Amanda Halamka
MC, CCTSI, LPC, NCC, ADHD-CCSP, C-DBT, PLLC
Specializing in PTSD and Trauma

TREATMENTS

Cognitive Behavioral (CBT)
Cognitive-behavioral therapy stresses the role of thinking in how we feel and what we do. It is based on the belief that thoughts, rather than people or events, cause our negative feelings. The therapist assists the client in identifying, testing the reality of, and correcting dysfunctional beliefs underlying his or her thinking. The therapist then helps the client modify those thoughts and the behaviors that flow from them. CBT is a structured collaboration between therapist and client and often calls for homework assignments. CBT has been clinically proven to help clients in a relatively short amount of time with a wide range of disorders, including depression and anxiety.
Dialectical (DBT)
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) is the treatment most closely associated with Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD). Therapists practice DBT in both individual and group sessions. The therapy combines elements of CBT to help with regulating emotion through distress tolerance and mindfulness. The goal of Dialectical Behavior Therapy is to alleviate the intense emotional pain associated with BPD.
Mindfulness-based (MBCT)
For clients with chronic pain, hypertension, heart disease, cancer, and other health issues such as anxiety and depression, mindfulness-based cognitive therapy, or MBCT, is a two-part therapy that aims to reduce stress, manage pain, and embrace the freedom to respond to situations by choice. MCBT blends two disciplines--cognitive therapy and mindfulness. Mindfulness helps by reflecting on moments and thoughts without passing judgment. MBCT clients pay close attention to their feelings to reach an objective mindset, thus viewing and combating life's unpleasant occurrences.
Coaching
Life coaching is an increasingly popular profession that has no specific licensing or academic requirements.
Though psychologists also often consider themselves life coaches, these therapists don't focus on treating mental illness.
Instead, they help individuals realize their goals in work and in life.
An executive coach, for example, may be enlisted to help a chief executive become a better manager, while a "love" coach may map out a plan to help a client find romantic fulfillment.
I LOVE TO HELP PEOPLE!
I’m Amanda and I love that I get to help you through this journey.  I am excited to work with you and teach you coping skills, mindfulness, awareness and work on trauma with you.
I BELIEVE THAT THERAPY HELPS EVERYONE AT DIFFERENT PARTS OF LIFE
Trauma is positive and negative events that change your life.  I am nationally certified in trauma.  I am a single mom with 2 children and my oldest is autistic.
Through the years, I have had to learn how to listen to my son.  Observe his behaviors to make adjustments to myself and our environment.  Apply coping skills in my own life and family.
I USEDBT AND CBT TO TALK ABOUT MINDFULNESS, AWARENESS, PERSPECTIVE AND TRAUMA
I have learned how to help others with disabilities and their abilities to advance in every day life.  I love working with kids, adults, families, couples and teens. I love to help kiddos and families to understand more. I have life and educational experience. I do this career because I truly love to help others.
CLIENT FOCUSES
I have put together a list of the most common issues people seek out treatment for. If any of these sound familiar, please contact me so we can start to empower you with coping methods and techniques.
  • ADHD
  • Anger Management
  • Anxiety
  • Autism
  • Behavioral Issues
  • Bipolar Disorder
  • Child or Adolescent
  • Codependency
  • Coping Skills
  • Depression
  • Divorce
  • Emotional Disturbance
  • Family Conflict
  • Grief
  • Life Coaching
  • Marital and Premarital
  • Obsessive-Compulsive (OCD)
  • Self Esteem
  • Self-Harming
  • Stress
CLIENT FOCUSES
I have put together a list of the most common issues people seek out treatment for. If any of these sound familiar, please contact me so we can start to empower you with coping methods and techniques.
Stress
Stress management offers a range of strategies to help you better deal with stress and adversity in your life. Managing stress can help you lead a more balanced, healthier life.
Self Harm
Nonsuicidal self-injury, often simply called self-injury, is the act of deliberately harming the surface of your own body, such as cutting or burning yourself. It's typically not meant as a suicide attempt. Rather, this type of self-injury is an unhealthy way to cope with emotional pain, intense anger and frustration.
Self Esteem
Self-esteem is your overall opinion of yourself — how you feel about your abilities and limitations. When you have healthy self-esteem, you feel good about yourself and see yourself as deserving the respect of others. When you have low self-esteem, you put little value on your opinions and ideas. You might constantly worry that you aren't good enough.
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) features a pattern of unreasonable thoughts and fears (obsessions) that lead you to do repetitive behaviors (compulsions). These obsessions and compulsions interfere with daily activities and cause significant distress.
Grief
Losing a loved one is one of the most distressing and, unfortunately, common experiences people face. Most people experiencing normal grief and bereavement have a period of sorrow, numbness, and even guilt and anger. Gradually these feelings ease, and it's possible to accept loss and move forward.
Family Conflicts
Family therapy doesn't automatically solve family conflicts or make an unpleasant situation go away. But it can help you and your family members understand one another better, and it can provide skills to cope with challenging situations in a more effective way. It may also help the family achieve a sense of togetherness.
Emotional Disturbances
These may appear as:

