Clinical Staff

“I believe individuals have within them an inner strength. My job is to nurture it and help them draw upon it to improve their quality of life.”

Kristin sees her role as both a social worker and therapist, using blended therapies when providing intervention and creating individualized treatment specific to each client’s needs. Kristin has served as a clinical social worker in psychiatric hospitals and facilitated group therapy to domestic violence perpetrators, torture survivors, and war trauma refugees. Her clinical approaches include Cognitive Processing Therapy, strength-based narrative therapy, family therapies, Gestalt therapy, trauma-focused yoga, meditation and stress-reduction techniques, and Effective Freedom Therapy. 

Specializations:

• Depression
• Anxiety
• Parent/child and home-school conflicts
• Trauma
• Grief/loss
• Older relationship difficulties
• Anger and stress management
• Job-related problems

“My focus is helping clients feel empowered to change. We work together to find achievable ways to improve their lives, learning techniques for modifying their behaviors to get positive outcomes.”

Deborah works one-on-one in the Provident offices with clients who seek to address a wide range of personal issues. She also provides school-based counseling to students who need professional assistance addressing mental health challenges so they can improve their focus on academic studies. Finally, she works with mandated clients who require treatment for anger management or domestic violence.

Specializations

• Trauma
• Grief work
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Anger issues
• Life transitions

Marge works with adult clients with mental health disorders ranging from depression and anxiety to victim issues or couples counseling.  She also works with mandated clients requiring sex offender, addictions or domestic violence treatment.  She is licensed in Missouri and Illinois and is a member of ATSA and MoATSA. She uses the latest research to provide best practices for sex offender treatment.

Specializations

• Groups
• Sex offenders
• Victims of sexual abuse

“I believe strongly in short-term, solution-based therapy that focuses on the development of personal coping strategies that target solving current problems and changing unhelpful behavior patterns.”

Jeannette has a varied background in forensic processes, sexual abuse treatment for victims and offenders, and behavior management treatment.  She believes strongly in short-term, solution-based therapy using cognitive behavioral methods.  She has also received training in family therapy from the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy.

Specializations

• ADHD
• Anxiety
• Depression
• Parent/child conflict

Sarah Paradise LPC, NCC, graduated from the University of Missouri-St. Louis with a Master’s of Education in Counseling. Sarah has been with Provident since 2015, first working with the Life Crisis Services department before switching to the Counseling department at our South County location. She enjoys continuing to use her crisis intervention knowledge to help those who struggle with mental health issues, self-injury, grief/loss, and survivors of suicide. She also has a passion of working with clients of all ages to address child/adolescent issues, family/relationship conflict, and LGBT/sexual minority concerns. Sarah feels addressing mental health is key to overall self-care and can often be a first defense for healing and addressing emotional needs.

“I truly feel everyone should seek counseling when needed, even counselors, to be sure we are tuning in to our own needs for support and overall care. I love the work I do because I feel therapy can be a positive way to help lift my clients and support them until they can feel empowered and have the confidence to address life’s challenges on their own.”

Specializations

• Crisis intervention
• Mental health issues
• Personality disorders
• Self-injury
• Grief/loss
• Survivors of suicide
• Family dynamics
• Relationship issues
• Child and adolescent issues,
• LGBT/sexual minority concerns

“I believe that therapy has the power to help a person rediscover their sense of purpose and, when people realize their potential, they can experience great satisfaction from life and even do amazing things. When people overcome struggles and find healing, it can lead to healthier families and stronger communities.”

Brianna holds a Bachelor’s Degree in both Psychology and Criminal Justice and a Master’s Degree in Social Work. She is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in the state of Missouri. While working with clients, she chooses the methods that best align with their unique needs. She utilizes a strength-based perspective with all clients and then use combinations of Motivational Interviewing, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Existential Therapy, Solution Focused Brief Therapy, TF-CBT, Dialectical Behavior Therapy, Family Systems, and Art/Play Therapy techniques.

Specialties/Service Areas/Type of clients she serves:  

• Trauma
• Family Systems Therapy
• Couples
• Crisis Intervention
• Foster care
• Attachment
• Behavior issues
• Anxiety
• Depression
• Severe mental illness
• Work issues
• Grief

“I enjoy discovering what makes each person special and exploring what unique therapeutic approach will create the best result for them.”

Jacqueline found her calling early: she volunteered for a crisis hotline in high school and knew that a helping profession was her future. She is a graduate of both Indiana University and Villanova University with a Master’s degree in Counseling. She gained extensive experience working with adolescents and young adults for various mental health and substance abuse-related issues early in her career. At Provident, Jacqueline works with children, adolescents, and adults in the outpatient and school setting. She mainly utilizes Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), but takes an eclectic approach to fit the individual needs of each client. 

