Our Founder
Terri Waibel, MSW, LCSW, FT is a licensed psychotherapist, certified Fellow in Thanatology, and certified advanced provider of Compassionate Bereavement Care® who has been working and volunteering in the field of social work for over 20 years. In addition to her work with SWIGTS, she is the founder and clinical director of Center for Compassion , a multi-provider therapy practice located in Chandler, Arizona whose primary focus is supporting the traumatically bereaved after sudden, unexpected, or out of order death of a beloved person. Terri is simultaneously honored and heartbroken to support grievers and proud to call herself a grief activist. She is dedicated to this work in memory of her older brother and her beloved and beautiful child, Kyndrid.


Terri was selected by her peers as the 2023 Social Worker of the year by the National Association of Social Workers, Arizona Chapter in recognition of her tireless efforts to create a more compassionate world for grievers. Her community recognition additionally includes being a 2023 finalist for the Champions of Change awards as a Healthcare Leader, 2021 finalist for the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona, Health Care Hero Awards as a Mental Health Advocate and being honored with the prestigious Athena Young Professional award with the Greater Phoenix Chamber in 2018. Throughout her years of practice she has been dedicated to civic engagement and volunteerism for several community organizations including the MISS Foundation serving bereaved parents and families, Selah Carefarm as an Emotional Wellness Advisor, and ASU School of Social work as a Community Advisory Board Member. As a part of her service to the field of social work, she volunteers her time as a field supervisor to countless students and new therapists in the field of social work and psychotherapy.
Our History
The Southwest Institute for Grief & Trauma Studies (SWIGTS) is a training institute that was born from the lived experiences of systemic failures within the behavioral health system that exist as a result of inadequate training, education, support, and experience. Following a culmination of the founder's personal and professional experience, she found a lack of well trained professionals who were capable of supporting people facing ineffable emotional pain. SWIGTS is increasing access to leading edge grief and trauma education so that all professionals in supportive helping roles have the skills to help in the midst of profound human suffering.

Our Values
Humilty | Wisdom | Experience
Integrity | Leadership

Our Vision
All professionals in supportive helping roles will have the skills to serve those in the midst of profound human suffering.
Our Mission
Our mission is to close the gap in grief and trauma education for helping professionals and the community by increasing access to leading edge training, education, support, and consultation services that better equip them to support those enduring grief and trauma.


Experience is, for me, the highest authority.
No other person's ideas, and none of my own ideas, are as authoritative as ... experience. It is to experience that I must return again and again, to discover a closer approximation to truth as it is in the process of becoming in me.
~ Carl Rogers ~
