Our trusted and professional staff focuses on growth and caring. We work with patients of all ages to improve their standard of living, regardless of their diagnosis. The clinicians work with each family to allow patients to express their emotions and work towards healthy coping methods.
Amanda Knapp, LPC, CPCS
Amanda Knapp worked in community mental health in Cleveland, OH with child clients with severe trauma for 6 years. She found working in Care Coordination at the Marcus Autism Center (CHOA) in Atlanta for 3 years to be very rewarding. Due to her background in child and family development, Amanda has an eclectic approach, drawing from Jungian theory to Trauma-Based Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT).
Amanda is a Licensed Professional Counselor, has two Master’s degrees: one from the University of Georgia in Child and Family Development (2004) and one in Art Therapy and Counseling from Ursuline College in Pepper Pike, OH (2008). She has been practicing Counseling and Art Therapy since 2008, and has received her Certified Professional Counseling Supervisor (CPCS) license in 2018. Her specialties include Art Therapy, Trauma, Abuse and Neglect, Mood disorders (Depression, Anxiety, ADHD, etc.), Early Childhood Mental Health (age 0-6), Adoption work, Attachment and Bonding, Maternal Depression, and Autism.
Amanda practices daily self-care, including Compassion Based Cognitive Therapy and mindfulness, art and crafts of all kinds and art journalism. She enjoys travel, the theater, and considers working with clients as an honor and a privilege.
Annette Soto, LPC
Annette Soto, was born and raised in New York City. She loved being exposed to a melting pot of cultures, different ideologies, and many different kinds of families. Coming from a broken home, where divorce was not managed correctly and society imposing a beauty different from her own, she looked for ways to cope and manage, sometimes coming up short. She recalls all the times she struggled, needing someone to aid in her path to face fear and pain. As she grew older and saw injustices due to race and social status, she decided to become a lawyer. She began studies at John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York.
A change of personal events caused Annette to leave and go live in Puerto Rico. Insecure of her abilities at the time and lack of financial stability, she changed her professional goal. She still wanted to help others in society, so she changed her major to Sociology with a minor in Criminal Justice. Circumstances guided Annette to return for a second degree in Education. Annette took a job in a bilingual school as an English teacher and found that teens/children connected easily with her. Working in the private and public sector of education, she felt moved to be something more than a teacher (helping with dysfunctional families, children with learning disabilities, insecurities, bullying, suicide, etc.). She returned to college and obtained a Masters degree in Counseling and completed her LPC.
Annette feels a calling to guide and orient others through difficulties, strive to continue to grow and learn in the field, and provide a safe environment where clients are not judged and accepted. She has had over 20 years of experience working with teens and children. She works also with adults and with a variety of needs such as Anxiety, Anger Management, ADHD, Depression, Divorce Management for kids/teens, and several others. Her motto is: “We Are Born With A Purpose” and strives to be a grain of sand in her client’s journey.
Carolyn Heinl, LPC, MAC, CPCS
Carolyn Heinl, LPC MAC CPCS started working with at-risk youth in residential settings in Virginia in 1999 and was deeply moved at the level of intensive work needed for stabilization to help these young people successfully return home and navigate their circumstances to make better decisions moving forward. The number of challenges many clients face with inter-generational trauma and the inability to meet primary needs is a major factor in the likely outcomes for most of these individuals, and keeping families able to attend to each other and move their relationships forward during tumultuous circumstances.
Carolyn earned her BA from King College in Psychology in 1999 with a research focus on Animal Assisted Therapy and an MA in Counseling Psychology conferred by the Georgia School of Professional Psychology in 2004. She has held Master Addictions Counselor (MAC) and Certified Professional Counseling Supervisor (CPCS) certifications since 2018.
Carolyn worked on the team to develop the dedicated Crisis Behavioral Health division for the University System of Georgia plan at Anthem from it’s inception through the spring of 2016, when she and Justin Glaeser co-founded Comprehensive Care, with her as its Chief Clinical Officer. She speaks regularly in community and private forums on trauma and resilience and is a therapist in practice, with a diverse cultural and religious client population. Carolyn places a high value on incorporating the client’s family of origin values, positive attitudes about gender, cultural identity, and sexuality, and how youth can incorporate these values into making their own positive choices. She enjoys scuba diving, fostering pets, and being a mom to two really great kids.
Kateece Freeman, LPC, NCC
Kateece Freeman has over 14 years of experience working with children, youth, adolescents, individuals, and couples. Her work history is comprised of private practice, eating disorders, schools, non-profit, for-profit, residential, judicial and state agencies. She realizes her passion has not only fueled her purpose; however, her desire and commitment to help others is a gift from God.
