Therapists for college students near Washington, DC

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Hello and welcome! My name is Arielle and I am a trauma-sensitive somatic psychotherapist and psychedelic consultant. I offer a warm, sincere, and supportive space for you to intentionally explore the roots of painful memories, emotions, sensations, and thoughts that you are ready to process and move beyond. I specialize in working with people seeking healing from complex trauma, childhood abuse and neglect, sexual and domestic violence, parental loss, and complex grief. I also support people who are intentionally preparing to sit with plant medicine for healing purposes or who have journeyed recently and are looking to integrate their experiences further. If you feel like your needs align with the spaces I hold, I invite you to reach out to me.

At Mala Mantis Counseling, we have been trained to support individuals, couples and families in finding healthy ways to manage overwhelming emotions. We specialize in the treatment of: Postpartum Depression Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders (PMADs) Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Military Veterans, Active Duty and First Responders LGBTQIA+ Teachers and Healthcare Professionals Childhood Abuse and Neglect Generalized Anxiety Depression It's our intention to build individualized care for each of our clients, establishing mutually-agreed upon goals, and spending time developing the skills necessary to implement change. We're here to guide and support, offering insight and feedback. As the client, and an expert on all things you, we ask that you bring an open mind to the process as we work together to support your path towards the future you envision.

Are you someone who avoids social situations, seeks out reassurance from others, or describes yourself as a people pleaser or perfectionist? If so, you might be struggling with anxiety. Anxiety shows up in a variety of different ways. These challenges arise during major life transitions or may be associated with relationship, school, or work-related concerns. I have a special interest in working with young adults who experience anxiety and stress. I'm here to help you gain the tools you need to feel relief and to approach your life in a more authentic way. I utilize techniques from the cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) perspective as well as from the acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) approach. Rather than work to remove anxiety altogether, I will help you learn ways to tolerate anxiety and discomfort and respond to anxiety in a healthier, more productive manner.

Welcome! I'm a client-centered, strengths-based therapist with 13 years of experience, licensed in New York, New Jersey and the District of Columbia. I specialize in helping clients manage stress, anxiety, bipolar disorder, and depression. My approach is to create a safe, non-judgmental environment where we can build on your strengths and develop effective coping strategies. I emphasize self-awareness, self-compassion, and practical tools for mental and emotional health. Therapy is a collaborative journey, and I'm here to support you every step of the way. Thank you for considering me as your therapist. Let's work together towards your growth and healing.

The clients I work best with often share a readiness to engage deeply with their own personal growth and face life's challenges head-on. They typically come from diverse backgrounds but share common experiences such as navigating life transitions, dealing with anxiety or depression, and seeking to improve their communication and relationship skills. My clients are often those who value a reflective and supportive space where they can explore their thoughts and emotions to foster healing and personal development. They appreciate a collaborative approach where they are active participants in their therapeutic journey.

Compassionate Therapy Center is a counseling center specializing in providing caring therapy for individuals and couples, high achieving professionals and students, gifted and highly sensitive individuals who are coping with issues such as anxiety, sadness, self-esteem, perfectionism, family/career concerns, and relationships. We currently offer psychotherapy services for adult individuals and couples located in DC, Virginia, and abroad. At Compassionate Therapy Center, we provide a warm, compassionate, and authentic therapeutic space for clients to explore meaning, cultivate acceptance, and recognize their own unique strengths, by embracing diverse identities and advocating for social justice. We are welcoming and affirming of clients of all cultural and ethnic backgrounds, gender identities and expressions, sexual orientations, and religious/spiritual beliefs.

You’re seeking to understand your past, reduce worries about the future, live authentically, AND hold onto your culture and values. You’re looking for someone who gets it from experience, someone you don’t have to count on to learn about your identity from the outside. Your culture, experiences, and even religion can impact your mental health, but can also help you heal. It’s a perfected dance in between all these identities and you walked the line delicately balanced until now. You’re not sure how to do it anymore without sacrificing yourself. You’re done feeling stuck, stagnant, and alone in trying to handle your struggles, so you’re ready to make some serious change that you know might rock the boat. It’s possible to have a therapist who understands who you are, what you need, and how to help you change your life in a way that doesn’t compromise any of this. You’re trying to balance your multiple identities and you want to understand how they can exist in harmony. You don’t want your culture overlooked in therapy. After all, your culture impacts everything - your thoughts, your feelings, your upbringing, your family interactions, and your worldview. Let’s explore your culture, upbringing, and identities to understand how they formed who you are, your worldview, and concerns. You are more than your problems and context matters! I support adult children of immigrants navigating anxiety & balancing culture and relationships.

