Dr. Shannon Lerach

EMDR Certified Therapist

Education & Experience

I am a trauma specialist working with children, adolescents, adults and families utilizing approaches including Attachment Theory, Systems Theory, Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR), Mindfulness and Dialectical Behavioral Therapy. I have worked in a wide variety of settings which has allowed me to cultivate my clinical skills and versatility in the areas of abuse and trauma recovery, addiction and dual-diagnosis, adult children of addicted parents, women's issues, depression, anxiety, mood disorders and blended families or those going through divorce. I am trained to utilize EMDR and Play Therapy with children to help them cope with trauma, grief, and loss. I have extensive experience working with children and adolescents with Depression, Anxiety, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, and any other type of trauma or abuse. I provide family therapy, as well as full psychological and educational assessments for clients as needed.

Professional & Volunteer Affiliations

Spent 6 months in Liberia throughout 2013, a country that is still recovering from a 14-year civil war that ended in 2003, providing trauma-focused therapy to women, children, and ex-combatants. Liberia's war focused heavily on the use of child soldiers, a population I treated extensively through individual sessions utilizing skills of TF-CBT, DBT, and EMDR. I developed a course curriculum for a four-month group therapy program for women, 75% of whom were raped multiple times during the war. The curriculum combined elements of DBT, TF-CBT, EBT, and narrative therapy.

Specialty Area

  • Abuse/Neglect
  • Anxiety/Panic Attacks
  • Attachment Disorders
  • Depression
  • Family Issues
  • Grief/Loss/Mourning
  • Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
  • Sexual Abuse
  • Stress Management

Population Served

  • Adolescents (13-17)
  • Adults
  • Children (4-12)
  • First Responders
  • Infants/Toddlers (0-3)

Language

  • English
  • Spanish