About Root & Return Wellness

A Practice Devoted to Healing, Reconnection, and Wholeness

Root & Return Wellness is a person-centered therapy practice in Connecticut that helps people create lives grounded in presence, belonging, and healing. Our integrative approach blends depth-oriented therapy, embodiment practices, and conscious connection to support growth across mind, body, and spirit.

Led by Rachel Forbes, LCSW, Root & Return Wellness offers a compassionate, relational approach that helps clients move beyond survival and into lives guided by curiosity, compassion, and connection.

Here, therapy is not just about insight. It’s an experience of returning to yourself, to others, and to your inner wisdom.

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About Root & Return Wellness

An Integrative Path Toward Inner Healing

Healing at Root & Return Wellness is collaborative, relational, and deeply human. Our therapists blend evidence-based and holistic practices that honor the whole person - mind, body, and spirit. Each session is guided by curiosity, compassion, and the belief that healing unfolds through presence, not perfection.

Our integrative approach draws from Internal Family Systems (IFS), Attachment-Based Therapy, Polyvagal Theory, and Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) frameworks, as well as somatic and mindfulness practices that help clients reconnect with the body’s natural wisdom. We also incorporate Person-Centered Therapy, creating a safe, supportive space for authentic self-discovery and transformation.

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Who We Work With

Healing for Individuals and Families

Root & Return Wellness supports anyone seeking meaningful, lasting healing through a compassionate and integrative approach to therapy. Our clients value depth, presence, and authentic connection. They are ready to move beyond coping and begin the deeper work of reconnection, unburdening, and empowerment.

Though not exclusively, we also hold a special resonance for members of the adoption constellation, including adoptees, adoptive parents, and families touched by adoption. Many are seeking a space where their experiences are met with care, sensitivity, and understanding. Our care in this community is rooted in curiosity, respect, and a deep commitment to meeting each person fully and without assumption.

Root & Return Wellness also welcomes clinicians who feel inspired by our mission and values. These are therapists who believe in relational, soul-centered work and are drawn to a community grounded in presence, integrity, and collaboration.

Together, these groups form the heart of Root & Return Wellness: individuals, families, and professionals seeking healing, connection, and growth within themselves, within relationships, and within the wider human story.

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Our Specializations

Areas of Focus & Expertise

Each therapist on our team brings unique training and lived experience, yet we are united by a shared belief in healing through reconnection.

Our areas of focus include:

  • Trauma, complex PTSD, and attachment repair
  • Anxiety, overwhelm, and emotional regulation
  • Grief, loss, and life transitions
  • Relationship and family dynamics
  • Adoption, identity, and belonging
  • Nervous system regulation and embodiment
  • Self-worth, boundaries, and authenticity
  • Spiritual (as you experience it) integration and inner alignment

Every client’s path is unique. We honor that with attuned, individualized care that supports the whole person - integrating the psychological, emotional, and spiritual dimensions of healing.

EXPLORE THERAPYMEET OUR TEAM
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Our Approach

An Integrative Path Toward Belonging

Healing at Root & Return Wellness is collaborative, relational, and deeply human. Our therapists blend evidence-based and holistic practices that honor the whole person—mind, body, and spirit. Each session is guided by curiosity, compassion, and the belief that healing unfolds through presence, not perfection.

Our integrative approach draws from Internal Family Systems (IFS), Attachment-Based Therapy, Polyvagal Theory, and Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) frameworks, as well as somatic and mindfulness practices that help clients reconnect with the body’s natural wisdom. We also incorporate Person-Centered Therapy, creating a safe, supportive space for authentic self-discovery and transformation.

This blend of evidence-informed frameworks and approaches allows every client to feel seen, understood, and supported as they return to what is steady and true within themselves.

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Founder Rachel Forbes wearing a gray cable-knit sweater, sitting and gently touching her face while smiling softly.

Therapist, Educator & Adoptee

About Rachel Forbes

Founder

Rachel Forbes, LCSW, is a licensed clinical social worker, educator, and founder of Root & Return Wellness. Known for her depth, compassion, and integrative approach, Rachel has become a trusted voice in trauma-informed and adoption-competent therapy that honors both the psychological and the soulful dimensions of healing.

Rachel’s path to this work is both professional and personal. As an adoptee, she brings lived experience and deep empathy to the complex layers of identity, belonging, and family systems. Her passion for this work is rooted in a lifelong commitment to helping others cultivate inner trust and self-compassion as they navigate their own stories of healing and becoming.

Throughout her career, Rachel has supported individuals, couples, and families through trauma, attachment repair, and major life transitions. Her approach bridges the psychological and the soulful, grounded in evidence-based practice and shaped by reverence for the human spirit.

Her work is guided by the belief that healing begins with presence, grows through connection, and leads us toward inner trust. Rachel sees therapy as a sacred process of remembering who we are beneath our adaptations and returning to the truth of our belonging. She also firmly believes that healing expands outward. When one person reconnects with themselves, it ripples through relationships, families, and communities.

Beyond her clinical work, Rachel is a passionate speaker, educator, and consultant who offers clinical consultation for therapists seeking guidance in IFS, attachment trauma, and integrative practice. She also speaks and advises on adoption, identity, and the lifelong journey of belonging.

Meet Our Team