Laurie Darling, Ph.D.

I love working with kids and adults to give them answers – whether your questions are about academic performance, learning, attention, mood, physical issues, or social functioning – you name it.

I can help you better understand your psychological functioning by completing a thorough assessment – identifying your learning style, behavioral habits, cognitive ability, mood, personality traits, thought patterns – so that together, we can develop a plan of action that will get you the results you want and outcomes that lead you to meeting your goals and being the best version of yourself.

Whether you are trying to figure out if you or your child has ADHD, a learning disorder, depression/anxiety, intellectual giftedness, bipolar disorder, or autism, it is my privilege to give you answers.

Once we have a clear picture of your psychological functioning, then I can help you develop an individualized treatment plan based on that data so you can meet your goals. It is geared toward overcoming obstacles, putting supports in place, solving problems, enhancing self-esteem, and increasing coping skills so you can be happy, healthy, and successful – to thrive, from the inside out! I like to call it a “plan of attack.”

Get back to feeling yourself. Reach your true potential. Become a boss. Take over the world. Or just get a decent night’s sleep for once! I am here to support you in a caring, nonjudgmental way, and I will meet you right where you are in life. But I will also provide you with techniques, feedback, tools, ideas, and strategies to keep you moving forward toward your goals.

I believe in continuity of care – working with other important professionals in your life to address the whole person and not just one part, both through making and receiving referrals. Here are some examples:

•  I help primary care physicians and family nurse practitioners to support their patients in managing acute and chronic medical conditions, following a healthcare plan, and being more physically fit – using science-based and data-driven cognitive, emotional, and behavioral strategies.
• Alongside teachers and school professionals, I help to identify whether students need additional support and intervention or would benefit from accommodations in the classroom to be more successful academically.
• I work with physicians to assess patients prior to surgical procedures (e.g., bariatric/weight loss, spine surgery, spinal cord stimulator) to identify barriers, support them if needed during/after their procedure, and maximize the chance for their surgery to be successful.
• As a partner with a Louisiana-based company, Spartan Services, I provide psychological evaluations to first-responder and law enforcement agencies to ensure the optimal fit of applicants for those positions.

In treatment with adults through individual therapy, I work largely from a holistic approach, using the biopsychosocial framework. That basically means that we conceptualize health (and alternatively, illness) as the result of an interaction between biological, psychological, and social factors.

As a result, I focus on all aspects of a person, understanding that there is often a complicated interplay between their body, mind, and spirit as well as the surrounding environment and people. In therapy, I generally work within a cognitive-behavioral and eclectic framework, including skills training and education related to areas such as stress management, thought identification and restructuring, mindfulness, self-care, present centeredness, self-esteem building, sleep hygiene, developing and maintaining a healthy lifestyle, and world domination. That last one is not covered by insurance, FYI.

“Head” promoter? No pun intended! If you’ve finally made the decision to seek out help, I know you’re serious about changing your life. You are tired of the status quo, done with falling short of your potential, and fed up with feeling worried, uncertain, unhappy, or “less than.” You are motivated to change, to be a better version of yourself – one that is healthy, happy, and enjoying life. I am a firm believer that happiness is less determined by your circumstances than it is by your perception of those circumstances. You can find peace, joy, and contentment in any area of your life if you manage your thinking and optimize your daily functioning. I can’t and won’t change you, or your life, but I can teach you how to make better choices in your thinking and behavior to feel and do better. To thrive, from the inside out!