Trauma and PTSD Therapists in Coraopolis, PA

Hello there! I’m very happy you decided to take the first step in your therapy journey. Believe it or not you already possess the skills and tools you need to lead a better life. I am just here to help you unlock them! Are you struggling from anxiety and/or depression? Having a hard time managing relationships? Can't get past things that have happened in your life? Want to work on problems with family members, partner or children? I know how to help!

Iyanla Vanzant. said -"Do what brings you joy, and your purpose will unfold." We all go through something at some point in our lives and reaching out for help can be difficult. I am glad you did reach out. I bring over 10 years of experience in the areas of Substance Use, Mental Health, Dual Diagnosis and Sex Offenders. I cultivate a welcoming, trusting, and safe environment. This environment allows us to collaborate our efforts, focusing on your needs, enhance existing and gain new coping skills to improve life's purpose and reduce stress.

Healing happens within relationship. That has been my personal experience and my primary focus in the counseling relationship. I strongly believe that we are all doing the best that we can at any given moment. However we are managing to cope, having a trusting and safe place to be is essential. My first task in any counseling relationship is to establish and build upon that safe place. As the counseling relationship builds and strengthens, we will collaboratively develop a plan for meeting your goals. I will work to gently guide you in growing and sustaining compassion and care for yourself during that process.

***NOW ACCEPTING NEW CLIENTS*** I believe that one’s full potential is based on a foundation of trust, support, creativity, and awareness of what brings out the best in them. At times, anxiety and depression symptoms can prevent you from seeing your true potential. I meet you where you are to employ reframing, identifying triggers and thought patterns, and working through those feelings of “stuck ness” that sometimes blur our view of self. I am a Licensed Professional Counselor with a Masters in Professional Counseling, including mental health counseling and vocational rehabilitation counseling (Career Counseling).

I specialize in adolescent and adult counseling for those coping with trauma, anxiety, parenting stress, cancer treatment or survival of cancer, and adult insecure attachment. I have over 5 years of experience working in human services and received my Master of Science in Professional Counseling from Carlow University. I believe everyone is shaped by their past, but the past can sometimes come to haunt you. Arriving at a place of peace often involves reprocessing those past painful memories and facing the negative messages that those experiences told you about yourself.

As a therapist with over 20 years experience, the relationship I develop with clients is based on respect, support, and encouragement, and is focused on building their individual strengths and resources. I believe that a nonjudgmental and welcoming environment is crucial to provide a safe space for clients discuss past and current issues and move forward. I work with children, teens and adults who are seeking help with trauma, depression, anxiety, stress, adjustment problems, social difficulties, parenting, maternal health and life transitions.

The ‘first step’ is always the hardest… Therapy is the just the beginning towards making positive, meaningful, goal oriented changes in all areas of your life. I provide a safe space to openly discuss the struggles of life, to help identify the changes that need to take place for your own personal growth and support you, while overcoming those challenges of change in your life journey. Using your own goals and individual strengths, together, we will build your resilience and confidence by utilizing coping strategies.

I am adept at supporting clients with anxiety, depression, and trauma-related symptoms, seeking greater self-awareness, clarity, and insight about their current struggles and how to shift them. My ideal client is motivated to change and is interested in co-creating the goals to work towards that change, with the ultimate aim being to reduce distress and build/nurture a rich and meaningful life. I often suggest homework to help practice the skills we are learning together in session. I integrate extensive clinical experience, specialized training, & my unique personality (including a healthy dose of confidence, humility, and humor).

Do you feel disconnected from yourself and your feelings, possibly due to trauma? Do you lack understanding of the cause & need education on how the brain responds to trauma? Do you have relational issues or anger management struggles that lead to addictive behaviors? Do you struggle with self-worth issues and feel tired, frustrated, and confused? In therapy, you will learn to identify trauma responses, build tolerance for difficult or uncomfortable feelings, & utilize various coping skills & grounding techniques. Gain confidence, take risks to address complex issues & learn how to create healthy boundaries for relationships.