***VIRTUAL APPTS ONLY, WAITLIST AVAILABLE*** Are you hoping to better manage your mood, anxiety, health habits, or just day-to-day life? Do you ever feel challenged by certain relationships, cultural differences, personal gains or losses, or other significant life changes? All too often, you may find yourself involved in recurring conflicts, feeling repeatedly taken advantage of or misunderstood, or otherwise unsatisfied with your life for no obvious reason. If that sounds familiar, you are not alone. I will help you identify and set appropriate boundaries with the people in your life - including yourself - and ultimately grow into yourself in a way that feels authentic & genuine to you. Likewise if you are struggling with medical issues, have battled chronic illness for years, or want to work on your behavioral health preventively, my services may be a good fit for you. Informed by a longstanding pre-medical training background as well as personal experience with chronic illness, I will work with you to repair your mind-body connection by reshaping unhealthy thought patterns, changing problematic health habits, and learning to accept and cope with the messages your body is sending to you. Whatever the case, I will collaborate with you in an open and empathetic way to build coping skills, self-actualize, and attain your mental, physical, emotional, and lifestyle goals.

Life Transition Coaching & Counseling: Life is full of changes—personal challenges, relational shifts, career moves, health concerns, or major transitions such as graduating, getting married, parenting, becoming an empty nester, or retiring. Though it may bring some excitement and hope, these changes can also feel uncertain and overwhelming. Transitions aren’t just events; they are internal processes. While challenging, they can also be powerful turning points. They offer an opportunity to deepen self-awareness, build resilience, and reconnect with your sense of purpose. With the right support, you can do more than just get through these moments—you can be empowered and grow through them. Having a clinically informed, experienced professional by your side can make all the difference as you step into what’s next with greater clarity and confidence.

I look forward to working with people who are ready to make changes in their lives and engage in the therapeutic process. Much of my sessions include discussing goal setting and thinking of various tools and techniques to achieve those goals. I utilize CBT methods, person-centered, and strengths-based approaches to help all clients realize their ability for change and understand they can achieve happiness and alleviate things like anxiety and depression.

Specialties: Transgender Psychiatry, LGBTQ+ Psychiatry, Anxiety, Panic, and Agoraphobia, Post-Traumatic Stress and Related Disorders, and ADHD, Depression. From the comfort of your home or a place that feels relaxing to you, we will connect via video and make sure you have the help you need. We believe that there is immense value to telepsychiatry, which is why we offer that service in over 20 states (see full list at www.balancepsych.org). Telehealth allows LGBTQ+ affirming mental health care to reach more people. Anxiety, depression, and more – so many of these are treatable conditions. Telepsychiatry makes it possible to get support from anywhere. We can work together when you are traveling or on work breaks. We take PacificSource Student Health Insurance, a primary student health insurer in Oregon, for both therapy and medication management.

Freedom from emotional hijack is found in noticing, naming, and knowing. This can be the gift of psychotherapy. Congratulations on looking for a therapist and trying to figure out what will be best for you! It can seem like it requires endurance, when all you’re trying to do is get your mental health needs met. The good news is there are lots and lots of great therapy practices! And a practice or a therapist that’s a great fit for one person, doesn’t mean that it is for you! All that matters is what works for you. Whether you feel nervous, doubtful, unsure, excited, and/or anything else, let’s chat, when/if you’re ready. Just because we talk, doesn’t mean you have to start therapy!

I strongly believe in building a collaborative relationship with my clients in helping them overcome their personal struggles. As a clinical psychologist, I strive to create a safe and warm environment that is compassionate, person-centered, and promotes a person's unique individual strengths. I prescribe to an integrative approach to therapy that includes elements of cognitive-behavioral, psychodynamic, person-centered, interpersonal, and strength-based approaches. More importantly, my approaches are tailored to the specific needs of individuals to help them achieve balance in their lives and overcome their struggles. My specialties include working with children, adolescents, and young adults dealing with anxiety, trauma, adjustment, grief, depression, and other mood disorders. I have a particular interest working with young adults who are experiencing difficulty adjusting with life transitions that often accompany emerging adulthood. Also, I have specialized training in complex trauma and trauma-focused interventions. My experience includes working extensively with diverse patient populations in a variety of settings including, hospitals, schools, outpatient clinics, and private practice. I am credentialed as a national registered Health Service Psychologist and a member of the Virginia Academy of Clinical Psychologists, Northern Virginia Clinical Psychologists, and the American Psychological Association.

