Megan Spees

Counselor Megan Spees

Megan Spees, M.A., LLP, CAADC, CCTSI, is a Limited Licensed Psychologist who received her master’s degree in clinical counseling psychology from Michigan School of Professional Psychology. Megan is a Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor (CAADC) and a Certified Clinical Trauma Specialist (CCTSI).

Megan Spees, MA, LLP, CAADC, CCTSI, received her master’s degree in clinical counseling psychology from Michigan School of Professional Psychology. Megan’s advanced training includes being a Certified Advanced Alcohol and Drug Counselor (CAADC), The Gottman Method, and as a Certified Clinical Trauma Specialist (CCTSI).

I have experience working with teens, adults, and couples. I specialize in helping clients navigate the complexities of relationships while developing a foundation of acceptance, trust, and communication. As an adaptable and caring professional, I help clients reach their life goals both, individually and relationally. I utilize a broad range of therapeutic techniques that are empirically sound with the flexibility to meet individual goals of the client. This is achieved by utilizing the client’s current strengths and then implementing new skills in which the client can employ as they move forward on their journey of life.

Private, Safe, Confidential Counseling

Megan's Counseling Services

We provide individual counseling in-office, online (Zoom) or by phone.

ADHD – Adult
Addiction (Drug/Alcohol)
Anxiety (GAD)
Behavioral Management
Co-occurring Mental Disorders
Communications
Conflict Resolution

Megan's Specialties

Individual/Family Therapy

Individual and Family therapy is a type counseling that can help individuals and family members improve communication and resolve conflicts. The goal is to identify and address problems individuals may be struggling within one’s family system. These issues could be emotional, psychological, or behavioral. Through individual/family therapy, I can help you and/or family members set healthy goals which are designed to improve individual empowerment/family dynamics, solve individual/family problems, provide greater understandings and handling special individual/family situations, and create a better functioning life balance/home environment for all.

Marriage Therapy

I am trained in utilizing the Gottman Method for couple’s therapy. Through a comprehensive three-part assessment, I will work with the couple to establish what they hope to gain out of therapy. I will work with them to improve their conflict resolution skills, build trust and commitment, and establish rituals in their daily lives. I will also work with them to aid in building meaning with each other and work to help them help their partner’s dreams come true. The Gottman Method has been utilized for over 25 years and has been effective in managing and improving relationships across all dimensions and has also been successful in preventing relapse into negative patterns that lead to relationship demise.

Alcohol and Drug Counselor (CAADC)

We believe that each person experiences the disease of addiction and mental health disorders uniquely, and that entering lasting recovery means finding the deeper purposes that empower a fulfilling life in recovery. My personalized recovery program offers a multidimensional approach to substance abuse and addiction. I am highly experienced as an abuse and addiction specialist who evaluates each client individually and will design a customized, comprehensive plan for treatment and recovery. I utilize best-practice elements that is designed for clients to a live free of addiction.

Certified Clinical Trauma Specialist – Individual (CCTSI)

As a CCTSI, I have learned the essential components needed for safely and effectiveness in treating traumatic stress with individual adults. While the certification focuses upon acquiring the knowledge and skills for treating PTSD, I also am able to utilize the information and skills to effectively treat all types of anxiety disorders. I have acquired a good working knowledge of how to engage in the process of trauma treatment, focusing not only on interventions, but how to sequence the interventions to maximize outcomes. My certification and experience can help assure my clients the quality of treatment needed for those who have experienced trauma.

EMDR

EMDR is a psychotherapy treatment to process and resolve traumatic memories. This model “jump starts” the natural healing process which has become “stuck” over time. It is evidence-based, research shows clients complete treatment in 1/2 the time of traditional talk therapy and require less to no psych meds at the end. EMDR therapy shows that the mind can in fact heal from psychological trauma much as the body recovers from physical trauma. As a trained EMDR therapist I work with people who have experienced specific traumatic events, as well as people who experienced negative childhood experiences that have had a cumulative effect on their mental and physical health as adults. I help treat the root of depression, anxiety, oppositional defiant disorder, attachment or anger issues, PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder), Complex PTSD and various forms of Personality Disorder in a trauma-sensitive, empathic manner through EMDR Therapy without re-traumatizing the client. I utilize a humanistic based therapy style which incorporates strength based and person-centered foundation to empower the client’s I work with.

Megan's Qualifications & Training

Master of Arts in clinical counseling psychology from Michigan School of Professional Psychology
Certified Clinical Trauma Specialist (CCTSI)
Certified Advanced Alcohol and Drug Counselor (CAADC)
EMDR Trained
The Gottman Method

Contact Us Today To See How You Can Get Started.

We are ready when you are!

