Leana DeVoe

I struggled a lot with anxiety and depression growing up. I also was a medical patient for most of my life: I was born with a congenital birth defect. That put additional stress on me in addition to the standard challenges of growing up. I wished I was better able to help myself, because it's hard to ask for help, no matter what age you are. Once I reached college, the field of therapy really appealed to me. I now help people learn to help themselves during hard times and eventually sustain those changes on their own. It has been a perfect fit.

When I worked with child welfare, we saw a lot of mental health diagnoses that we didn't always have the time or the resources to really address. Specializing in OCD it really appealed to me— being able to directly address those symptoms that are harder for other methods of therapy to handle.

Anxiety, depression, trauma, substance use, and just seeing life stressors play a part in how things can feel more challenging day-to-day.

It's really hard to look for help, let alone ask for help. I commend your bravery in doing that because nothing can happen without that first step. OCD therapy takes courage and a lot of transparency to see the changes that you want. It's important to commit yourself to the process upfront.

First and foremost, if you are afraid of judgment, know it will not be coming from me. We can process those fears. I know what that's like. I've struggled with my own mental health. I know what it's like to have struggled to ask for help. You are not alone in that. I'm not sitting here in a chair thinking I'm any better than anybody else.