The road to self discovery is scary, and you are taking the first steps in seeking out the right therapist for you. It’s an important investment and you want to make sure you find just the right connection. My approach is deeply personal. Working with each person to learn and identify how they are impacted by the stories of their life and their history. In doing so, we are able to bring out what is truly possible. I believe strongly in the power of our stories. From a very young age, we all start learning things about ourselves and our world. These “life lessons” start to turn into the stories we repeat to ourselves over and over again. They become who we are. Those stories are not always nice and they hold us back. But most importantly, they are often not true! They are the stories we created when we were young and we have retold them to ourselves over and over again in a weird game of telephone with one player.

SINCE 2011, I EXPERIENCE AS A CLINICAL SOCIAL WORKER/THERAPIST, PROVIDING BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES TO INDIVIDUALS, CHILDREN, AND FAMILIES. I AM TRAINED TO PROVIDE A NUMBER OF SPECIALIZED THERAPEUTIC SERVICES BY USING EVIDENCE-BASED TREATMENT MODALITIES WITH THOSE DEALING WITH CHALLENGING LIFE EXPERIENCES. CLIENT WELL-BEING IS MY NUMBER ONE PRIORITY, AND MY GOAL IS TO ASSIST YOU IN DEVELOPING THE TOOLS AND SKILLS YOU NEED TO OVERCOME OBSTACLES IN YOUR LIFE

Do you feel overwhelmed by life’s constant demands or stressed by difficult relationships? If so, you matter to me. I love to see people thrive. I enjoy supporting people during difficult times and supplying them with the tools necessary to overcome challenges. Your issues do not define you. My approach recognizes the interconnectedness of our emotional, mental, physical and spiritual well-being. Whether your journey calls for gentle encouragement, practical strategies, or a listening ear, my goal is to empower you to move forward with confidence and hope. I am passionate about fostering resilience, helping you transform hardships into steppingstones, and celebrating your progress along the way. I use evidence-based practices and Biblical perspectives to guide my work. As we work together, you can anticipate a therapy experience that is both collaborative and adaptive. I honor the wisdom and strengths you already possess, inviting you to draw upon your inner resources while equipping you with new insights and skills. No matter where you are in your story, I am committed to supporting you in cultivating greater self-awareness, self-compassion, and a sense of purpose.

Hello, Thank you for taking a moment to learn more about me. I am a licensed clinical social worker who has experience helping college students through relationship difficulties, academic challenges, as well as struggles with the overall adjustment to life as an adult. My practice is fully remote for the foreseeable future. I offer appointments Monday through Friday 8 am to 7 pm. Have a great day, Kathi Nardella

I work with LGBTQ+ college students who are feeling overwhelmed by emotions or stuck in perfectionism. In therapy, I use a DBT-informed approach to help you build coping tools while also making space for where you are right now. I have experience supporting folks with depression, anxiety, and eating disorders, and I aim to create a space that feels warm, validating, and real.

Are you trying to manage conflicting feelings, difficulty with relationships, trauma, grief, or simply facing the daily challenges of life? Sometimes a relationship with a skilled therapist can be a great place to explore these challenges and figure out how you can improve your quality of your life. I work with children, adolescents, and young adults who face struggles; some small, some big. Whether you’re looking for a therapist for yourself or for your child, I will tailor our work together to fit your needs. I have worked with kids of various ages, ranging from elementary to college age, and I have experience working in both school settings and in private practice. I specialize in working with trauma, grief and loss, anxiety, and relationship and identity issues. Children and young adults face many challenges stemming from their family of origin, questioning their identity, figuring out their way to becoming fulfilled adults, and much more. Our work together centers around how to help my clients to better understand their feelings and the way they think about the world, and how this all impacts their everyday choices. My therapeutic approach is based on Internal Family Systems (also known as “Parts Work”). This work stems from the belief that we are all made up of a system of dynamic, caring, and capable parts. When we experience trauma, some facets of our parts have to adopt extreme roles to protect us. Later on, these parts may need help letting go of their past experiences so they don’t negatively impact us. IFS work gives you the space and tools you need to approach your parts with curiosity, gain insight into them and why they were formed, understand what roles they play in your beliefs, actions, and relationships, and ultimately be able to heal yourself. In this work, I also use elements of Trauma-Informed Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Relational Therapy, and Mindfulness. For my younger or creatively-inclined clients, I include play and art therapy techniques to keep the sessions engaging and give clients creative modalities through which they can better express themselves. My success in treating clients lies in my ability to build trusting relationships with them. My goal is to create a warm, accepting, and encouraging therapeutic environment. I incorporate creativity and fun into my sessions while balancing the hard work that it takes to make meaningful life changes.