Navigating life is hard. But you don't have to struggle alone.
Welcome, fellow struggler! I'm Amber Griffioen, an APPA-certified philosophical counselor, existential coach, and former philosophy prof specializing in issues surrounding reproductive struggle, identity and life transition, expat challenges, spiritual and religious questioning, and the academic grind (in no particular order). I support human beings of all stripes and backgrounds, but I especially work with folks who are...
...navigating complicated fertility, pregnancy, or caretaking journeys
...exploring momentous life, career, or reproductive decisions
...struggling to balance career, caretaking, and self-care
...undergoing, adjusting to, or facing choices about major bodily changes or life transitions
...adjusting to life in a foreign country or encountering unexpected social barriers
...questioning the values and beliefs they've been handed vs. the values and traits they want to embody
...searching for spiritual or secular resources to find meaning and authenticity in their lives
...trying to finish a PhD, survive academia, or pursue alternative career opportunities
...striving for excellence and impact in influential or high-pressure public, athletic, or creative spaces
With my compassionate, reflection-driven approach, I’m here to help you find meaning, direction, and connection as you walk your transformational path.
Services & Coaching Areas
What Are You Struggling With?
Navigating Reproductive Struggle and Bodily Change
Helping you navigate the complex emotional, bodily, and spiritual landscape of your reproductive choices and changes.
Helping you find ways to beat academic burnout, overcome imposter syndrome, and come away from your next project—or academia itself—with your spirit intact.
Book a free, no-commitment exploratory call with me to see if I'm the right coach for you!Alternatively, you can book single sessions, philosophical chats, and smaller packages here.
I am a bundle of identities, stories, and contradictions—a philosopher by trade, a spouse by commitment, a mother by C-section, an ex-pat by choice, and a baseball fan by faith. I am deeply silly and totally serious—earnestly playful but true to my values. I have overcome challenges and been overcome by them. I have practiced gratitude but also lament.In terms of culture and career, I'm a Midwestern American gal with a Ph.D. in philosophy pursuing dual citizenship in Germany, where I've lived and worked for the past 15 years. I'm fluent in both English and German, and I can research and/or curse in a few other languages.I taught for a decade in the philosophy department at the University of Konstanz, and most recently I taught in the Ethics and Leadership program at Duke Kunshan University, exploring with my students how our beliefs, emotions, and values shape our identities and what that means for our future life choices concerning family, career, and community.
Along my own reproductive journey, I have struggled my way through spontaneous and elective abortions, secondary infertility, laparoscopic surgeries, assisted reproduction, pregnancy after loss, birth trauma, depression, hormonal imbalances, chronic pain, and a hysterectomy. My body has been unformed, reformed, and transformed in various ways, good and bad. I have experienced the weirdness of pregnancy, the tragedy of loss, the joy of a rainbow child, the still-awkward reconnection with my body, and the rebirth of my self. I have learned first-hand about the joys and challenges of first-time parenthood after 40, and I have struggled mightily with balancing the demands of career, parenting, spirituality, and self-care.I still wrestle actively with religion, but I find comfort and hope in the quiet resistance of the mystics. I acknowledge the fact that both my physical body and my spiritual identity are in perpetual flux—and I try to endure that daily labor of "becoming" with patience, while still living my life with as much authenticity as I can muster.
Philosophical counseling, broadly speaking, is a dialogue-based activity between a trained philosopher and clients who are grappling with life's 'big questions' or navigating the significant choices, difficulties, and transitions that arise while building a meaningful life in a complex world.
I use the label existential coaching to indicate that the philosophical themes I coach around reach into core tensions in our very existence and identity—tensions between the circumstances we find ourselves in and the choices we make, between the values that define us and the people we want to become, between the narratives we are handed and those we want to craft, between the systems that keep us down and our collective power to resist them. My job is to walk with you on your journey and engage with you in collaborative, compassionate, challenging thinking, in order to help you develop the reflective tools to "struggle better" by your own lights.
Although there may be some overlap in themes, I am not a licensed psychologist or psychotherapist, nor am I a medical professional. It is therefore not my job (nor do I desire) to diagnose or medicalize you. For this reason, if I suspect you might need medical or psychiatric intervention, or I think your needs exceed my expertise, I promise to be up front with you and will recommend that you seek help elsewhere.
Instead of a hierarchical or clinical "doctor-patient" relationship, you might consider me more like a travel companion on your journey through struggle, self-discovery, and transformation. My job, then, is to walk alongside you on your journey and to provide compassionate, reflective companionship as we take on the challenges of that journey together.
At the end of the day, you have to walk your own path, but I can use my specific expertise to help you find your footing, support you when you stumble, and equip you with tools to make your struggles more manageable.
I am an APPA-certified philosophical counselor with a Ph.D. in philosophy and over 20 years of teaching and mentoring experience in higher education. I completed a year-long cross-training for philosophers and theologians in personality psychology and post-traumatic growth, and I received my ICF- and EMCC-accredited diploma in transformative coaching with the Animas Centre for Coaching. I have also undergone educational training in accompanying individuals who are experiencing or have experienced pregnancy loss.
My academic scholarship covers a wide range of areas, including topics in ethics, moral psychology, philosophical theology, social epistemology, and the philosophy of games, play, and sport. I also do research in the history of ideas, including a focus on mystical and contemplative traditions. My PhD thesis focused on the nature and morality of self-deception, and my years-long labor of love (and discontent) in philosophy of religion appeared in 2025 with Bloomsbury Academic. More recently, I have starting doing more public-facing work on the philosophy and theology of pregnancy and pregnancy loss.
Privacy and Code of Ethics:Your privacy and trust are the cornerstones of our coaching relationship, and your comfort in that relationship is of paramount importance to me. As a philosopher and a practitioner, I am committed to the highest ethical standards. The moral pillars of my practice are grounded in the values of dignity, equality, recognition, respect, and justice. I therefore promise to treat you with dignity, to respect your autonomy, and to do everything I can within the established boundaries of our professional relationship to promote your well-being while we are working together. I am also bound professionally by the codes of ethics of both the International Coaching Federation (ICF) and the American Philosophical Practitioners Association (APPA).
Confidentiality: Everything we discuss in our sessions is 100% confidential. Unless it violates legal or ethical codes, what you share with me stays with me, unless you give me explicit written or verbal consent to disclose information to a third party. The only exception to this policy is the rare circumstance where I am compelled by law to disclose information, or if there is an imminent risk of serious harm to yourself or others. This is a standard ethical boundary to ensure the safety and well-being of all.
Contracts: When we begin, we will both sign a formal Coaching Agreement that outlines the professional framework of our relationship, including scheduling, payment, and confidentiality. Alongside this, we will co-create a "Living Document" that outlines your personal goals and concerns for our coaching relationship. This is a flexible, revisable guide that we can update together as your journey unfolds and your life changes.
Session Recordings, Transcripts, and Notes: No session will ever be recorded without your explicit consent beforehand. Any recordings you consent to will be used solely for the purposes of our coaching relationship, unless expressly discussed with you ahead of time. All recordings, and transcripts are stored securely and deleted according to a timeline we will determine together. They are never shared with any other third parties, unless you ask me to. In the rare case that I want to use a recording of a session for professional certification review, I will seek express written consent from you ahead of time, and I will only share the necessary material with those licensed professionals involved in the review process, who are also bound by strict confidentiality requirements.
Location & Language: As a US-American expat living in Germany, I have a strong international spirit, and I want my coaching to be available to clients from all over the world and various walks of life. I therefore primarily offer online, as opposed to in-person, coaching. However, if you live in or near the Bodensee region, and you want to arrange in-person meetings, please schedule a free discovery call to see what we can work out.
Session Format:Regular 1-on-1 coaching sessions are conducted via video call and usually run either 60 or 90 minutes. Unless explicitly agreed upon, sessions are conducted with cameras on and mics unmuted, and I sometimes use the chat function to keep running notes for us to refer to or to upload resources for you to consult. Occasionally we might use screen-sharing, whiteboard functions, or short videos and meditations for inspirational, organizational, or attunement purposes.