Anxiety, fear or paranoia
Depression
Irritability or anger
A sense of feeling elated (euphoria)
Apathy
Rapid and unpredictable mood shifts
Personality changes
Divorce
Not everyone who benefits from psychotherapy is diagnosed with a mental illness. Psychotherapy can help with a number of life's stresses and conflicts that can affect anyone.
Depression
Depression is a mood disorder that causes a persistent feeling of sadness and loss of interest. Also called major depressive disorder or clinical depression, it affects how you feel, think and behave and can lead to a variety of emotional and physical problems. You may have trouble doing normal day-to-day activities, and sometimes you may feel as if life isn't worth living.
Coping Skills
I use DBT and CBT to talk about mindfulness, awareness, perspective and trauma.
Codependency
a psychological concept that refers to people who feel extreme amounts of dependence on certain loved ones in their lives, and who feel responsible for the feelings and actions of those loved ones.
Bipolar Disorder
Bipolar disorder, formerly called manic depression, is a mental health condition that causes extreme mood swings that include emotional highs (mania or hypomania) and lows (depression).
Behavioral Issues
Delinquent or violent behavior
Abuse of others
Withdrawal
Suicide attempts or self-injury
High-risk sexual behaviors or teen pregnancy
Problems in school or not finishing high school
Limited social and relationship skills
Problems with work or staying employed
Autism
Autism spectrum disorder is a condition related to brain development that impacts how a person perceives and socializes with others, causing problems in social interaction and communication. The disorder also includes limited and repetitive patterns of behavior. The term "spectrum" in autism spectrum disorder refers to the wide range of symptoms and severity.
Anxiety
Experiencing occasional anxiety is a normal part of life. However, people with anxiety disorders frequently have intense, excessive and persistent worry and fear about everyday situations. Often, anxiety disorders involve repeated episodes of sudden feelings of intense anxiety and fear or terror that reach a peak within minutes (panic attacks).
Anger Management
Anger management is the process of learning to recognize signs that you're becoming angry, and taking action to calm down and deal with the situation in a productive way. Anger management doesn't try to keep you from feeling anger or encourage you to hold it in. Anger is a normal, healthy emotion when you know how to express it appropriately — anger management is about learning how to do this.
ADHD
A chronic condition including attention difficulty, hyperactivity, and impulsiveness.
Stress
Stress management offers a range of strategies to help you better deal with stress and adversity in your life. Managing stress can help you lead a more balanced, healthier life.
Self Harm
Nonsuicidal self-injury, often simply called self-injury, is the act of deliberately harming the surface of your own body, such as cutting or burning yourself. It's typically not meant as a suicide attempt. Rather, this type of self-injury is an unhealthy way to cope with emotional pain, intense anger and frustration.
Self Esteem
Self-esteem is your overall opinion of yourself — how you feel about your abilities and limitations. When you have healthy self-esteem, you feel good about yourself and see yourself as deserving the respect of others. When you have low self-esteem, you put little value on your opinions and ideas. You might constantly worry that you aren't good enough.
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) features a pattern of unreasonable thoughts and fears (obsessions) that lead you to do repetitive behaviors (compulsions). These obsessions and compulsions interfere with daily activities and cause significant distress.
Grief
Losing a loved one is one of the most distressing and, unfortunately, common experiences people face. Most people experiencing normal grief and bereavement have a period of sorrow, numbness, and even guilt and anger. Gradually these feelings ease, and it's possible to accept loss and move forward.
Family Conflicts
Family therapy doesn't automatically solve family conflicts or make an unpleasant situation go away. But it can help you and your family members understand one another better, and it can provide skills to cope with challenging situations in a more effective way. It may also help the family achieve a sense of togetherness.
Emotional Disturbances
These may appear as:

Anxiety, fear or paranoia
Depression
Irritability or anger
A sense of feeling elated (euphoria)
Apathy
Rapid and unpredictable mood shifts
Personality changes
Divorce
Not everyone who benefits from psychotherapy is diagnosed with a mental illness. Psychotherapy can help with a number of life's stresses and conflicts that can affect anyone.
Depression
Depression is a mood disorder that causes a persistent feeling of sadness and loss of interest. Also called major depressive disorder or clinical depression, it affects how you feel, think and behave and can lead to a variety of emotional and physical problems. You may have trouble doing normal day-to-day activities, and sometimes you may feel as if life isn't worth living.
Coping Skills
I use DBT and CBT to talk about mindfulness, awareness, perspective and trauma.
Codependency
a psychological concept that refers to people who feel extreme amounts of dependence on certain loved ones in their lives, and who feel responsible for the feelings and actions of those loved ones.
Bipolar Disorder
Bipolar disorder, formerly called manic depression, is a mental health condition that causes extreme mood swings that include emotional highs (mania or hypomania) and lows (depression).
Behavioral Issues
Delinquent or violent behavior
Abuse of others
Withdrawal
Suicide attempts or self-injury
High-risk sexual behaviors or teen pregnancy
Problems in school or not finishing high school
Limited social and relationship skills
Problems with work or staying employed
Autism
Autism spectrum disorder is a condition related to brain development that impacts how a person perceives and socializes with others, causing problems in social interaction and communication. The disorder also includes limited and repetitive patterns of behavior. The term "spectrum" in autism spectrum disorder refers to the wide range of symptoms and severity.
Anxiety
Experiencing occasional anxiety is a normal part of life. However, people with anxiety disorders frequently have intense, excessive and persistent worry and fear about everyday situations. Often, anxiety disorders involve repeated episodes of sudden feelings of intense anxiety and fear or terror that reach a peak within minutes (panic attacks).
Anger Management
Anger management is the process of learning to recognize signs that you're becoming angry, and taking action to calm down and deal with the situation in a productive way. Anger management doesn't try to keep you from feeling anger or encourage you to hold it in. Anger is a normal, healthy emotion when you know how to express it appropriately — anger management is about learning how to do this.
ADHD
A chronic condition including attention difficulty, hyperactivity, and impulsiveness.
Stress
Stress management offers a range of strategies to help you better deal with stress and adversity in your life. Managing stress can help you lead a more balanced, healthier life.
Self Harm
Nonsuicidal self-injury, often simply called self-injury, is the act of deliberately harming the surface of your own body, such as cutting or burning yourself. It's typically not meant as a suicide attempt. Rather, this type of self-injury is an unhealthy way to cope with emotional pain, intense anger and frustration.
Self Esteem
Self-esteem is your overall opinion of yourself — how you feel about your abilities and limitations. When you have healthy self-esteem, you feel good about yourself and see yourself as deserving the respect of others. When you have low self-esteem, you put little value on your opinions and ideas. You might constantly worry that you aren't good enough.
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) features a pattern of unreasonable thoughts and fears (obsessions) that lead you to do repetitive behaviors (compulsions). These obsessions and compulsions interfere with daily activities and cause significant distress.
Premaritial
Premarital counseling is a type of therapy that helps couples prepare for marriage. Premarital counseling can help ensure that you and your partner have a strong, healthy relationship — giving you a better chance for a stable and satisfying marriage. This kind of counseling can also help you identify weaknesses that could become problems during marriage.
Grief
Losing a loved one is one of the most distressing and, unfortunately, common experiences people face. Most people experiencing normal grief and bereavement have a period of sorrow, numbness, and even guilt and anger. Gradually these feelings ease, and it's possible to accept loss and move forward.
Family Conflicts
Family therapy doesn't automatically solve family conflicts or make an unpleasant situation go away. But it can help you and your family members understand one another better, and it can provide skills to cope with challenging situations in a more effective way. It may also help the family achieve a sense of togetherness.
Emotional Disturbances
These may appear as:

Anxiety, fear or paranoia
Depression
Irritability or anger
A sense of feeling elated (euphoria)
Apathy
Rapid and unpredictable mood shifts
Personality changes
Divorce
Not everyone who benefits from psychotherapy is diagnosed with a mental illness. Psychotherapy can help with a number of life's stresses and conflicts that can affect anyone.
Depression
Depression is a mood disorder that causes a persistent feeling of sadness and loss of interest. Also called major depressive disorder or clinical depression, it affects how you feel, think and behave and can lead to a variety of emotional and physical problems. You may have trouble doing normal day-to-day activities, and sometimes you may feel as if life isn't worth living.
Coping Skills
I use DBT and CBT to talk about mindfulness, awareness, perspective and trauma.
Codependency
a psychological concept that refers to people who feel extreme amounts of dependence on certain loved ones in their lives, and who feel responsible for the feelings and actions of those loved ones.
Bipolar Disorder
Bipolar disorder, formerly called manic depression, is a mental health condition that causes extreme mood swings that include emotional highs (mania or hypomania) and lows (depression).
Behavioral Issues
Delinquent or violent behavior
Abuse of others
Withdrawal
Suicide attempts or self-injury
High-risk sexual behaviors or teen pregnancy
Problems in school or not finishing high school
Limited social and relationship skills
Problems with work or staying employed
Autism
Autism spectrum disorder is a condition related to brain development that impacts how a person perceives and socializes with others, causing problems in social interaction and communication. The disorder also includes limited and repetitive patterns of behavior. The term "spectrum" in autism spectrum disorder refers to the wide range of symptoms and severity.
Anxiety
Experiencing occasional anxiety is a normal part of life. However, people with anxiety disorders frequently have intense, excessive and persistent worry and fear about everyday situations. Often, anxiety disorders involve repeated episodes of sudden feelings of intense anxiety and fear or terror that reach a peak within minutes (panic attacks).
Anger Management
Anger management is the process of learning to recognize signs that you're becoming angry, and taking action to calm down and deal with the situation in a productive way. Anger management doesn't try to keep you from feeling anger or encourage you to hold it in. Anger is a normal, healthy emotion when you know how to express it appropriately — anger management is about learning how to do this.
ADHD
A chronic condition including attention difficulty, hyperactivity, and impulsiveness.
Stress
Stress management offers a range of strategies to help you better deal with stress and adversity in your life. Managing stress can help you lead a more balanced, healthier life.
Self Harm
Nonsuicidal self-injury, often simply called self-injury, is the act of deliberately harming the surface of your own body, such as cutting or burning yourself. It's typically not meant as a suicide attempt. Rather, this type of self-injury is an unhealthy way to cope with emotional pain, intense anger and frustration.
Self Esteem
Self-esteem is your overall opinion of yourself — how you feel about your abilities and limitations. When you have healthy self-esteem, you feel good about yourself and see yourself as deserving the respect of others. When you have low self-esteem, you put little value on your opinions and ideas. You might constantly worry that you aren't good enough.
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) features a pattern of unreasonable thoughts and fears (obsessions) that lead you to do repetitive behaviors (compulsions). These obsessions and compulsions interfere with daily activities and cause significant distress.
Premaritial
Premarital counseling is a type of therapy that helps couples prepare for marriage. Premarital counseling can help ensure that you and your partner have a strong, healthy relationship — giving you a better chance for a stable and satisfying marriage. This kind of counseling can also help you identify weaknesses that could become problems during marriage.
Marital
Marriage counseling, also called couples therapy, is a type of psychotherapy. Marriage counseling helps couples of all types recognize and resolve conflicts and improve their relationships. Through marriage counseling, you can make thoughtful decisions about rebuilding and strengthening your relationship or going your separate ways.
Life Coaching
a person who counsels and encourages clients on matters having to do with careers or personal challenges.
Grief
Losing a loved one is one of the most distressing and, unfortunately, common experiences people face. Most people experiencing normal grief and bereavement have a period of sorrow, numbness, and even guilt and anger. Gradually these feelings ease, and it's possible to accept loss and move forward.
Family Conflicts
Family therapy doesn't automatically solve family conflicts or make an unpleasant situation go away. But it can help you and your family members understand one another better, and it can provide skills to cope with challenging situations in a more effective way. It may also help the family achieve a sense of togetherness.
Emotional Disturbances
These may appear as:

Anxiety, fear or paranoia
Depression
Irritability or anger
A sense of feeling elated (euphoria)
Apathy
Rapid and unpredictable mood shifts
Personality changes
Divorce
Not everyone who benefits from psychotherapy is diagnosed with a mental illness. Psychotherapy can help with a number of life's stresses and conflicts that can affect anyone.
Depression
Depression is a mood disorder that causes a persistent feeling of sadness and loss of interest. Also called major depressive disorder or clinical depression, it affects how you feel, think and behave and can lead to a variety of emotional and physical problems. You may have trouble doing normal day-to-day activities, and sometimes you may feel as if life isn't worth living.
Coping Skills
I use DBT and CBT to talk about mindfulness, awareness, perspective and trauma.
Codependency
a psychological concept that refers to people who feel extreme amounts of dependence on certain loved ones in their lives, and who feel responsible for the feelings and actions of those loved ones.
Bipolar Disorder
Bipolar disorder, formerly called manic depression, is a mental health condition that causes extreme mood swings that include emotional highs (mania or hypomania) and lows (depression).
Behavioral Issues
Delinquent or violent behavior
Abuse of others
Withdrawal
Suicide attempts or self-injury
High-risk sexual behaviors or teen pregnancy
Problems in school or not finishing high school
Limited social and relationship skills
Problems with work or staying employed
Autism
Autism spectrum disorder is a condition related to brain development that impacts how a person perceives and socializes with others, causing problems in social interaction and communication. The disorder also includes limited and repetitive patterns of behavior. The term "spectrum" in autism spectrum disorder refers to the wide range of symptoms and severity.
Anxiety
Experiencing occasional anxiety is a normal part of life. However, people with anxiety disorders frequently have intense, excessive and persistent worry and fear about everyday situations. Often, anxiety disorders involve repeated episodes of sudden feelings of intense anxiety and fear or terror that reach a peak within minutes (panic attacks).
Anger Management
Anger management is the process of learning to recognize signs that you're becoming angry, and taking action to calm down and deal with the situation in a productive way. Anger management doesn't try to keep you from feeling anger or encourage you to hold it in. Anger is a normal, healthy emotion when you know how to express it appropriately — anger management is about learning how to do this.
ADHD
A chronic condition including attention difficulty, hyperactivity, and impulsiveness.
Stress
Stress management offers a range of strategies to help you better deal with stress and adversity in your life. Managing stress can help you lead a more balanced, healthier life.
Self Harm
Nonsuicidal self-injury, often simply called self-injury, is the act of deliberately harming the surface of your own body, such as cutting or burning yourself. It's typically not meant as a suicide attempt. Rather, this type of self-injury is an unhealthy way to cope with emotional pain, intense anger and frustration.
Self Esteem
Self-esteem is your overall opinion of yourself — how you feel about your abilities and limitations. When you have healthy self-esteem, you feel good about yourself and see yourself as deserving the respect of others. When you have low self-esteem, you put little value on your opinions and ideas. You might constantly worry that you aren't good enough.
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) features a pattern of unreasonable thoughts and fears (obsessions) that lead you to do repetitive behaviors (compulsions). These obsessions and compulsions interfere with daily activities and cause significant distress.
Marital
Marriage counseling, also called couples therapy, is a type of psychotherapy. Marriage counseling helps couples of all types recognize and resolve conflicts and improve their relationships. Through marriage counseling, you can make thoughtful decisions about rebuilding and strengthening your relationship or going your separate ways.
Life Coaching
a person who counsels and encourages clients on matters having to do with careers or personal challenges.
Grief
Losing a loved one is one of the most distressing and, unfortunately, common experiences people face. Most people experiencing normal grief and bereavement have a period of sorrow, numbness, and even guilt and anger. Gradually these feelings ease, and it's possible to accept loss and move forward.
Family Conflicts
Family therapy doesn't automatically solve family conflicts or make an unpleasant situation go away. But it can help you and your family members understand one another better, and it can provide skills to cope with challenging situations in a more effective way. It may also help the family achieve a sense of togetherness.
Emotional Disturbances
These may appear as:

Anxiety, fear or paranoia
Depression
Irritability or anger
A sense of feeling elated (euphoria)
Apathy
Rapid and unpredictable mood shifts
Personality changes
Divorce
Not everyone who benefits from psychotherapy is diagnosed with a mental illness. Psychotherapy can help with a number of life's stresses and conflicts that can affect anyone.
Depression
Depression is a mood disorder that causes a persistent feeling of sadness and loss of interest. Also called major depressive disorder or clinical depression, it affects how you feel, think and behave and can lead to a variety of emotional and physical problems. You may have trouble doing normal day-to-day activities, and sometimes you may feel as if life isn't worth living.
Coping Skills
I use DBT and CBT to talk about mindfulness, awareness, perspective and trauma.
Codependency
a psychological concept that refers to people who feel extreme amounts of dependence on certain loved ones in their lives, and who feel responsible for the feelings and actions of those loved ones.
Bipolar Disorder
Bipolar disorder, formerly called manic depression, is a mental health condition that causes extreme mood swings that include emotional highs (mania or hypomania) and lows (depression).
Behavioral Issues
Delinquent or violent behavior
Abuse of others
Withdrawal
Suicide attempts or self-injury
High-risk sexual behaviors or teen pregnancy
Problems in school or not finishing high school
Limited social and relationship skills
Problems with work or staying employed
Autism
Autism spectrum disorder is a condition related to brain development that impacts how a person perceives and socializes with others, causing problems in social interaction and communication. The disorder also includes limited and repetitive patterns of behavior. The term "spectrum" in autism spectrum disorder refers to the wide range of symptoms and severity.
Anxiety
Experiencing occasional anxiety is a normal part of life. However, people with anxiety disorders frequently have intense, excessive and persistent worry and fear about everyday situations. Often, anxiety disorders involve repeated episodes of sudden feelings of intense anxiety and fear or terror that reach a peak within minutes (panic attacks).
Anger Management
Anger management is the process of learning to recognize signs that you're becoming angry, and taking action to calm down and deal with the situation in a productive way. Anger management doesn't try to keep you from feeling anger or encourage you to hold it in. Anger is a normal, healthy emotion when you know how to express it appropriately — anger management is about learning how to do this.
ADHD
A chronic condition including attention difficulty, hyperactivity, and impulsiveness.
testimonial-team (Demo)
Anonymous

I have spoken with multiple counselors who seem to be listening until they open their mouth.  That is not the case with Amanda.  When you speak with Amanda, you don’t feel rushed, you don’t feel judged, you feel listened to.  Amanda doesn’t pretend to have all the answers, but does advocate for taking control of your issues.

CONTACT ME TO GET SCHEDULED

813 W Elliot Rd #12, Chandler, Arizona 85225

[email protected]

(602) 432-3367

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