Stephanie is warm and nonjudgmental and strives to create a space where clients can feel safe to be authentically themselves. She finds it important to get to know her clients as a whole person; she works from the perspective that every human being is complex and more than just a diagnosis or symptoms. Stephanie feels that the most important aspect of therapy is a comfortable relationship between the client and the therapist that is built on trust and respect. She recognizes that therapy can be scary and opening up about personal struggles can be intimidating. By tailoring the therapy space for the client’s needs and moving at their pace, she hopes to make therapy a space that fosters healing and growth. Stephanie primarily uses ACT (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy) and specializes in working with perfectionism, anxiety, panic, and feelings of being “lost.” She works with children, adolescents, and adults. Outside of therapy you can find her in nature, dancing to loud music, or cuddling with her cat.

Training and Education 

Stephanie Ford is a Licensed Graduate Professional Counselor and obtained her Master of Science in Clinical Professional Counseling from Loyola University Maryland. She has received training in play therapy from Dr. Rachel Altvater, PsyD, RPT-S and is currently under the supervision of Mary Rimi, LCPC-S. She has significant experience working with the LGBTQ+ community and is an LGBTQ+ affirming therapist. Her specialization areas include working with children, adolescents, and adults struggling with emotional dysregulation (depression/anxiety), perfectionism, and identity development. She actively engages in increasing her skills and focuses her continued education on the topics of trauma and dissociation, working with the trans community, and building her ACT toolkit.

Supervisor: Mary Rimi, LCPC-S

Therapeutic Approach

Stephanie primarily uses techniques from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). She also implements techniques from other approaches, including Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), and existential therapy, in order to tailor treatment to best serve each client. She is interested in tying client’s passions into their work together and will modify skills and techniques to fit into what already works for the client, whether that’s music, art, fashion, reading, nature, etc. She recognizes that talking about feelings can be difficult and often turns to metaphors to help access feelings that are hard to put into words. She hopes that in their work, she can help guide the client on the path towards the person that they would like to be.