Coaching Languages and Accessibility: I offer coaching in both English (my native language) and in German (meine "zweite Muttersprache"). To support clear communication in our online sessions, I usually enable live captioning and transcripts. As someone with significant experience teaching non-native speakers with diverse neurological, cultural, and educational profiles, I am mindful of my pacing and will ensure you have the time and space you need to reflect, process, and respond.
A Welcoming Space for All Minds and Bodies: My coaching space is intentionally welcoming to people with disabilities, learning and speech differences, and neurodivergent orientations. I do not presuppose any specific educational background or expertise. My role is to adapt our work to your unique way of thinking and learning. Your role is to tell me how I can best meet your needs using the tools we have. Therefore, if you have any specific accessibility needs or questions, or if I can better accommodate you in a way not mentioned here, please do not hesitate to mention this during our free introductory call. Your comfort and ability to fully participate are my top priorities!
I live my life at the intersection of the religious, the spiritual, and the secular, though I am not currently confessional. I was raised in a Calvinist Christian environment by ecumenical parents, and over the years I have had significant immersive experience in various Christian churches and religious environments, located at very different points on the political and theological spectrums. I have also done a lot of interreligious and interfaith work, and my years-long research on religious mysticism and contemplative philosophy informs my coaching practice in various ways.
Although I think that religion and spirituality are important vehicles for meaning-making and can be forces for good in the world, I also acknowledge the harms that religious communities can (and sometimes do) inflict on people. I therefore take on clients from all religious backgrounds, walks of life, and points on the "spiritual spectrum," and I am here to help you find your way through any and all spiritual struggles you might be encountering. Likewise, if you want nothing to do with religion, I am happy to make your coaching space a safe, religion-free zone.
In my philosophical practice, I do not pretend to just be a "neutral sounding-board" with no opinions or views whatsoever. I will be open about my stances where relevant, and I may occasionally give voice to my views if the situation warrants it. That being said, I will never push my political or theological views on you, nor will I judge you for yours.
Importantly, however, the philosophical counseling space is one aimed at cultivating critical reflection. Thus, while I promise not to judge or criticize you for your views, beliefs, or allegiances, or to try to "convert" you to my way of thinking, I reserve the right to respectfully prod and challenge your views in ways conducive to the self-reflective goals we have set for our time together—and I fully welcome challenges from you to the perspectives I present!
Once available, all my self-guided courses and webinar packages will be available for booking online. For one-on-one coaching, it is important for me to take a (free) discovery call with you first to make sure that my approach is the right one for you and to ensure that both of us feel comfortable working with each other. Once we have decided to enter into a formal coaching relationship, I will send you a contract with the relevant scheduling and payment links.
The fact that you are here at all shows that you have recognized a need for change or support. This is an important first step in your transformational journey, and you can be proud of yourself for taking it! Undertaking that journey with a coach is a way of investing in your own personal wellbeing. As a client, this means being willing to sacrifice time, energy, and, yes, also money. Your financial and emotional commitment shows me that you take our relationship seriously and gives me the permission I need to help you achieve a return on your investment that will last far beyond the time we have together.
At the same time, many coaching packages out there are prohibitively expensive for those with significant debt or who are struggling to make ends meet. Economic and social justice are central values of my practice, and it is important to me that my coaching be accessible to everyone. I am therefore developing a sliding scale payment system to ensure that no one has to sacrifice financial safety to work with me, and I additionally hope to offer a limited number of full scholarships for those cannot currently afford my prices. Payment in installments is also possible for those unable to pay up front. Alternatively, perhaps you have a skill or service to offer in lieu of financial payment.
If you are interested in anonymously sponsoring a client for 1-on-1 coaching, please use the contact form below and let me know.
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Just kidding: I try to show love for everyone, even Cubs fans, and I look forward to being able to talk (non-mean-spirited) s*** or give each other (gentle) grief about our respective teams.
Have a question? Want to know more? Want to share your struggle?
Whether you have a question, want to inquire about my bespoke and reduced-rate services, or simply want to say "hey", feel free to reach out to me below.