I specialize in working with clients who have experienced childhood trauma, domestic/intimate partner violence or relationship challenges, chronic pain/illness, and substance use issues. I also appreciate the beautiful tangents, metaphors, and insights from my work with neurodiverse clients. Much of my work focused on helping clients examine how trauma has shaped their lives, decisions, & current circumstances and find ways to heal. Finding meaning and insight from the connections and patterns we can see in the past and present is key to informing the work we can do together to pursue a more intentional and satisfying future.

Do you need support in stress management, life transitions, trauma, depression/anxiety, developing effective coping strategies, etc? Do you want to feel more "free" emotionally, mentally, & physically, wanting to improve your life for yourself and possible future relationships/children/family? My ideal client is motivated to engage in treatment and reach their goals of becoming more psychologically flexible and strengthening their connections with themselves and those meaningful relationships around them.

I will teach you how to live fully in each moment, be unapologetically and authentically you, cope with stress more effectively, regulate your emotions, and improve your relationships with others. My ideal client is ready to work with me, as i support and guide them. I will work with you if you feel like you're doing mostly ok, and I will work with you if you feel like you are a mess and don't even know where to start. Healing is hard work, but it's so worthwhile and I'd love to help you get to the other side and be able to live your best life as your best, most authentic self.

My ideal client would likely suffer from PTSD, anxiety, negative self-talk, and struggles with daily functioning at times. My goal is to help the client obtain their goals of normal daily functioning. My ideal client is brought into therapy and focused on utilizing the tools given in therapy to apply to daily life. A client must want change and be willing to put in the work to obtain it. I am interested in clients who are motivated and engaged to do more.

I have an extensive professional history of working with families and couples in crisis. Many of us struggle in our relationships & find that clear communication is challenging for many reasons. The barriers may include issues with past trauma or failed attempts to find the right words during a conflict. I bring the structural therapy tools to help a family, couple, or individual recognize the triggers of their conflicts, explore past trauma & the impact it may have on the current relationship/situation, help the individual challenge automatic negative assumptions, & find a response which leads to clear communication.

My educational background in human rights & social justice has equipped me with skills to work with a diverse range of clients. I derived great satisfaction from assisting women who were facing challenges related to domestic violence or marital issues. My ideal clients are women who need to be reminded of their strength & value in this world. My approach involves empowering women through assertiveness training & connecting them with community resources to aid them towards independence. I help them recognize & develop their inner strengths, equipping them with tools to manage & overcome problems independently.

I enjoy working with clients who want to get to the root of their struggles. These clients would like to gain insight into their symptoms, something difficult that has happened to them or to explore cycles and patterns that aren’t serving them. The clients I see often have attended therapy in the past. The clients I see also often present with attachment-based traumas, symptoms of post-traumatic stress, and difficulties in their personal and work relationships.

Whether you are coming to therapy for anxiety, depression, grief, relationship issues, a life change, or just a general sense of unease, facing these issues can be scary. Healing isn’t easy because it involves confronting our pain and hurts. Healing can also be full of joy, hope, connection, and freedom as we experience new possibilities of being and relating. My approach is warm, relational, and integrative. I strive to offer a space where you can feel safe enough to look inward – to gently and compassionately welcome all parts of yourself with less judgment and shame.

My ideal population is adults struggling with anxiety, depression, PTSD, stress, or substance use - however I believe that everyone deserves to have a therapist who is dedicated to them, and I would never turn away a client unless their needs were out of my scope of practice. My ideal client is someone who is motivated for therapy and is willing to learn.

My ideal client is one with motivation for self-care, openness to change, and a desire to learn more about themselves and others. My ideal population consists of adults with a mental health diagnosis of anxiety, depression, PTSD, substance use disorder, and other increasingly complex diagnoses. However, I am also devoted to assisting those seeking help without a defined diagnosis and who are beginning therapy without a clear vision of treatment needs. I welcome working with anyone who may benefit from my skillset who is dealing with life’s many challenges and searching for a clearer definition and understanding of their stressors.