Kristen Tarquin

You do not need to arrive with a tidy story. We slow down and sort what is weighing you down. I listen carefully, and I also help you organise your thoughts, identify patterns, and make sense of what is going on. Sessions are thoughtful and direct. I am not interested in processing for its own sake. The aim is clearer thinking, steadier decisions, and some relief from constant pressure.

Inside that conversation I use cognitive behavioural strategies, acceptance and mindfulness-informed techniques, and a strengths-based view. They are tools for the problem you brought, not a script I run the same way every week. We look at anxiety, low mood, attention, a transition, or the strain of caregiving, and we tie the hour to what would actually help.

The first appointment is an initial evaluation: history that matters, what brings you now, and the goals you want treatment to serve. It is also where we both decide whether the fit feels right, and where we start a plan.

We review the history that is relevant, talk about what is bringing you to therapy now, and look at your goals for treatment. Just as important, we get to know each other and decide whether the fit feels right. Together we begin a plan for how to move forward.

Many people get in touch simply because something is hard to manage alone. The first meeting is the place to talk that through and decide together whether therapy is a good fit. A sense that life is harder to manage than it should be is enough to begin.

I work with adults who are capable and managing a lot, and who still feel overwhelmed, stuck, or stretched too thin. Often that is work, family or caregiving stacked together, with anxiety, depression, attention-related challenges such as ADHD, a life transition, or caregiver stress underneath.

The fit is best if you want a practical, steady conversation. I listen, and I also help you organise what feels jumbled. I work with one adult at a time.

I bring a thoughtful, direct, focused style, and a licence as a psychologist in Maryland, with PSYPACT authorisation for telehealth in participating states.

I would rather we make the next decision clearer than spend the hour circling the same story.

I am a licensed psychologist in Maryland. I also hold PSYPACT authority to practise telepsychology in participating states.

Over the course of my career I have worked in private practice, in inpatient and outpatient mental health settings, and in school systems. In those places I have supported individuals, families and professionals. The practice I offer now is telehealth for adults, focused on anxiety, depression, attention-related challenges such as ADHD, life transitions and caregiver stress.