Why Sandstone Therapy?

About a year ago, well before the Pandemic had begun, Bodie Coates was approached almost simultaneously by Dr. Andrea Doran and Melinda Artz with the thought of someday starting a small private practice. Bodie had also been thinking of this, and he brought the 3 together to begin discussions.

In the beginning, we simply called this idea “the practice.” We knew we wanted to have something that reminded us of local, Nevada heritage. It was difficult to come up with something that didn’t sound robotic or unoriginal, but one day we sat down and started looking at the various things that make up our great state.

We thought about calling ourselves “Bighorn Therapy” in honor of our state animal, the Bighorn Sheep. We thought about variations of Silver and Opal, Nevada’s state metal and precious gemstone. We even considered various local plants like the Sagebrush and Indian Ricegrass… but it wasn’t until Bodie was reading off the symbols of the State of Nevada that we all suddenly agreed on the name. The moment the State rock was heard, each of us stopped and realized we should be Sandstone Therapy. We then conjured images of the beautiful sandstone arches and towers of the Valley of Fire, and began researching what sandstone meant to us locals.

Sandstone was chosen as Nevada’s State rock in 1987 as a result of the efforts of the children of Gene Ward Elementary School in Las Vegas. The beautiful formations created by millions of years of weathering reminded us of the way our clients weather so many storms and yet stand strong. The arches created by time reminded us of the way we therapists create a connection between us and our clients, forever striving to build rapport and encourage growth. The innumerable colorful layers sandstone creates reminded us of the way we often work with our clients to uncover their own layers of self, guiding them deep down into an understanding of their unconscious minds. We had not known how much sandstone would so perfectly represent our goals and purpose for opening our practice. This is how Sandstone Therapy was born and became a business on March 9th, 2020.

So next time you are walking around the Nevada State Capital and admiring all the local types of trees and plants, take a moment to notice that the Capital building is built out of Sandstone bricks, and let it inspire you to continue to believe in your strength, explore yourself, and connect with those you love.