Megan Spees, MA, LLP, CAADC, CCTSI specializes in:

Megan is trained in one of the best treatments for traumatic events and PTSD which is known as Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. She is classically trained by the EMDR Institute created by the discoverer of EMDR, Dr. Francine Shapiro. Megan will work with clients to help reprocess their memories and install new positive beliefs in order to help eliminate the intrusive effects of PTSD.

Although traditionally used to treat PTSD, EMDR has been shown to have a wide range of positive treatment effects for numerous issues related to negative beliefs we all hold about ourselves.

Just three 90-minute reprocessing sessions has been shown to elicit great change in clients in randomized controlled clinical studies. Therefore, Megan will work with clients in 90-120 minute blocks several times per week to help gain the most positive treatment effects and elicit the most change and symptom reduction. Along with her other psychotherapy techniques, Megan will utilize EMDR where appropriate to help clients on their path to self-actualization.

Megan practices clinical psychotherapy with her clients. She provides individualized, person-centered psychotherapy utilizing assessments such as the ACE and the BDI-II as well as a robust clinical history in order to construct a treatment plan designed to guide the client on their path to self-actualization.

Megan believes in the client’s ability to autonomously reach their goals through their own potential and self-determination and her psychotherapy aids in this process. At a minimum, Megan sees clients on a weekly basis but does offer advanced trauma reprocessing sessions that occur more than once a week.

Megan will work with you on symptom mitigation, coping strategies and processing the things that are hindering your path to self-actualization. Every 90 days, Megan will review the progress of your symptom mitigation along with your treatment plan goals. They will then be revised and evaluated with you in session to determine where your treatment will go from there. Megan believes that every client is unique. Healing is its own process for everyone. There is no standard number of sessions available or required for growth, so long as you are still growing. If the time comes when termination presents itself, Megan will work with you to determine the best aftercare plan and synthesize your learning during your therapeutic journey.

Through her years working in inpatient treatment as well as in outpatient settings, Megan has fashioned her own unique way of helping clients heal via reprocessing advanced trauma histories. Megan finds that people do not realize that they have in fact experienced a good deal of trauma in their lives and this often hinders self-actualization.

Through personal experience working with client’s and in her own personal therapy, Megan will tell her clients that trauma, as an operational definition is, “anything beyond a person’s ability to handle at the time.”

The primary symptoms of trauma include nightmares and flashbacks. However, trauma can also present as anxiety and other mental health concerns, and Megan will work with you to mitigate these symptoms and improve your overall quality of life by doing so.

The above list is by no means comprehensive, but each one of these events can be processed as a trauma and can have devastating effects to a person’s psyche. Megan seeks to work with clients through teaching them reciprocal inhibition, grounding, and guided visualization all pertinent and person-centered based on the client’s lived experience of their trauma. Megan hopes to teach her clients how to mitigate the symptoms of their trauma through her own unique style.

Clients will participate in trauma reprocessing sessions for 90 minutes at varying points throughout treatment and will have regular individual sessions as well. This will be decided on a case-by-case basis. These longer sessions are only used if clients are still experiencing nightmares and flashbacks.

Additionally, Megan will help the client work with different trauma narratives and will help them to self-regulate and reprocess their trauma if they are still experiencing flashbacks and nightmares.

Trauma may include, but is not limited to:

Violence
Neglect
Death of a loved one
Medical trauma
Loss other than death (i.e., job, relationship)
Rape
Sexual Assault
Child Abandonment
Parents with an addiction/mental illness
Being separated from parent’s due to mental health, substance abuse, or incarceration.
Occupational trauma
Witness to trauma
Military Combat

Co-occurring disorders refers to when a person has two or more mental health disorders or medical illnesses. These co-occurring disorders may overlap and begin at the same time, or one may appear before or after the other. Examples of co-occurring disorders include but not limited to are alcohol addiction and panic disorder, major depression and cocaine addiction, marijuana addiction and schizophrenia, cocaine addiction and anxiety disorders, trauma and substance abuse, self-harm behavior and opioid abuse and anorexia nervosa and cocaine abuse.

Given her wide range of experience in working in inpatient and outpatient treatment, Megan will work with clients with advanced mental health issues that may be compounding their substance abuse concerns and vice-versa.

Megan will help assess and treat your mental health concerns and substance abuse concerns in a combined way as this is the best evidenced-based way to treat these issues. Additionally, Megan believes in a person-centered approach that involves incorporating all individuals in a client’s treatment team. Therefore, she will coordinate with your psychiatrist or Primary Care Physician in order to give you the best care possible and help advocate for you on your behalf.

Like how she treats trauma, Megan has developed a unique way of treating clients diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety Disorder. Through psychoeducation and system regulation, Megan teaches clients to control their own anxiety via reciprocal inhibition techniques and gradual desensitization to anxiety arousing stimuli. Megan will work with her clients to develop treatment plan goals related to immediate symptom mitigation and improvement as well as long term coping skills goals.

