About Peggy
Thoughtful work. Honest conversation. Practical change.
I am an experienced, active, collaborative therapist. I will listen closely—and I will also ask questions, offer observations, and help us stay focused on what you want therapy to change.
Peggy DeCarlis
I do not see therapy as something done by an expert to a passive recipient. You remain the authority on your own life. My role is to bring attention, experience, candor, curiosity, and a willingness to help us look directly at the patterns that are not serving you.
We regularly ask whether the work is helping. Insight is valuable, but the point is not to become endlessly better at explaining yourself. The point is to have more room to choose what you do next.
I earned my master's degree from the Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences at Case Western Reserve University.
Acceptance & Commitment Therapy
Making room for what is difficult—without handing it the steering wheel.
My primary approach is Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, often called ACT. In ordinary language, ACT helps us notice the thoughts, feelings, memories, and urges that show up—and change our relationship with them.
The goal is not to eliminate every difficult thought or emotion. That is rarely possible, and the struggle to control inner experience can become its own trap. Instead, we practice responding differently so anxiety, self-doubt, grief, or old stories no longer dictate every choice.
We clarify what matters, build the ability to stay present, and take workable steps toward the life and relationships you want. I integrate relational approaches and practical skills when useful. In couples work, I also draw from Relational Life Therapy (RLT).
Good therapy should increase your ability to understand and trust yourself—not create indefinite dependence on the therapist.
Could this be a fit?