Kateece is a graduate of Argosy University where she secured her MA in Community Counseling. She is certified in Aggression Replacement Training (ART) to facilitate groups and is fluent in group-work. A licensed therapist who is one of the first FFT therapist to initiate Functional Family Therapeutic Services in Atlanta Georgia, Kateece enjoys work with children and families, navigating the complex relationships between members of natural and blended families, resolving conflicts, and guiding families through difficult circumstances.
At the core of her values is servitude and working to effect change supporting individuals in their journey of self. Kateece uses Person-Centered and Cognitive Behavioral interventions as well as Family Systems theory in her work. She enjoys being a mother, laughter, fashion, art, exercise, and travel. Her motivational quote: “See your abilities with no ceilings and know laughter heals.”
Melanie Jerez Sherrill, LPC
Melanie has a passion for helping others which began at a young age and deeply developed throughout her teen and adult life. As a youngster, she often had difficulty expressing her feelings, and her father taught her how to think critically, love unconditionally, never judge, and how to use other forms of self-expression, like art and writing. Melanie was introduced to AA meetings and found comfort and safety to express her thoughts with her father’s life lessons and knew helping others achieve their comfort and safety through therapy was her path.
Melanie earned her BS in Psychology at Florida State University in 2015 and MS in Counseling with a concentration in mental health at NOVA Southeastern University in 2019. Melanie is Trilingual (English/Spanish/French). She has extensive experience working with adults and elderly who struggle with substance abuse, schizophrenia, bipolar, personality disorders, depression, anxiety, along with major life transitions and end-of-life decisions. Melanie’s work with children and adolescents includes depression, anxiety, trauma/PTSD, school behavior concerns, and sexual identity.
Melanie will explore and talk about negative thoughts and behaviors and will guide her client with resources and techniques to alleviate the symptoms her clients are experiencing using play-, talk-, and/or art- therapy. Melanie provides a judgment free zone, with a feeling of safety, comfort, and an open mind.
Melanie enjoys practicing self care through painting, dancing, singing, travelling, and binge watching TV shows with her husband and her fur-baby, Maddy.
Stacy Troutt, LPC, NCC, CPCS
Stacy Troutt was raised in Paulding County and began her counseling endeavors wanting to help children of divorce. She fell in love with the process of diagnosing and treating severe mental illness in the adult inpatient setting. Stacy loves to explore the way anxiety manifests physically and is passionate about exploring the ways it influences the body through biofeedback and integration.
Stacy obtained her BS in Psychology at Georgia College, then earned her MS in Clinical Mental Health Counseling at North Georgia College & State University. She has been a Licensed Professional Counselor since 2016. Stacy has worked with a wide variety of mental health issues. She has worked with adults with severe mental health issue including psychosis and substance abuse in both inpatient and partial hospitalization settings at Willowbrooke at Tanner. She has been primarily working with children ages 5-18 since 2017.
Stacy uses a wide variety of interventions with clients of all ages to address concerns including, but not limited to: self-harm, depression, anxiety, low self-esteem, and poor focus. She enjoys art therapy techniques and having a creative mind herself enjoys craft projects, contributing at her church in the choir, decorating and planning for weddings, events, mission work, and helping out with Vacation Bible School. Stacy loves baking, Mexican food, and her fur-babies Dobby and Charley.
Tiffany Brooks Arriola, LPC, CPCS
Tiffany has experience working with children, adolescents, adults, families, and Veterans since 2012. She began her career dedicated to helping emotionally and behaviorally troubled children and adolescents in a residential setting with the goal being to help children and their families live successfully. She then expanded her career by working at an inpatient crisis stabilization center and assisting those with mental, emotional and substance abuse conditions. Since then, Tiffany has gone on to work with Soldiers under the Department of the Army and Veterans under the Department of Veteran Affairs.
Tiffany is a graduate of the University of West Georgia where she obtained her MEd. in Community Counseling. Her experience includes CBT and DBT techniques, working with those who struggle with anxiety, depression, substance abuse, retirement, self-esteem, trauma/PTSD, oppositional defiance disorder, and family cohesion. She also enjoys play therapy and art therapy. Tiffany believes our goal in life is in the pursuit of happiness and peace in our lives and she strives to help people see their own path to that happiness and peace. She is an advocate for self-care and a healthy work/life balance. She has a passion for helping others improve relationships in their lives whether it be with their family or with themselves. Tiffany enjoys practicing mindfulness, creativity, and is a big fan of slowing down.