Our Incredible Story
Our
Start
The Therapy Center for Transformative Growth (TCTG) was founded by Stephanie Oyler and Amanda Woolston, two adoptees from foster care, two social workers, and two people who carry both personal and professional knowledge of what it means to lose your first family and still be expected to thrive. For years, we searched for spaces where adopted people could receive care from others who truly understood—not just as clinicians, but as fellow adoptees, advocates, and certified thanatologists trained in the impact of loss.
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TCTG was born from a deep need: post-adoption support that centers the voices of adopted people and honors the lifelong complexity of adoption. We recognized that this kind of care was nearly nonexistent in a system that too often silences grief, discourages honesty, and treats adoption as a one-time event rather than an ongoing identity experience.​
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As we grew, our purpose expanded. We came to see how the same wounds—early loss, attachment disruptions, family dysfunction, systemic harm—affect so many others beyond adoption. Childhood doesn’t end at 18. The pain of feeling unseen, parentified, abandoned, or controlled can last for decades, shaping our relationships, our parenting, and our sense of self. We built TCTG to be a place where those experiences are named, validated, and worked through in ways that lead to real change.
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Today, TCTG is a trauma-informed, identity-affirming therapy practice rooted in social work values. We serve people, especially those from marginalized communities, who have been hurt in relationships or harmed by social and institutional systems. We believe healing isn’t about erasing pain, but about building safety, connection, and the freedom to become who you are without apology.