Hi! I’m Dr. Leanna Brisson…
I am a relational and psychodynamic therapist, meaning that I believe our relationships are fundamental in shaping our past, present, and future, as well as how we experience ourselves in the world. Working through a relational-cultural lens, I value the opportunity to be in a close and safe relationship with you as we move through treatment together.
I’ve worked in a multitude of settings, including private practice, college counseling centers, and community mental health. I also have the privilege of being a full-time clinical faculty member at my alma mater, Loyola University of Maryland, allowing me to stay engaged in the most up-to-date and best-in-class practices in clinical psychology.
While I am trained as a generalist and love working with many presenting concerns, my areas of specialty are:
Anxiety & Perfectionism
Relationship Distress & Struggles
Grief, Loss, & Life Transitions
Interpersonal Trauma
Identity Exploration
LGBTQAI+ Care
Kink Affirming Care
Body Neutrality and Fat Liberation
I’ve been practicing for 9 years and here’s how I got here:
Clinical Assistant Professor: Loyola University Maryland
Post-Doctoral Fellowship: Therapy Group of DC
APPIC Internship: University of Pennsylvania Counseling and Psychological Services
Doctorate of Clinical Psychology: Loyola University Maryland
Master of Science in Psychology: Stony Brook University
Bachelor of Art Psychology with Minors in Neuroscience and Women’s Studies: Wilkes University
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Through our work together, you’ll experience compassion and recognition of your inherent worth. As a therapist, I’m inspired by those who are willing to be curious, explore their authenticity, and move toward the work that growth requires of them. Sometimes it’s fun and we laugh together. Other times it’s frustrating, sad, painful, or a myriad of different emotions all at once. In the end, it’s always worth the work to understand the process behind the whole picture and have the opportunity to deeply know ourselves. Sometimes therapy takes us to places we didn’t expect, but where ever we go in this experience, know you will never be alone.
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Therapeutic approaches shouldn’t be one size fits all. First and foremost I work to understand you and to explore what is essential to who you are and would like to become. As we go deeper, we’ll consider the cultural, social, and interpersonal factors that contribute to how you experience the world. Together we will move through the process of healing one step at a time until you arrive at a place of feeling whole and empowered in who you are.
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If there’s one guarantee in life, it’s that things change. And there’s always room to learn, grow, and shift with that change. These moments happen in both grand and small ways throughout our life. I believe you are the expert on your life, and while I have a set of tools that can help you build your life, you are the architect of your experience. I am grateful to call clinical psychology and therapy my life’s profession and to have the privilege to walk down so many different paths with my clients, the key word being with.