My approach to therapy revolves around putting my clients at the center of the process. This means tailoring treatment to suit your specific needs and preferences. It could involve processing through deep-rooted issues, equipping you with coping mechanisms and practical skills, or even collaboration to problem solve. For me, being a therapist is a profound privilege to walk alongside my clients on their journey towards self-discovery and growth. I see each client as an individual with unique experiences, challenges, and aspirations. My role is to support you in realizing your vision for yourself and help navigate through whatever obstacles you may encounter along the way.

My desire is to come alongside you during life transitions, relationship issues and stressful times to provide a supportive and caring environment that assists you in dealing with life's difficulties. I work with women, adolescents and families struggling with anxiety, depression, addictions, faith-based issues, stress management, trauma, childhood sexual abuse, grief and relationship problems.

My formal education focused on psychology and clinical social work. My professional experiences have been in public schools, hospitals and outpatient clinics, the Military, international nonprofits, universities and various community settings. I currently have a private practice with offices in Napa, in addition to my virtual office, where I provide "teletherapy" to clients in both California and Texas.
​
My therapy training began in public schools with special education, K-12. I counseled children with mental health concerns and led life skills groups. I worked intensively with adolescents (and their caregivers) in alternative school programs burdened by emotional concerns.
​
I spent most of the next decade working in hospitals, both pediatric and adult, assessing and responding to a variety of issues including devastating diagnoses, chronic health conditions, end of life issues, infertility and pregnancy loss, postpartum depression, drug and alcohol abuse, domestic violence, sexual assault and mental health crises. During this time, I taught and supervised students for the University of Texas at Austin Graduate School of Social Work. After ten years, I shifted out of the hospital setting to therapist lead of an integrated behavioral healthcare network where I helped build a program for providing mental health and case management to a pediatric and family medical practice serving 30,000 low income families.
​
An opportunity led me to England for two years, where I managed a prevention and education campaign related to new parent support and family violence prevention. I educated US Air Force members and families on topics such as stress and anger management, PTSD, resilience, healthy dating, couple's communication and parenting, while co-facilitating support groups on chronic medical conditions. During this time, I also worked with Airmen and families on managing stress before and after deployments and transitioning to civilian life after a military career.
​
After a brief return to the U.S. to study Spanish at the Defense Language Institute of Monterey, I moved to South America and worked for the U.S. Embassy while volunteering with a Chilean nonprofit. During this time, I researched advances in counseling and coaching methodology. Although I have a working knowledge of Spanish, I do not provide services in Spanish at this time.
​
In 2014, I relocated to Napa, pregnant again after experiencing pregnancy loss. After treating parents for postpartum depression and anxiety, I experienced it first-hand and became aware of a need for expanded maternal mental health support in my community. So I added services to my private practice that would address infertility, pregnancy and postpartum mental health support, Moxie Motherhood, and co-founded a pregnant and postpartum peer support program.
​​
For almost two decades, I have honed my clinical expertise from problem-focused to possibility-focused. I remain current on research and active in the professional dialogue of wellness, balancing my time between counseling, coaching, teaching, volunteering and parenting. Read more here.
​
I welcome the opportunity to support you.

Cara is a Licensed Professional Counselor - Mental Health Service Provider and National Certified Counselor. Along with her licensing and training, she is certified in both the Grief Recovery Method ® and the SYMBIS Pre-Marital Assessment. Cara is a graduate of the University of Georgia. After completing her Bachelor’s degree, she completed her Master’s at Richmont Graduate University in Atlanta, GA.

Cara works regularly with individuals and couples experiencing a variety of struggles including anxiety, depression, grief, low self-worth, relational challenges, life transitions, trauma, affair recovery, emotional regulation and feelings of intense shame.

Cara believes the most important element in therapy is the relationship between the therapist and client. Because of this, she works hard to understand each individual as their unique self and create a safe and open space for growth and healing. While she works with a variety of therapeutic approaches, Cara finds most of her work centers around the Psychodynamic theory, recognizing that we all believe and inevitably behave the messages we narrate unconsciously. By understanding these beliefs and messages and how they originated, we can ultimately change and heal in all aspects of our lives.

