Every Story Deserves to Be Heard.

From the outside, life can look perfectly fine, even when it doesn’t feel that way on the inside.

Long before founding Soul Story Therapy, Hanna Stiltner knew what it felt like to struggle quietly with anxiety, insecurity, and the pressure to be everything for everyone. A natural caregiver, she found purpose in helping others, but eventually came to understand that taking care of everyone else doesn’t always mean we’re taking care of ourselves.

Through both her personal experiences and her work as a therapist, Hanna began to recognize something deeply human: so many of us carry stories shaped by self-doubt, shame, difficult relationships, and experiences we haven’t fully made sense of. We learn to cope, to push through, to keep everyone else happy, and sometimes, somewhere along the way, we lose sight of ourselves.

“Growth often happens in the valleys, not on the peaks.”

During one of the most difficult seasons her own family faced, those words took on a much deeper meaning. That experience strengthened something Hanna had come to believe wholeheartedly: our hardest chapters don’t have to define the rest of our story. Sometimes, they become the very places where understanding, healing, and meaningful change begin.

Hanna’s journey into the mental health field began shortly after college, working with adolescents in a group-home setting. That experience inspired her to pursue a master’s degree in social work and eventually build a career centered on helping people understand themselves, their relationships, and the patterns that keep them feeling stuck.

But she also had a vision for something different: a place where therapy felt less intimidating and more human. A place where people could walk through the door without feeling judged, labeled, or expected to have everything figured out, where compassion and honesty could exist together, and where people could feel genuinely seen, understood, and supported as they worked toward change. In 2021, that vision became Soul Story Therapy.

What began as one therapist’s hope to create something meaningful has grown into a team of dedicated clinicians and staff who share that same commitment. Today, Soul Story serves individuals, couples, and families in Helena, the Birmingham area, and online throughout Alabama. As Hanna puts it, “When something is built from your heart and soul, it doesn’t feel like work — it feels like purpose.”

We believe your story matters. All of it. Not just the chapters you’re proud of, but the ones that have been painful, confusing, or difficult to talk about. You don’t have to have it all figured out before asking for support. Wherever you are in your story, we’d be honored to walk alongside you as you begin writing what comes next.

Read Hanna’s full profile