Specializations

• Substance abuse issues
• Counseling in a school setting

Maria has been a therapist with Provident since May of 2000.  She is a Licensed Professional Counselor in the state of Missouri, Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor in the state of Illinois and a board-certified Art Therapist with the American Art Therapy Association and the Art Therapy Credentials Board. She is experienced in dealing with children who have been abused and those recovering from trauma, depression and anxiety.  She provides support to parents whose children have ADHD and other emotional/behavioral disorders.  Her work experience is broad, ranging from schools and community health clinics to in-patient and outpatient therapy agencies.  

Specializations

• Family systems
• Grief counseling
• Anger management
• Social skills

Linda has extensive experience working with special needs children and adolescents ranging in age from 5 to 17 and is experienced in both individual and group counseling. 

Specializations

• Learning disabilities
• Speech and language disorders
• Spectrum disorder

“The most gratifying thing about my work is having the ability to support and empower others during some of the most challenging times in their lives, and to be able to witness the incredible growth and transformation that’s possible when clients choose to engage in therapy.”

Alex is a graduate of both Truman State University and University of Missouri- St. Louis and holds a Master’s degree in Social Work. She gained extensive experience working with adolescents and adults for various mental health-related issues early in her career, particularly self-injury, depression, and anxiety.

Alex works from a strengths-based approach, as she believes that everyone has an inner strength, and that a large part of her role is to assist individuals in discovering and utilizing whatever that strength may be. She focuses on establishing rapport and strives to create a safe and open environment in which people feel comfortable to be themselves.

Specializations

• Depression
• Anxiety
• Relationship issues
• Adolescent issues
• LGBTQI

“I have a passion for people and their story. I believe in acceptance, warmth and empathy to help my clients achieve their personal best through therapy.”

Kathy works with clients ranging in age from 6-56 years old and personalizes the therapeutic experience for each. She has a professional background in radio/television broadcasting and travel, which helps her build rapport quickly.

Kathy has a Master’s degree in professional mental health counseling from Webster University and has been helping clients for 8 years.

Specialities

• Trauma recovery
• High-risk
• LGBTQI
• Depression
• Anxiety
• ADHD
• First-responder issues

“Being a mental health clinician is a privilege, as I am able to witness and support a client’s strengths and growth towards their desired future. I love working towards changes hopes and dreams into a reality.”

Elizabeth holds an undergraduate degree in Psychology from the University of Dayton in Ohio and a Masters in Social Work from Saint Louis University with a specialization in clinical practice with families. She has practiced in variety of settings including hospital, residential, in-home and in-school and is experienced in in CBT, TF-CBT, MI, SFBT, Play Therapy, and DBT.  

Specialties/Service Areas/Type of clients you serve: 

• Depression
• Crisis Intervention
• Anxiety
• Self-Injury
• Adolescent Issues
• Relationship Improvement
• Community Education

“The most gratifying thing about my work with children and their families feeling confident about their ability to manage toxic stress and/or mental health symptoms independently after receiving therapy.”

LaTanya has worked for three years with students in the St. Louis public school system. She believes in the importance of these services for the individual, the family, and the community. Her work provides easy access to mental health resources to young people who may have had a difficult time otherwise obtaining them.

Specialties

• School-based therapy

“Our future is determined by not what has happened to us but how we respond to it.” 

Carmelita likes to tell clients that she can’t solve their problems for them, but will walk with them and help during their journey of self-discovery.  She focuses her practice on ethics, trust, and creating a non-judgemental space for change.  Her approach lets clients know they matter. 

Specialties

• School-based therapy

Marge works with adult clients with mental health disorders ranging from depression and anxiety to victim issues or couples counseling.  She also works with mandated clients requiring sex offender, addictions or domestic violence treatment.  She is licensed in Missouri and Illinois and is a member of ATSA and MoATSA. She uses the latest research to provide best practices for sex offender treatment.

Specializations

• Groups
• Sex offenders
• Victims of sexual abuse

“I consider myself to be a client-centered, humanistic, solution-focused therapist who focuses on trauma recovery and crisis prevention. I believe my job is to support my clients and provide appropriate feedback as they address issues and implement strategies to overcome personal life challenges. I consider each client’s unique needs and integrate complementary methodologies and techniques to ensure a highly personalized approach. With compassion and understanding, I help my clients build upon their strengths to attain the personal growth they desire.”

Lisa became a counselor after practicing law for twelve years. She made the decision to shift her career focus after spending time in family court helping children in foster care.

She considers trauma recovery her specialty and finds it most gratifying to help clients let go of limiting beliefs and start to enjoy their lives in the moment. She helps clients face life’s challenges and encourages them to discover inner strengths and increase emotional resilience. 

Specializations

• Trauma recovery
• Managing anxiety
• Addressing depression/suicide ideation
• Gender and identity issues