Anxiety can be debilitating. Megan is willing to do videoconferencing for clients that are too overwhelmed to come in office. She is also willing to conduct coaching via phone/text-message, given appropriate boundaries that will be discussed and outlined in the client’s file as part of their treatment plan. Through her humanistic perspective, Megan has developed a unique way of sitting with clients and helping them hold their struggles in a safe, conducive, healing environment. Megan will sit with you and be wholly present while helping you mitigate and self-regulate your anxiety symptoms inside and outside the office.

Although this list is not exhaustive, the symptoms can be debilitating and often hinder clients from meeting their goals and living their best lives. Megan will teach coping strategies such as grounding and reciprocal inhibition to teach clients to control their anxiety and recognize the physical signs and symptoms.

Anxiety can have many symptoms including:

Nervousness
Restlessness
Nightmares
Nausea, vomiting, indigestion, GERD
Dizziness, blurry vision, tunnel vision
Clammy hands
Hot/cold sweats
Anger
Procrastination
Isolation
Shakiness
Insomnia
Panic
Irritability

As an adult with ADHD herself, Megan is aware of the struggles that individuals with this concentration deficit tend to have while trying to function in the adult world. From over-talkativeness to impulsivity and a lack of general boundaries, these issues can range from the mild to the extreme. Megan will work with you to develop coping skills related to your self-identified struggles with ADHD.

Together, Megan believes that even adults who have not been treated before can successfully navigate the difficulties of adult ADHD. Megan will work with clients on skills such as time management, symptom tracking, and prioritization as well as identifying self-sabotage tendencies that are often related to ADHD struggles in an adult’s personal life.

Megan is a Certified Advanced Alcohol and Drug Counselor. She has worked with a wide range of addiction and impulse control issues and finds they are often related to underlying mental health concerns or trauma. Megan will work with clients to identify these issues and construct treatment plan goals surrounding these issues.

Megan believes that recovery is possible for everyone. Her approach focuses on a biopsychosocial humanistic approach to recovery. Using her humanistic perspective, Megan incorporates the biopsychosocial protective factors that every client inherently has and works with her clients to mitigate the risk factors present at the beginning of treatment through various exercises and treatment plan goals and objectives.

Megan will also use the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) Criteria to determine the client’s appropriateness for outpatient treatment and will refer clients to inpatient treatment for substance abuse if this is warranted based on a robust ASAM review. ASAM Criteria is criteria that determines a client’s appropriateness for inpatient or outpatient treatment due to their ranking on six dimensions. The six dimensions are as follows:

Dimension 1: Intoxication/Withdrawal
Dimension 2: Biomedical Needs
Dimension 3: Emotional/Cognitive/Behavioral Concerns
Dimension 4: Readiness to Change
Dimension 5: Risk for Relapse/Continued Use
Dimension 6: Social Support/Recovery Living Environment

Megan finds that the more “yes” answer’s clients have to the following questions, the more likely their addictive behavior has grown into a developing substance abuse problem:

Do you find yourself craving the substance or being anxious/depressed when you cannot get the substance or engage in the activity (i.e., gambling; sex)
Do you find that you need more of the substance to achieve the desired effects?
Do you continue to use despite irrefutable consequences to your health, relationships, social, and occupational life?
Do you find that you frequently engage in the substance/activity longer than intended or take more than you meant to?
Do you spend a great deal of time trying to get the substance, recover from its effects, or use the substance or do the activity?
Do your mental health concerns get worse when you engage in the substance/activity or alternatively, do they go away when you use the substance or engage in the activity?

If you answered yes to many of these questions, you might have a substance abuse problem. Megan will work with you to help mitigate these risk factors and help you maintain your goals whether they are moderation management or sobriety.

Megan Spees

Counselor Megan Spees

Megan Spees, M.A., LLP, CAADC, CCTSI, is a Limited Licensed Psychologist who received her master’s degree in clinical counseling psychology from Michigan School of Professional Psychology. Megan is a Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor (CAADC) and a Certified Clinical Trauma Specialist (CCTSI).

Private, Safe, Confidential Counseling

Megan's Counseling Services

Megan's Specialties

Individual/Family Therapy

Marriage Therapy

Alcohol and Drug Counselor (CAADC)

Certified Clinical Trauma Specialist – Individual (CCTSI)

EMDR

Megan's Qualifications & Training

Contact Us Today To See How You Can Get Started.

We are ready when you are!

Megan Spees, MA, LLP, CAADC, CCTSI specializes in:

Trauma may include, but is not limited to:

Anxiety can have many symptoms including:

Megan's Professional Counseling Memberships

Psychology Today

Arizona Trauma Institute (Member Since: 2021)

Michigan Mental Health Counselors Association

American Psychological Association (Member Since: 2021)

American Counseling Association

Client Center

Groups/Seminars

Office Hours