Karen L. Shurtz is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (MFT) with an office in Thousand Oaks, California. Along with her husband, who is also a Licensed MFT, she hosted Live with Rick and Karen, a weekly live call-in therapist talk show on KDAR 98.3 FM for several years. Ms. Shurtz is trained in EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing), and specializes in depression and anxiety disorders, trauma, assertiveness training, and relationship counseling. She also works extensively in helping individuals successfully deal with stressful life changes. Much of her experience has been with women’s issues and eating disorders, as well as providing parenting help from a Biblical perspective to families with adolescents. She is co-founder of LOMSAA, Living Oaks Middle School Academic Alliance, a Christian discipleship and character building Middle School Academy in Ventura County, California. She also provides professional and personal growth seminars for individuals, corporations and churches through her consulting firm, GROWTH ENTERPRISES.
Karen began her consulting career as a Media Specialist, helping business people to prepare for media interviews and live press conferences. From there, as Director of Communications for an international communications consulting firm, she branched out into numerous other training areas. She has conducted seminars and workshops on various aspects of parenting and communication skills, public speaking and presentation skills, stress management, and developing a healthy self-image.
One of her passions is providing seminars and workshops for churches on a variety of topics. Based on her many years of walking closely with God and 30+ years of working with clients in her psychotherapy practice, she shares with audiences how to lead more fulfilling and abundant lives by having a better understanding of how God views each of us, and how to be healthier emotionally, spiritually, physically, and psychologically. In addition, she and her husband Rick enjoy speaking at Marriage Retreats as well as providing 1-2 hour couples’ workshops on all aspects of enhancing relationships.
Ms. Shurtz was founder of New Life Treatment Centers Wilderness Program, an outdoor therapeutic program for troubled adolescents. And prior to this, she was a television news reporter and talk show host in California and Texas. Her experiences as a professional snow ski instructor, whitewater rafting guide, scuba diver and windsurfing enthusiast help to bring a fresh and dynamic approach to her seminars and speaking engagements. She holds a Master’s degree in Marital and Family Therapy from Azusa Pacific University, and a Bachelor’s degree in Communication Studies from UCLA.
Currently she enjoys training for half marathons, century bike rides, and any other outdoor sport. She and her husband have two grown children. Ms. Shurtz is available for workshops, seminars, one-on-one consulting, counseling and public speaking appearances.