Alannah M.

Accepting Maryland and Washington, DC residents for virtual mental health counseling. 

Accepts United HealthCare, Cigna/EverNorth and CareFirst/Anthem/BlueCross and BlueShield.

My teen and young adult clients are ever evolving and work with me to examine unfulfilled needs and potential, process and resolve the impact of trauma, address mod and behavioral issues, navigate parental and sibling conflict, explore reasons for school avoidance, develop skills to manage mood and engage in mindfulness to make rational choices to enhance their self esteem, productivity, relationships and goals. We'll utilize relational, person-centered, mindfulness and psychodynamic techniques to help you become aware of the thoughts, behaviors, past experiences and mood patterns that cause them to have difficulties with daily functioning, career/school and connecting to themselves and to others. My therapeutic process combines self-exploration to understand who you are, how you came to be and what you want;  setting clear goals, developing action plans, and persevering in the pursuit of your aspirations and develop a greater understanding of your emotional triggers and learn to handle challenges with more calm and strength.

I use  CBT, DBT Attachment theory, Solution focused theory, attachment focused therapy, strength based therapy, motivational interviewing and  more. These frameworks focus on identifying and changing negative thought patterns and behaviors;  explore unconscious processes, emotional insight; develop coping skills, emotional regulation, and interpersonal effectiveness; identify and build upon existing strengths; build resilience to accept difficult thoughts and feelings, decrease avoidance of distress, and commit to actions aligned with their values;

I see my clients as experts on their past experiences and their desire for the future. My role in counseling is to listen and bear witness to their experiences, apply compassion where they are self-critical, challenge faulty thoughts or behaviors and support clients in understanding the who, what when, how and why of their psychological state and collaborate with them to identify, implement and tweak coping strategies that are appropriate for their lifestyle, developmental stage, goals and 

Clients experience me as warm, understanding, engaging, calming, and supportive. She provides both encouragement and gentle challenge to enable individuals to gain awareness, self-compassion, resilience, and emotional regulation skills to navigate life’s challenges.

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My ongoing education and training in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from the New York University provides supervision and hands on training to administer assessments, select a clinical diagnosis, engage clients in treatment planning and collaborate with clients to explore, understand and implement coping strategies to help manage or eliminate mental health disorders and psychological stress.