Sarah Alexander

Licensed Clinical Social Worker

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Our Team

Kelly Mach, LPC

My education, experience, and training

I received my Bachelor of Arts from Manhattan College in 2004 with a major in Secondary Education and English. I returned to Manhattan to complete my graduate coursework in counseling and became a Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC) in New York in 2013. Currently, I am a Licensed Professional Counselor in the State of Oregon. I have worked in several mental health settings, including a day habilitation program for adults with developmental disabilities, a substance abuse treatment clinic, outpatient therapy, and an educational and vocational program for young people with emotional and behavioral challenges. I am a trained facilitator with The Body Positive and a certified yoga instructor with specialization in mindfulness and meditation.

Kelly’s specialty areas include:

  • Anxiety and Depression
  • Body Image Issues and Health at Every Size
  • Women’s Issues (including pregnancy and postpartum issues)
  • Life Transitions
  • Stress Management

Modality:

I work with teens and adults (ages 12+) in individual counseling and group process.

Tools in Kelly’s therapeutic toolbox:

Valentina Pishchanskaya-Cayanan, LMFT

My education, experience, and training

I received my Bachelors of Arts  in Psychology from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas in 2011 and began working with individuals in the community as a psychosocial rehab specialist. I graduated with my Masters of Science in Marriage and Family Therapy in 2015. Currently, I am a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in the state of Oregon and will soon be fully licensed in Nevada as well. Throughout my experience I have provided individual and group therapy in educational and agency settings. My work has largely focused on teens and adults and helping them navigate through various challenges including anxiety, depression, family issues, LGBTQI issues, life stage transitions, and trauma. I am also able to do therapy in Russian and enjoy working with issues around multicultural challenges (first generation, immigration, cultural identity).

Valentina’s specialty areas include:

  • Anxiety & Depression
  • Multicultural Challenges (first generation, immigration, cultural identity)
  • Self-Image
  • Stages of Life Transitions
  • Sexual Orientation and Gender Issues
  • Women’s Issues
  • Able to do therapy in Russian

Modality:

I work teens and adults (ages 12 and up) in individual counseling. I work with couples that want help navigating changes or differences that don’t involve high interpersonal conflict.

Tools in Valentina’s therapeutic toolbox:

Sarah Alexander, LCSW

My education, experience, and training

I received my Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Virginia in 1995 with a double major in Psychology and Women’s Studies. I began practicing full-time as a therapist in 2001.  I received my Master of Social Work degree from Portland State University in 2005 and have been a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) in the state of Oregon since 2008. I have worked in a community mental health setting for substance abuse, a partial hospitalization intensive day-treatment setting for eating disorders, and a university counseling center. I taught the Mind-Body Connections course to graduate counseling students in the Eating Disorder Certificate track at Lewis and Clark College, co-facilitate a group at Abri Radically Open DBT, and am collaborating with Karla McLaren to develop a Practitioner Track for teaching The Language of Emotions to counseling professionals around the world. I also volunteer at Clear Transitions (an organization that helps women receive basic information and resources for navigating divorce) and have served on the Board for the Columbia River Eating Disorder Network since 2015. I am the owner and founder of Brave Acorn.

Sarah’s specialty areas include:

  • Anxiety & Depression
  • Body Image Issues & Eating Disorders (please read this description of my general approach to these issues)
  • Sexual Orientation and Gender Issues
  • Trauma (however, I do not work with people who have Dissociative Identity Disorder as it is outside my scope of practice)

Modality:

I work only with adults (i.e. people who are no longer living with, nor financially dependent upon, their parents) in individual counseling.

Tools in Sarah’s therapeutic toolbox: