Lisa’s counseling philosophy is that no matter what the circumstance, everyone deserves a haven, free from judgment and expectation, from which to honestly explore their life challenges. To foster such an environment, she brings compassion, encouragement, directness, and humor to her work, striving to build a genuine partnership with each client as they work together toward shared goals, both great and small. She believes real healing lives in that collaboration between two people committed to working toward something meaningful.
Her greatest passion is creating a relationship in which clients feel safe enough to be vulnerable, face painful truths, and feel genuinely supported in their journey toward living their own definition of a better life.
Rather than applying a one-size-fits-all method, Lisa believes the most effective therapy is one built around the individual. Drawing on evidence-based approaches, including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Internal Family Systems (IFS), and trauma-informed, client-centered care, she builds integrative treatment plans tailored to each client’s unique needs, strengths, and goals. She is also specially trained in EMDR, which she uses to help clients process and move through trauma. Her practice focuses primarily on adults and emerging adults navigating trauma, anxiety, depression, life transitions, grief, and alcohol use disorder.
Lisa is also the creator of Asher, a harm reduction program for alcohol and substance use. Developed from her research at Yale University on the links between risky drinking, trauma, and emotional dysregulation, Asher offers clients a compassionate, non-judgmental framework for changing their relationship with substances without requiring abstinence as the goal. Her work has been published in professional journals, and she has presented at the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies, the Association for Psychological Science, and the CT Psychological Association.
Before pursuing counseling, Lisa built a career in television news, where she developed deep skills in active listening and storytelling with empathy. After stepping away to focus on her family, she began working at a social services agency, and it was there that she recognized how her instincts for analysis, narrative, and human connection could help people in a profound way. That realization brought her back to school to study psychology and counseling.
Lisa is a Licensed Professional Counselor in Connecticut and Florida and a National Certified Counselor. She holds a master’s degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from Northwestern University and a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Wellesley College.
In her spare time, she enjoys her blended family, human and furry, hiking, reading, and indulging in binge-worthy shows. Recommendations are always welcome.
