she/her
Kelly Panas
PhD
Location
Virtual, Connecticut
Insurance Accepted
Aetna
Communication Style
Action-oriented, Challenging, Exploratory, Mindful, Warm
Focus areas
Anger Issues, Anxiety, Bipolar Disorder, Burnout, Chronic Illness, Depression, Grief, Life Transitions, OCD, Panic, Phobias, Relationship Concerns, Sexual Assault/Sexual Abuse, Sleep, Stress, Substance Use, Trauma, Workplace Stress
Experienced with
Veterans
Years of Experience
12+
I provide a safe environment for individuals to feel heard and seen in sharing about their life and circumstances.
License number
#4309
Therapy style
Paramount to successful therapy is a readiness and commitment to change. I provide a safe environment for individuals to feel heard and seen in sharing about their life and circumstances. My therapy style is a combination of a Mindfulness-based approach and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (examining the interaction between thoughts, emotions, and behaviors). I have over a decade of experience treating people with a wide variety of presenting concerns including depression, anxiety, stress, adjustment issues, and trauma. By working in collaboration with each individual, I utilize the above strategies to reconnect individuals with their values to bring a better sense of meaning and purpose in their lives.
Despite difficult events or stressors which have occurred or are ongoing, it is our ability to choose how to respond to our situations which impacts our well-being. The process of change also includes our ability to examine the role we play in our own lives via our thoughts, behaviors, and interactional styles. It is a skill to not be sucked into the vortex of negativity of what has been difficult in our lives, but to be able to acknowledge and hold the space for these stressors, and to be able to also acknowledge and pay attention to what is good and present in our lives - this allows us to be resilient in the face of past or current pain.
Approaches
- Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
- Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT)
- Exposure and Response Prevention Therapy (ERP or EXRP)
- Mindfulness-based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT)
- Relational
Education
BA - Psychology, Wellesley College
PhD - Clinical Psychology, University of Houston
Interests
I love the outdoors and being in nature, so I enjoy spending time outside no matter the season (although Fall is my favorite!). I strive for living a healthy lifestyle that includes regular exercise and healthy eating, and am always in search of a new healthy and tasty recipe.