Consulting is a reflection of Steven Schuetz’s 20 years of practical experience in the field of mental health counseling. The element Hafnium is a precious, high-energy metal that has a bright, mirror-like quality when it is polished. The root of the name is the Latin word for “harbor.” It is our hope that Hafnium Consulting will be a reflective, safe harbor for our clients to do some of life’s important work.

Steven J Schuetz, MS, LMHC, LMFT

Steven has been working with children and families for 20 years, and currently serves on the Board of Directors for GLSEN Washington State.  In 1997, he received a Masters Degree in Marriage and Family Therapy from Seattle Pacific University. He has worked with families, traditional and same-sex couples, children, and adolescents in a variety of residential and outpatient settings.

“I employ a collaborative style of treatment and encourage my clients to set their own goals and agenda for their treatment and each individual session. Your participation in this process is essential. In our sessions we will work together to establish goals and strategize ways to improve your particular situation.

While I can offer a differing perspective on the dynamics at work in your life, you must be willing to invest time and effort between our meetings to make your own discoveries. Often I will suggest homework assignments designed to foster a deeper understanding of a situation or relationship. Counseling can be an exciting process, but it is not an easy or simple one.”

Brittany Steffen, MS, LMFTA

Brittany is currently a Board member of Open Door Ministries and has been awarded a Certificate in Adlerian Counseling. She holds a Masters Degree in Marriage and Family Therapy from Seattle Pacific University.

“I view counseling/psychotherapy as a collaborative way for anyone who feels stuck to create movement in their life. Therapy can help clients increase connections and intimacy, develop communication skills, explore the connection between their past and present, and find balance. Use your therapist as atool to examine your perceptions, assumptions, values, goals, thought/communication patterns, and above all, your relationships.

I enjoy working with individuals and couples on the relationships that work best for them. I take a sex positive and LGTBQ supportive stance as I work with individual clients and couples. My childhood experience growing up between two households, one liberal LGTBQ and the other conservative Christian, lends itself to a unique therapeutic perspective built on firsthand experience. As I focused my graduate research on LGBTQ couples, I have both personal and practical experience in this area.”