I work with clients who may be struggling with anxiety, depression, and trauma in a way that's impacting their view of themselves and their ability to find wellbeing in relationships. In addition, I enjoy working with teens and adults on issues related to perfectionism, people-pleasing, codependency, relationship dynamics, sports performance, and sports injury. If you struggle with any of the above or with feelings of guilt, shame, resentment, not being enough/good enough, or vulnerability, I’d love to work with you!

Because each person is unique, I believe therapy is most effective when the approach is adapted to meet the needs of each individual. My approach is a combination of identifying and removing obstacles that are preventing healing while simultaneously providing support to help you move towards health. In sessions, this could involve exploring your past to understand how it impacts you today as well as gaining awareness, insight, and practical skills to help you move forward.

I hope to bring warmth, genuineness, and authenticity to our sessions in a way that invites you to do the same. I strive to create a space where you feel safe enough to open up and share your story, and it’s my goal that you would leave each session feeling seen, heard, and understood. As you move towards healing, my desire for you is that you would learn to live more authentically and wholeheartedly with a greater capacity for joy, connection, resilience, and hope.

I would love the opportunity to learn more about you and your reasons for seeking therapy to see if I’m the right fit for you. I hope to hear from you!

Under clinical supervision with Dr. Laura Land, LPC (GA #010913), CPCS (Ga #2150)

Deb came from a broken home as a child and was in a blended family in her teen years. She practiced as a licensed occupational therapist for 35 years, working with children in hospital, school and private practice settings. She returned to school for her master's in Marriage and Family Therapy with a specialization in Spirituality and Counseling. She and her husband, Craig, have been married for 42 years, and raised three children. They are expecting their first grandchild in June, 2022. Deb is a mixed media artist, and a lover of nature, gardening, travel and her cockapoo puppy, Henry Biscuit.

Mindy Pierce is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) in private practice with GROW Counseling. She received her MA in Counseling Psychology from Indiana Wesleyan University and her BA from Asbury University.

Her clinical experience includes working with men’s and women’s issues; various relationship issues; pornography and infidelity; substance and process addictions; depression; anxiety; grief; PTSD; personality disorders; parenting stress; survivors of sexual, physical and emotional abuse, complex trauma, secondary trauma, commercial sexual exploitation and human trafficking; and those providing services for survivors (first responders, attorneys, therapists, and case workers). She is also trained and experienced in EMDR (eye movement desensitization reprocessing).

Mindy has led short-term teams and/or facilitated counseling seminars in Mexico, Uganda, Ukraine, and Sri Lanka. She and her husband spent 18 months living in Sri Lanka and working for a post-tsunami recovery project, where she began her involvement in anti-human trafficking work. Upon returning to the United States, she has worked in a private, residential setting and as a therapist in private practice.

A strong commitment to supporting first responders grew from experiences related to her husband’s years spent in law enforcement. Mindy possesses a deep appreciation for the unique challenges faced by those working on the front lines of law enforcement, fire and rescue, and emergency medical services – understanding the risk of secondary traumatization, addiction, burnout, isolation, and distress in personal relationships.

In 2016, after 14 years of witnessing the restorative impact of healthy, life-giving relationships and the traumatic impact of brokenness around issues related to connection, sex and intimacy, Mindy created STRONGERconnection|cards™, a conversation tool designed for proactively building relationships and preventing disconnection. You can learn more at STRONGERconnectioncards.com.

She and her husband live in the Atlanta area and have three children.

The best place to change and grow is in relationships. I specialize in providing a safe, supportive and collaborative environment for each client who steps into my office. Whether it is through their anxiety, with their significant other or processing spiritual or relational trauma, my goal is connection. When that connection is fostered, I help clients unpack their feelings, process their irrational thoughts and get to the root of their struggles for true change to take place. It’s not about a quick fix but deep processing through a supportive, empathetic environment!

At Wilde Counseling, we believe that stability often comes when we brave the wilderness within and around us. With an emphasis on nervous system support, we help our clients heal from traumatic events, past or present, and experience more connection in their lives. We work with clients to make sense of attachment wounds, build inner trust and self-compassion, and move past the relational patterns that have kept them stuck. It is a privilege to enter hard spaces with you and offer a safe place to land.